Blog/ Litigation Stats

Quick analysis: 

Complaint Statistics:

22347 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 939 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Jan 01, 2025 to Jan 31, 2025.

• 22347 CFPB Complaints
• 311 FDCPA, 12 Class Action (3.9%)
• 207 TCPA, 172 Class Action (83.1%)
• 564 FCRA, 11 Class Action (2.0%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 939 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 393, or (42%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 7409 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 147 different US District Court branches.
• About 633 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 58 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 57 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 51 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 44 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 30 Lawsuits: Indiana Southern District Court – Indianapolis
• 29 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Eastern Division – Riverside
• 26 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Miami
• 26 Lawsuits: Texas Southern District Court – Houston
• 25 Lawsuits: Nevada District Court – Las Vegas
• 25 Lawsuits: New York Eastern District Court – Brooklyn

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 40 Consumers: GERALD DONALD LANE
• Representing 24 Consumers: FAARIS KAMAL UDDIN
• Representing 22 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 19 Consumers: ANTHONY PARONICH
• Representing 18 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 16 Consumers: GERALD D LANE
• Representing 14 Consumers: GERARDO AVALOS
• Representing 14 Consumers: GEORGE HAINES
• Representing 13 Consumers: DAVID W HEMMINGER
• Representing 12 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS

Statistics Year to Date:
982 total lawsuits for 2025, including:

• 311 FDCPA
• 564 FCRA
• 207 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2025: 939 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 40 Consumers: GERALD DONALD LANE
• Representing 24 Consumers: FAARIS KAMAL UDDIN
• Representing 22 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 19 Consumers: ANTHONY PARONICH
• Representing 18 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 16 Consumers: GERALD D LANE
• Representing 14 Consumers: GERARDO AVALOS
• Representing 14 Consumers: GEORGE HAINES
• Representing 13 Consumers: DAVID W HEMMINGER
• Representing 12 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS

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CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 22347 complaints filed against debt collectors from Jan 01, 2025 to Jan 31, 2025.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 1037

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 11296 I do not know (51%)
• 3693 Credit card debt (17%)
• 3234 Other debt (14%)
• 1056 Rental debt (5%)
• 1019 Telecommunications debt (5%)
• 881 Medical debt (4%)
• 715 Auto debt (3%)
• 252 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 78 Private student loan debt (0%)
• 62 Mortgage debt (0%)
• 61 Federal student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 9797 Attempts to collect debt not owed (44%)
• 5130 Written notification about debt (23%)
• 3626 False statements or representation (16%)
• 2245 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (10%)
• 932 Communication tactics (4%)
• 381 Electronic communications (2%)
• 236 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 5675 Debt is not yours (25%)
• 3407 Attempted to collect wrong amount (15%)
• 3020 Debt was result of identity theft (14%)
• 2478 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (11%)
• 1682 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (8%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 4028 Complaints: TX
• 2486 Complaints: FL
• 2000 Complaints: GA
• 1566 Complaints: CA
• 968 Complaints: NY
• 906 Complaints: IL
• 827 Complaints: PA
• 777 Complaints: NC
• 646 Complaints: OH
• 609 Complaints: MI

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 10896 Closed with explanation (49%)
• 8204 In progress (37%)
• 3100 Closed with non-monetary relief (14%)
• 112 Untimely response (1%)
• 35 Closed with monetary relief (0%)

This includes 22090 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 257 (1%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis: 

Complaint Statistics:

16587 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 857 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Dec 01, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024.

