VII–3 Unfair Deceptive and Abusive Practices

VII. Unfair, Deceptive, and Abusive Practices — FDCPA

FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023 VII–3.1

Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

Introduction

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), (15 USC

1692 et seq.), which became effective March 20,1978, was

designed to eliminate abusive, deceptive, and unfair debt

collection practices. The FDCPA also protects reputable debt

collectors from unfair competition and encourages state

action to protect consumers from abuses in debt collection.

The Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer

Protection Act (Dodd-Frank Act) granted rulemaking

authority under the FDCPA to the Consumer Financial

Protection Bureau (CFPB) and, with respect to entities under

its jurisdiction, granted authority to the CFPB to enforce

compliance with the FDCPA.

The federal banking agencies,

the National Credit Union Administration (NCUA), the

Federal Trade Commission (FTC), and certain other

regulators are authorized to enforce compliance with the

FDCPA with respect to institutions under their respective

jurisdictions.

When the FDCPA became effective, it

authorized the FTC to issue rules only for States to apply for

exemptions from the requirements of the FDCPA. The FTC

issued Regulation F to govern this process. The Dodd-Frank

Act transferred authority for Regulation F to the CFPB and

authorized the CFPB to issue substantive rules under the

FDCPA with respect to the collection of debts by debt

collectors. The CFPB restated the FTC’s Regulation F in

2011.

In 2020 and 2021, the CFPB amended Regulation F.

The amendments, which address a broader range of topics,

such as debt collection communications, and restate the

substantive provisions of the FDCPA, became effective on

November 30, 2021.

The CFPB has issued frequently asked questions, a small-

entity comp liance guide, and other reference materials

related to the FDCPA and Regulation F.

Definitions – 12 CFR 1006.2

Debt That Is Covered

The FDCPA and Regulation F apply only to the collection of

debt incurred by a consumer primarily for personal, family or

household purposes. They do not apply to the collection of

corporate debt or to debt owed for business or agricultural

purposes.

____________________

These reflect FFIEC-approved procedures, including changes to Regulation

F through January 2021.

12 USC 5481(12)(H), 5514(b)-(c), 5515(b)-(c).

15 USC 1692l.

76 Fed. Reg. 78121 (Dec. 16, 2011).

Debt Collectors That Are Covered

Under the FDCPA, and Regulation F a “debt collector” is

defined as:

• Any person

who uses any instrumentality of interstate

commerce or mail in any business whose principal

purpose is debt collection.

• Any person who regularly collects, or attempts to

collect, debts owed to another person

• A creditor who, in the process of collecting its own

debts, uses a name, other than the creditor’s own, which

would indicate that a third person is collecting the debt.

• For purposes of 12 CFR 1006.22(e) only, any person

who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or

mail in any business whose principal purpose is the

enforcement of security interests.

Debt Collectors That Are Not Covered

A person is not a debt collector under the FDCPA and

Regulation F when the person collects:

• Another’s debts in isolated instances.

• Debts under the person’s own name that the person

originated.

• Debts that the person originated and then sold but

continues to service (for example, mortgage and student

loans).

• Debts owed or due, or asserted to be owed or due, to

another, that were not in default when they were

obtained.

• Debts that were obtained as security for a commercial

credit transaction (for example, accounts receivable

financing).

• Debts incidental to a bona fide fiduciary relationship or

escrow arrangement (for example, a debt held in the

institution’s trust department or mortgage loan escrow

for taxes and insurance).

• Debts for another person who is related by common

ownership or corporate control.

Others that are not covered also include:

• Officers or employees of a creditor who collect debts

owed to the creditor in the creditor’s name.

• Legal p rocess servers.

85 Fed. Reg. 76734 (Nov. 30, 2020); 86 Fed. Reg. 5766 (Jan. 19, 2021). For

convenience, where the regulation restates the statute, these procedures

cite only the regulation.

See https://www.consumerfinance.gov/compliance/compliance-

resources/other-applicable-requirements/debt-collection/.

