Convenience Fees to Maryland Residents
It
is recommended that you download and read the Notice from the Maryland
Commissioner and follow closely future guidance from ACA on this
subject.
The
Maryland Commissioner of Financial Regulation cites the case law in Ashly Alexander, et. al. v. Carrington Mortgage Services, LLC,
Case No. 20-2359 (4th Circuit, Jan. 19, 2022)
It
appears that the Maryland Commissioner of Financial Regulation has
interpreted the Ashly case law to include payments made to collection
agencies. Recommendation is to talk to your compliance attorney for
direction. However, it appears that collection agencies should
immediately stop charging convenience fees on any form of payment made
by a Maryland resident on a consumer collection account. Further, if you
have a vendor who processes your payments, you should make sure the
vendor is not charging fees on Maryland consumer payments.
D.C. City Council Passes Final Debt Collection Legislation Taking Effect in 2023
ACA International reports that on Tuesday, June 7, 2022, the DC council unanimously approved the “Protecting Consumers from Unjust Debt Collection Practices Amendment Act of 2022. While
there was action on a “permanent” bill on June 7, it won’t take effect
until next year and the council essentially extended the current
“temporary” legislation the industry has already been working under by
passing a new temporary bill to bridge the gap until the new legislation
takes effect in January. ACA is reviewing the final legislation and
amendments. Read more.