• 16587 CFPB Complaints
• 289 FDCPA, 21 Class Action (7.3%)
• 191 TCPA, 163 Class Action (85.3%)
• 542 FCRA, 48 Class Action (8.9%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 857 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 359, or (42%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 3785 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 148 different US District Court branches.
• About 572 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 43 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 43 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 35 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 32 Lawsuits: New York Eastern District Court – Brooklyn
• 31 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 28 Lawsuits: Nevada District Court – Las Vegas
• 28 Lawsuits: Pennsylvania Eastern District Court – Philadelphia
• 24 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Miami
• 23 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Fort Lauderdale
• 22 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Southern Division – Santa Ana

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 46 Consumers: MARK ANDREW DICELLO
• Representing 35 Consumers: GERALD DONALD LANE
• Representing 29 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 27 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 26 Consumers: FAARIS KAMAL UDDIN
• Representing 18 Consumers: GERALD D LANE
• Representing 17 Consumers: MICHAEL FREDERICK CARDOZA
• Representing 14 Consumers: GERARDO AVALOS
• Representing 14 Consumers: GEORGE HAINES
• Representing 13 Consumers: OMAR F DARWICH

Statistics Year to Date:
10352 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 4207 FDCPA
• 6092 FCRA
• 2788 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 10289 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 942 Consumers: JAMES S WERTHEIM
• Representing 942 Consumers: THOMAS WILLIAM ALVORD
• Representing 941 Consumers: MITCHELL D WEST
• Representing 941 Consumers: REBECCA EVANS
• Representing 941 Consumers: CRYSTAL L COOKE
• Representing 286 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 132 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY
• Representing 128 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS
• Representing 128 Consumers: YITZCHAK ZELMAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN

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CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 16587 complaints filed against debt collectors from Dec 01, 2024 to Dec 31, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 960

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 8770 I do not know (53%)
• 2502 Other debt (15%)
• 2495 Credit card debt (15%)
• 748 Telecommunications debt (5%)
• 648 Rental debt (4%)
• 602 Medical debt (4%)
• 513 Auto debt (3%)
• 159 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 51 Mortgage debt (0%)
• 51 Federal student loan debt (0%)
• 48 Private student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 7060 Attempts to collect debt not owed (43%)
• 3709 Written notification about debt (22%)
• 3187 False statements or representation (19%)
• 1558 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (9%)
• 652 Communication tactics (4%)
• 265 Electronic communications (2%)
• 156 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 4154 Debt is not yours (25%)
• 3037 Attempted to collect wrong amount (18%)
• 2090 Debt was result of identity theft (13%)
• 1865 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (11%)
• 1130 Threatened or suggested your credit would be damaged (7%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 2744 Complaints: TX
• 1902 Complaints: FL
• 1465 Complaints: GA
• 1191 Complaints: CA
• 653 Complaints: NY
• 644 Complaints: IL
• 621 Complaints: PA
• 533 Complaints: MI
• 505 Complaints: NC
• 489 Complaints: SC

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 10847 Closed with explanation (65%)
• 4101 Closed with non-monetary relief (25%)
• 1527 In progress (9%)
• 75 Untimely response (0%)
• 37 Closed with monetary relief (0%)

This includes 16372 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 215 (1%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis:

Complaint Statistics:

15778 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 1665 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Nov 01, 2024 to Nov 30, 2024.

• 15778 CFPB Complaints
• 285 FDCPA, 31 Class Action (10.9%)
• 1088 TCPA, 1039 Class Action (95.5%)
• 439 FCRA, 5 Class Action (1.1%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 1665 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 1020, or (61%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 6723 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 141 different US District Court branches.
• About 517 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 57 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 33 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 29 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 27 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 25 Lawsuits: California Southern District Court – San Diego
• 24 Lawsuits: Indiana Southern District Court – Indianapolis
• 23 Lawsuits: Alabama Northern District Court – Southern
• 21 Lawsuits: Pennsylvania Eastern District Court – Philadelphia
• 21 Lawsuits: Texas Northern District Court – Dallas
• 20 Lawsuits: New York Eastern District Court – Brooklyn

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 941 Consumers: JAMES S WERTHEIM
• Representing 941 Consumers: MITCHELL D WEST
• Representing 941 Consumers: CRYSTAL L COOKE
• Representing 941 Consumers: REBECCA EVANS
• Representing 941 Consumers: THOMAS WILLIAM ALVORD
• Representing 19 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY
• Representing 18 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS
• Representing 16 Consumers: JOHN G WATTS
• Representing 15 Consumers: CHRISTOPHER NEIL ARMOR
• Representing 15 Consumers: TODD M FRIEDMAN