Person includes natural persons, corporations, companies, associations,

firms, partnerships, societies, and joint stock companies.

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VII–3.2 FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023

Examples

The following examples illustrate the definition of “debt

collector”:

• An institution’s principal business purpose is the

collection of debts. The institution is a debt collec-

tor, assuming it uses any instrumentality of inter-

state commerce or mail.

• An institution regularly collects debts owed or due

to another. The institution is a debt collector.

• An institution services loans owned by others. The

loans placed for servicing regularly include loans

that are in default when placed with the institution.

The institution is a debt collector as to any debts

that were in default at placement.

• An institution’s principal business purpose is the

collection of debts it has purchased. The institution

is a debt collector both when it contacts consumers

itself and when it hires other collection agencies to

do so, assuming it uses any instrumentality of inter-

state commerce or mail.

• An institution collects defaulted debts that the insti-

tution has purchased, but does not collect or at-

tempt to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed

or due, or asserted to be owed or due, to another,

and does not have a business the principal purpose

of which is the collection of debts. The institution is

not a debt collector.

• An institution originates loans. When any of its

loans go into default, the institution attempts to col-

lect them while using an assumed name. The name

indicates that a third party is collecting the debt.

The institution is a debt collector.

• An institution’s principal business purpose is the

enforcement of security interests. The institution is

a debt collector for purposes of 12 CFR 1006.22(e),

assuming it uses any instrumentality of interstate

commerce or mail. 12 CFR 1006.22(e) prohibits

taking or threatening to take any nonjudicial action

in certain circumstances, such as where there is no

present right to possession through an enforceable

security instrument.

Communications

“Communicate” or “communication” (as defined in 12 CFR

1006.2(d)) means the conveying of information regarding a

debt directly or indirectly to any person through any

medium. If an attempt to contact, a message to, or a

discussion with a consumer or third party does not convey

information regarding a debt, it is not a communication

under Regulation F.

Even if such actions are not communications, they may be

“attempts to communicate” for the purposes of the FDCPA

and Regulation F. An “attempt to communicate” is any act to

initiate a communication or other contact about a debt with

any person through any medium, including by soliciting a

response from such person. For example, placing a telephone

call to a person is an attempt to communicate with the person

regardless of whether the collector reaches the person.

A voicemail with the content described in 12 CFR 1006.2(j)

is a “limited-content message.” A limited-content message is

not a communication for the purposes of the FDCPA and

Regulation F; however, it is an attempt to communicate.

Communications in Connection With Debt

Collection –

12 CFR 1006.6 and 1006.10

When, Where, and With Whom Communication Is

Permitted

Communicating With the Consumer

A debt collector may not communicate or attempt to

communicate with a consumer at any unusual time or place,

or at any time or place that the debt collector knows or

should know that is inconvenient to the consumer, unless the

consumer has given prior consent for such contacts directly

to the debt collector, or a court of competent jurisdiction has

already given permission for such contacts. A debt collector

may not communicate or attemp t to communicate with a

consumer at the consumer’s p lace of emp loyment if the

collector knows or has reason to know that the emp loy er

prohibits such contacts.

A debt collector knows or should know that a time or place is

inconvenient for a consumer if the consumer uses the word

“inconvenient” or if the facts and circumstances indicate that

a time or place is inconvenient for the consumer, even if the

consumer does not specifically state to the debt collector that

a time or p lace is “inconvenient.” Absent information to the

contrary, debt collectors are to assume that communications

and attempts to communicate between 9:00 p.m. and 8:00

a.m. in the consumer’s time zone are inconvenient.

If a debt collector knows that the consumer has retained an

attorney to handle the debt, and knows or can readily obtain

the attorney’s name and address, the debt collector may not

communicate or attempt to communicate with the consumer,

unless the attorney is unresponsive or agrees to allow direct

communication with the consumer.

