Stronger Protections Sought as Debt-Collection Complaints Rise
The Federal Trade Commission reiterated its call for legislative changes to strengthen consumer protections against abusive debt collection practices as it reported increased consumer complaints against debt collectors last year. The annual report summarizing the FTC’s administration and enforcement of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act revealed a 14 percent increase in the number of consumer complaints against unfair and deceptive third-party collection practices in 2005, including the collection of fees not provided for…