Statistics Year to Date:
9456 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 3918 FDCPA
• 5550 FCRA
• 2597 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 9550 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 942 Consumers: THOMAS WILLIAM ALVORD
• Representing 942 Consumers: JAMES S WERTHEIM
• Representing 941 Consumers: REBECCA EVANS
• Representing 941 Consumers: MITCHELL D WEST
• Representing 941 Consumers: CRYSTAL L COOKE
• Representing 259 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 128 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY
• Representing 127 Consumers: MELKON RAFI MELKONIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: HAROUT GREG KEOSIAN

——————————————————————————————————-
CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 15778 complaints filed against debt collectors from Nov 01, 2024 to Nov 30, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 927

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 9033 I do not know (57%)
• 2174 Credit card debt (14%)
• 1993 Other debt (13%)
• 731 Telecommunications debt (5%)
• 617 Rental debt (4%)
• 520 Medical debt (3%)
• 405 Auto debt (3%)
• 158 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 55 Federal student loan debt (0%)
• 52 Mortgage debt (0%)
• 40 Private student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 6175 Attempts to collect debt not owed (39%)
• 3820 False statements or representation (24%)
• 3543 Written notification about debt (22%)
• 1366 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (9%)
• 553 Communication tactics (4%)
• 198 Electronic communications (1%)
• 123 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 3720 Debt is not yours (24%)
• 3666 Attempted to collect wrong amount (23%)
• 1720 Debt was result of identity theft (11%)
• 1693 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (11%)
• 1117 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (7%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 2780 Complaints: TX
• 1700 Complaints: FL
• 1464 Complaints: GA
• 1220 Complaints: CA
• 731 Complaints: IL
• 676 Complaints: NY
• 558 Complaints: PA
• 480 Complaints: SC
• 470 Complaints: NC
• 456 Complaints: MI

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 10932 Closed with explanation (69%)
• 4106 Closed with non-monetary relief (26%)
• 572 In progress (4%)
• 138 Untimely response (1%)
• 30 Closed with monetary relief (0%)

This includes 15470 (98%) timely responses to complaints, and 308 (2%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis: Everything Up in Oct and YTD

October was an across-the-board up month, with CFPB complaints +5.6 in Oct and +119.3% YTD, TCPA suits +17.5% in Oct and +4.4% YTD, FDCPA suits +4.1% in Oct and +6.3% YTD and FCRA suits +2.1% in Oct and +10.1% YTD.

In other news, putative class actions represented 4% of FDCPA, 71.4%(!) of TCPA and 1.1% of FCRA lawsuits filed last month. TCPA class actions are still extraordinarily high, historically speaking. About 41% of all plaintiffs who filed suit last month had filed at least once before. And finally, Tampa, FL attorney Octavio Gomez again represented the most consumers in August (27) while keeping the top spot for representing the most consumers YTD (244).

Complaint Statistics:

16633 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 817 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Oct 01, 2024 to Oct 31, 2024.

• 16633 CFPB Complaints
• 329 FDCPA, 13 Class Action (4.0%)
• 161 TCPA, 115 Class Action (71.4%)
• 476 FCRA, 5 Class Action (1.1%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 817 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 335, or (41%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 5105 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 137 different US District Court branches.
• About 552 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 53 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 50 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 47 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 29 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 22 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Fort Lauderdale
• 22 Lawsuits: Pennsylvania Eastern District Court – Philadelphia
• 21 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Orlando
• 21 Lawsuits: Indiana Southern District Court – Indianapolis
• 20 Lawsuits: Texas Northern District Court – Dallas
• 19 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Eastern Division – Riverside

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 27 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 15 Consumers: JOHN THOMAS STEINKAMP
• Representing 15 Consumers: THOMAS JOHN PATTI
• Representing 14 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS
• Representing 14 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS
• Representing 13 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 13 Consumers: NATHAN CHARLES VOLHEIM
• Representing 13 Consumers: AVI ROBERT KAUFMAN
• Representing 13 Consumers: TODD M FRIEDMAN
• Representing 13 Consumers: JOEL S HALVORSEN

Statistics Year to Date:
8665 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 3632 FDCPA
• 5108 FCRA
• 1508 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 8004 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 244 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 127 Consumers: EILEEN KEUSSEYAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: MELKON RAFI MELKONIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: HAROUT GREG KEOSIAN
• Representing 116 Consumers: YITZCHAK ZELMAN
• Representing 112 Consumers: ELLIOT ELO
• Representing 109 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY
• Representing 107 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS
• Representing 102 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS

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CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 16633 complaints filed against debt collectors from Oct 01, 2024 to Oct 31, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 909

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 9368 I do not know (56%)
• 2327 Credit card debt (14%)
• 2198 Other debt (13%)
• 769 Telecommunications debt (5%)
• 652 Rental debt (4%)
• 640 Medical debt (4%)
• 370 Auto debt (2%)
• 160 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 56 Mortgage debt (0%)
• 55 Private student loan debt (0%)
• 38 Federal student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 6910 Attempts to collect debt not owed (42%)
• 4389 Written notification about debt (26%)
• 3126 False statements or representation (19%)
• 1217 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (7%)
• 642 Communication tactics (4%)
• 219 Electronic communications (1%)
• 130 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 4530 Debt is not yours (27%)
• 2993 Attempted to collect wrong amount (18%)
• 2348 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (14%)
• 1586 Debt was result of identity theft (10%)
• 1273 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (8%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 3201 Complaints: TX
• 1870 Complaints: FL
• 1462 Complaints: GA
• 1237 Complaints: CA
• 739 Complaints: IL
• 730 Complaints: NY
• 610 Complaints: PA
• 548 Complaints: NC
• 458 Complaints: MI
• 419 Complaints: NJ

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 9615 Closed with explanation (58%)
• 3774 Closed with non-monetary relief (23%)
• 3193 In progress (19%)
• 34 Untimely response (0%)
• 17 Closed with monetary relief (0%)

This includes 16503 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 130 (1%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis: Everything down in Sept, YTD still up

Other than CFPB complaints which were up +9.2% over August, everything we track had a slow month. TCPA suits were down -12.2% over August, FDCPA was down -17.1% and FCRA was down -1.3%. However, all are still up YTD over 2023, with TCPA +2.4%, FDCPA up +10% and FCRA +11.5%. CFPB complaints are up an astounding +110.6% over last year.

In other news, putative class actions represented 6% of FDCPA, 57.5%(!) of TCPA and 2.6% of FCRA lawsuits filed last month. About TCPA class actions are still extraordinarily high, historically speaking. About 42% of all plaintiffs who filed suit last month had filed at least once before. And finally, Tampa, FL attorney Octavio Gomez represented the most consumers in August (22) while keeping the top spot for representing the most consumers YTD (217).

Complaint Statistics:

15751 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 795 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Sep 01, 2024 to Sep 30, 2024.

• 15751 CFPB Complaints
• 316 FDCPA, 19 Class Action (6.0%)
• 137 TCPA, 79 Class Action (57.7%)
• 466 FCRA, 12 Class Action (2.6%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 795 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 336, or (42%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 2725 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 140 different US District Court branches.
• About 526 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 60 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 37 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 33 Lawsuits: Texas Southern District Court – Houston
• 32 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 28 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Southern Division – Santa Ana
• 26 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 23 Lawsuits: Indiana Southern District Court – Indianapolis
• 17 Lawsuits: California Southern District Court – San Diego
• 17 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Fort Lauderdale
• 17 Lawsuits: Michigan Eastern District Court – Detroit

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 22 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 15 Consumers: JOHN THOMAS STEINKAMP
• Representing 11 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 11 Consumers: BRITTANY LOVE
• Representing 10 Consumers: MARK A CAREY
• Representing 10 Consumers: YITZCHAK ZELMAN
• Representing 10 Consumers: SYED HASEEB HUSSAIN
• Representing 10 Consumers: JOEL S HALVORSEN
• Representing 10 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS
• Representing 9 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY

Statistics Year to Date:
7815 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 3303 FDCPA
• 4632 FCRA
• 1347 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 7299 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 217 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 127 Consumers: EILEEN KEUSSEYAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: HAROUT GREG KEOSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: MELKON RAFI MELKONIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN
• Representing 112 Consumers: ELLIOT ELO
• Representing 110 Consumers: YITZCHAK ZELMAN
• Representing 104 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY
• Representing 100 Consumers: EUGENE PATTERSON HARRIS
• Representing 100 Consumers: TAMAR G ARMINAK

——————————————————————————————————-
CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 15751 complaints filed against debt collectors from Sep 01, 2024 to Sep 30, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 929

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 7847 I do not know (50%)
• 2692 Other debt (17%)
• 2452 Credit card debt (16%)
• 740 Telecommunications debt (5%)
• 717 Rental debt (5%)
• 612 Medical debt (4%)
• 393 Auto debt (2%)
• 161 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 55 Mortgage debt (0%)
• 43 Private student loan debt (0%)
• 39 Federal student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 7137 Attempts to collect debt not owed (45%)
• 4776 Written notification about debt (30%)
• 2056 False statements or representation (13%)
• 865 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (5%)
• 587 Communication tactics (4%)
• 215 Electronic communications (1%)
• 115 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 4543 Debt is not yours (29%)
• 2671 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (17%)
• 1913 Attempted to collect wrong amount (12%)
• 1833 Debt was result of identity theft (12%)
• 1072 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (7%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 2864 Complaints: TX
• 1973 Complaints: FL
• 1412 Complaints: GA
• 1281 Complaints: CA
• 740 Complaints: IL
• 681 Complaints: NY
• 671 Complaints: PA
• 503 Complaints: NC
• 409 Complaints: MI
• 372 Complaints: AL

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 10353 Closed with explanation (66%)
• 4143 Closed with non-monetary relief (26%)
• 1153 In progress (7%)
• 75 Untimely response (0%)
• 27 Closed with monetary relief (0%)

This includes 15540 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 211 (1%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis: Everything Up in Aug and YTD

For the first time in several years, it is starting to look like the big three (TCPA, FDCPA and FCRA) may all have a year-over-year increase together. The next month or two will be more telling, but we’ll definitely keep an eye on this trend.

In August, TCPA was up 20.9% over July and 4.4% over this time last year. FDCPA was up 3.5% over July and 13.1% over this time last year. And FCRA was up 4% over July and 14.8% over this time last year.

In other news, putative class actions represented 6.6% of FDCPA, 66%(!) of TCPA and 3.6% of FCRA lawsuits filed last month. TCPA class actions are still extraordinarily high, historically speaking. About 39% of all plaintiffs who filed suit last month had filed at least once before. And finally, Coral Gables, FL attorney Avi Robert Kaufman represented the most consumers in August (20) While Tampa, FL attorney Octavio Gomez kept the top spot for representing the most consumers YTD (195).

Complaint Statistics:

13351 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 818 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Aug 01, 2024 to Aug 31, 2024.

• 13351 CFPB Complaints
• 381 FDCPA, 25 Class Action (6.6%)
• 156 TCPA, 103 Class Action (66.0%)
• 472 FCRA, 17 Class Action (3.6%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 818 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 318, or (39%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 1817 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 139 different US District Court branches.
• About 572 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 58 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 41 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 38 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 28 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 27 Lawsuits: Pennsylvania Eastern District Court – Philadelphia
• 24 Lawsuits: Texas Northern District Court – Dallas
• 23 Lawsuits: New York Eastern District Court – Brooklyn
• 22 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Orlando
• 21 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Southern Division – Santa Ana
• 21 Lawsuits: Indiana Southern District Court – Indianapolis

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 20 Consumers: AVI ROBERT KAUFMAN
• Representing 19 Consumers: ELLIOT ELO
• Representing 19 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 17 Consumers: YITZCHAK ZELMAN
• Representing 13 Consumers: ANDREW ROMAN PERRONG
• Representing 13 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS
• Representing 12 Consumers: JOHN THOMAS STEINKAMP
• Representing 11 Consumers: MATTHEW P FORSBERG
• Representing 11 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS
• Representing 11 Consumers: JOEL SPENCER HALVORSEN

Statistics Year to Date:
7020 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 2986 FDCPA
• 4166 FCRA
• 1210 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 6618 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 195 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 127 Consumers: MELKON RAFI MELKONIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: EILEEN KEUSSEYAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: HAROUT GREG KEOSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN
• Representing 112 Consumers: ELLIOT ELO
• Representing 100 Consumers: YITZCHAK ZELMAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: NELLY ISPIRYAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: EUGENE PATTERSON HARRIS
• Representing 100 Consumers: TAMAR G ARMINAK

——————————————————————————————————-
CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 13351 complaints filed against debt collectors from Aug 01, 2024 to Aug 31, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 893

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 5532 I do not know (41%)
• 2778 Other debt (21%)
• 2297 Credit card debt (17%)
• 753 Telecommunications debt (6%)
• 704 Rental debt (5%)
• 602 Medical debt (5%)
• 383 Auto debt (3%)
• 142 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 59 Federal student loan debt (0%)
• 53 Private student loan debt (0%)
• 48 Mortgage debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 6235 Attempts to collect debt not owed (47%)
• 4544 Written notification about debt (34%)
• 803 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (6%)
• 777 False statements or representation (6%)
• 624 Communication tactics (5%)
• 228 Electronic communications (2%)
• 140 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 3887 Debt is not yours (29%)
• 2751 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (21%)
• 1722 Debt was result of identity theft (13%)
• 940 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (7%)
• 853 Didnt receive notice of right to dispute (6%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 2244 Complaints: TX
• 1683 Complaints: FL
• 1132 Complaints: GA
• 1082 Complaints: CA
• 604 Complaints: NY
• 538 Complaints: PA
• 500 Complaints: IL
• 435 Complaints: NC
• 354 Complaints: AL
• 354 Complaints: OH

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 7415 Closed with explanation (56%)
• 3377 Closed with non-monetary relief (25%)
• 2431 In progress (18%)
• 93 Untimely response (1%)
• 35 Closed with monetary relief (0%)

This includes 13167 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 184 (1%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis: Mixed Numbers in July, Everything Up YTD

In July, TCPA (-14.6%) and FCRA (-8.5%) were both down, while FDCPA (+21.9%) was up. Meanwhile all three are still up YTD (TCPA +5.2%, FDCPA +15.1%, FCRA +17.7%). If things keep going this way, we’ll have the first “up” year across the board since at least 2015!

In other news, putative class actions represented 2.7% of FDCPA, 61.2%(!) of TCPA and 2.2% of FCRA lawsuits filed last month. TCPA class actions are still extraordinarily high, historically speaking. About 37% of all plaintiffs who filed suit last month had filed at least once before. And finally, Tampa attorney Octavio Gomez once again represented the most consumers in July (22) and for representing the most consumers YTD (176).

Complaint Statistics:

11444 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 834 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Jul 01, 2024 to Jul 31, 2024.

• 11444 CFPB Complaints
• 368 FDCPA, 10 Class Action (2.7%)
• 129 TCPA, 79 Class Action (61.2%)
• 454 FCRA, 10 Class Action (2.2%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 834 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 305, or (37%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 2219 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 143 different US District Court branches.
• About 583 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 62 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 35 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 28 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Orlando
• 27 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 24 Lawsuits: New York Eastern District Court – Brooklyn
• 22 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 21 Lawsuits: Texas Northern District Court – Dallas
• 20 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Fort Lauderdale
• 19 Lawsuits: California Southern District Court – San Diego
• 19 Lawsuits: New Jersey District Court – Newark

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 22 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 22 Consumers: ELLIOT ELO
• Representing 15 Consumers: JEFF POTTS
• Representing 15 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 13 Consumers: BRIAN JOSEPH HOLLAND
• Representing 13 Consumers: MATTHEW RYAN MCCARLEY
• Representing 13 Consumers: MATTHEW FORSBERG
• Representing 13 Consumers: STEVEN HOWARD KOVAL
• Representing 12 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS
• Representing 12 Consumers: GLORIA CHI-KI LAM

Statistics Year to Date:
6173 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 2605 FDCPA
• 3694 FCRA
• 1054 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 5901 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 176 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 127 Consumers: EILEEN KEUSSEYAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: HAROUT GREG KEOSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: MELKON RAFI MELKONIAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: ZHENYA A BAGDASARYAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: TAMAR G ARMINAK
• Representing 100 Consumers: EUGENE PATTERSON HARRIS
• Representing 100 Consumers: NELLY ISPIRYAN
• Representing 93 Consumers: ELLIOT ELO

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CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 11444 complaints filed against debt collectors from Jul 01, 2024 to Jul 31, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 808

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 4262 I do not know (37%)
• 2427 Other debt (21%)
• 2328 Credit card debt (20%)
• 653 Telecommunications debt (6%)
• 598 Rental debt (5%)
• 546 Medical debt (5%)
• 331 Auto debt (3%)
• 152 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 69 Mortgage debt (1%)
• 43 Federal student loan debt (0%)
• 35 Private student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 5465 Attempts to collect debt not owed (48%)
• 4036 Written notification about debt (35%)
• 679 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (6%)
• 525 False statements or representation (5%)
• 462 Communication tactics (4%)
• 145 Electronic communications (1%)
• 132 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 3383 Debt is not yours (30%)
• 2000 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (17%)
• 1492 Debt was result of identity theft (13%)
• 1019 Didnt receive notice of right to dispute (9%)
• 1017 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (9%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 1822 Complaints: TX
• 1458 Complaints: FL
• 968 Complaints: CA
• 899 Complaints: GA
• 619 Complaints: PA
• 525 Complaints: NY
• 405 Complaints: IL
• 389 Complaints: VA
• 362 Complaints: NC
• 298 Complaints: OH

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 6516 Closed with explanation (57%)
• 2621 Closed with non-monetary relief (23%)
• 2268 In progress (20%)
• 25 Closed with monetary relief (0%)
• 14 Untimely response (0%)

This includes 11370 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 74 (1%) untimely responses.

Quick analysis: Everything Down in June, Yet Up YTD

Not sure we’ve seen this one before! in June, every consumer complaint statute we track was down (TCPA -7.4%, FDCPA -32.1%, FCRA -9.2%), yet every one of them was still up year to date (TCPA +8.6%, FDCPA +15.4%, FCRA +21.1%).

In other news, putative class actions represented 5.6% of FDCPA, 65.6%(!) of TCPA and 3.8% of FCRA lawsuits filed last month. TCPA class actions are still extraordinarily high, historically speaking. About 41% of all plaintiffs who filed suit last month had filed at least once before. And finally, Tampa attorney Octavio Gomez represented the most consumers in June (25) and for representing the most consumers YTD (154).

Complaint Statistics:

10836 consumers filed CFPB complaints, and about 782 consumers filed lawsuits under consumer statutes from Jun 01, 2024 to Jun 30, 2024.

• 10836 CFPB Complaints
• 302 FDCPA, 17 Class Action (5.6%)
• 151 TCPA, 99 Class Action (65.6%)
• 496 FCRA, 19 Class Action (3.8%)

Litigation Summary (scroll down for CFPB data):

• Of those cases, there were about 782 unique plaintiffs (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit).
• Of those plaintiffs, about 322, or (41%), had sued under consumer statutes before.
• Combined, those plaintiffs have filed about 4414 lawsuits since 2001
• Actions were filed in 142 different US District Court branches.
• About 576 different collection firms and creditors were sued.

The top courts where lawsuits were filed:

• 63 Lawsuits: Georgia Northern District Court – Atlanta
• 47 Lawsuits: Illinois Northern District Court – Chicago
• 30 Lawsuits: California Central District Court – Western Division – Los Angeles
• 29 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Tampa
• 26 Lawsuits: New Jersey District Court – Camden
• 23 Lawsuits: Pennsylvania Eastern District Court – Philadelphia
• 22 Lawsuits: Florida Middle District Court – Orlando
• 22 Lawsuits: Florida Southern District Court – Fort Lauderdale
• 21 Lawsuits: Texas Northern District Court – Dallas
• 19 Lawsuits: Texas Southern District Court – Houston

The most active consumer attorneys were:

• Representing 25 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 13 Consumers: M STAN HERRING
• Representing 13 Consumers: ZANE CHARLES HEDAYA
• Representing 13 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY
• Representing 13 Consumers: JOHN G WATTS
• Representing 12 Consumers: CRAIG B SANDERS
• Representing 12 Consumers: FRANK H KERNEY
• Representing 12 Consumers: JONATHAN ALEXANDER HEEPS
• Representing 11 Consumers: GERALD DONALD LANE
• Representing 11 Consumers: DAVID J PHILIPPS

Statistics Year to Date:
5349 total lawsuits for 2024, including:

• 2237 FDCPA
• 3240 FCRA
• 925 TCPA

Number of Unique Plaintiffs for 2024: 5154 (including multiple plaintiffs in one suit)

The most active consumer attorneys of the year:

• Representing 154 Consumers: OCTAVIO GOMEZ
• Representing 127 Consumers: ZAREH JACK KOUSIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: MELKON RAFI MELKONIAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: EILEEN KEUSSEYAN
• Representing 127 Consumers: HAROUT GREG KEOSIAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: ZHENYA A BAGDASARYAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: NELLY ISPIRYAN
• Representing 100 Consumers: EUGENE PATTERSON HARRIS
• Representing 100 Consumers: TAMAR G ARMINAK
• Representing 76 Consumers: MATTHEW THOMAS BERRY

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CFPB Complaint Statistics:

There were 10836 complaints filed against debt collectors from Jun 01, 2024 to Jun 30, 2024.

Total number of debt collectors complained about: 775

The types of debt behind the complaints were:

• 4651 I do not know (43%)
• 1976 Other debt (18%)
• 1976 Credit card debt (18%)
• 683 Telecommunications debt (6%)
• 520 Rental debt (5%)
• 507 Medical debt (5%)
• 287 Auto debt (3%)
• 111 Payday loan debt (1%)
• 47 Mortgage debt (0%)
• 44 Private student loan debt (0%)
• 34 Federal student loan debt (0%)

Here is a breakdown of complaints:

• 4917 Attempts to collect debt not owed (45%)
• 4103 Written notification about debt (38%)
• 636 Took or threatened to take negative or legal action (6%)
• 496 False statements or representation (5%)
• 447 Communication tactics (4%)
• 121 Electronic communications (1%)
• 116 Threatened to contact someone or share information improperly (1%)

The top five subissues were:

• 2939 Debt is not yours (27%)
• 2268 Notification didnt disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt (21%)
• 1455 Debt was result of identity theft (13%)
• 932 Didnt receive notice of right to dispute (9%)
• 903 Didnt receive enough information to verify debt (8%)

The top states complaints were filed from are:

• 1936 Complaints: TX
• 1333 Complaints: FL
• 1029 Complaints: CA
• 796 Complaints: GA
• 515 Complaints: PA
• 511 Complaints: NY
• 370 Complaints: VA
• 369 Complaints: IL
• 355 Complaints: NC
• 277 Complaints: AL

The status of the month’s complaints are as follows:

• 5701 Closed with explanation (53%)
• 2704 In progress (25%)
• 2391 Closed with non-monetary relief (22%)
• 35 Closed with monetary relief (0%)
• 5 Untimely response (0%)

This includes 10766 (99%) timely responses to complaints, and 70 (1%) untimely responses.