Ceasing Communication With the Consumer

When a consumer refuses, in writing or electronically , to pay

a debt or requests that the debt collector cease further

VII. Unfair, Deceptive, and Abusive Practices — FDCPA

FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023 VII–3.3

communication, the collector must cease all further

communication and attemp ts to communicate with the

consumer with respect to that debt, except to advise the

consumer that:

• The collection effort is being stopped.

• Certain specified remedies ordinarily invoked may be

pursued or, if applicable, that a specific remedy will be

pursued.

Cease-communication requests sent by the consumer in

writing or electronically are comp lete when they are received

by the debt collector.

Communicating With Thi rd Parties

In general, a debt collector who is trying to collect a debt

may communicate with only the following persons:

• The consumer.

• The consumer’s attorney.

• A consumer reporting agency (if permitted by local law).

• The creditor.

• The creditor’s attorney.

• The debt collector’s attorney.

The consumer or a court of competent jurisdiction may,

however, give the debt collector specific permission to

communicate with other third parties. For purposes of this

restriction, the term “consumer” is defined to include the

consumer’s spouse, parent (if the consumer is a minor),

guardian, executor, administrator, or successor in interest.,

A debt collector who has not yet located a consumer may ask

a third party for the consumer’s home address, telephone

number and place of employment (location information). The

debt collector must give the collector’s own name and state

that the collector is confirming or correcting location

information about the consumer. Unless specifically asked,

the debt collector may not name the collection firm or

agency . The debt collector must not state the consumer owes

any debt.

The prohibition against engaging any person in telephone

conversations repeatedly or continuously with intent to

annoy, abuse, or harass discussed below applies to calls to

third parties. Additionally, a debt collector may not

communicate with a third party more than once unless the

collector believes that the information from the earlier

communication was wrong or incomplete and that the third

party has since received better information, or unless

requested to do so by the third party .

Bona Fide Error in Electronic Communications With

Third Parties

A debt collector’s prohibited communication with a third

party by email or text message can be a bona fide error for

purposes of civil liability under 15 USC 1692k(c) if the debt

collector maintains procedures reasonably adapted to prevent

such communications. The procedures are reasonably

adapted to this purpose, for example, if they contain the steps

outlined in 12 CFR 1006.6(d)(3)-(5)

Right to Opt Out of Electronic Communications

When communicating or attempting to communicate using a

specific email address, telephone number for text messages,

or other electronic-medium address, a debt collector must

provide the consumer an opt-out notice. The notice must be

clear and conspicuous and must describe a reasonable and

simple method by which the consumer can opt out of further

electronic communications or attempts to communicate by

the debt collector to that address or telephone number.

Prohibited Practices

Harassing, Oppressive, or Abusive Conduct – 12 CFR

1006.14

A debt collector may not engage in any conduct the natural

consequence of which is to harass, oppress, or abuse any

person in connection with the collection of a debt. For

example:

A debt collector may not:

• Use or threaten to use violence or other criminal means

to harm the physical person, reputation, or property of

any person.

• Use obscene, profane, or other language that abuses the

hearer or reader.

• Publish a list of consumers who allegedly refuse to pay

debts, except to a consumer reporting agency or to

persons meeting the requirements of Sections 603(f) or

604(a)(3) of the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

• Advertise a debt for sale to coerce payment.

• M ake telephone calls without meaningfully disclosing

the debt collector’s identity, excep t as allowed to obtain

location information.

• Communicate or attempt to communicate with a person

through a medium of communication if the person has

requested that the debt collector not use that medium to

communicate with the person, with certain limited

exceptions.

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VII–3.4 FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023

Telephone Call Frequency Limitation

A debt collector may not cause a person’s telephone to ring

or engage any person in telephone conversations repeatedly

or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass.

Comp liance with this provision is presumed, unless either of

the following occurs (in which case, a violation is

presumed):

• The debt collector p laces telep hone calls to a p er-

son in connection with the collection of a particular

debt more than seven times within a seven-day pe-

riod.

• The debt collector p laces a telep hone call to a per-

son in connection with the collection of a particular

debt within seven days after engaging in a tele-

phone conversation with the person about the par-

ticular debt.

Telephone calls do not count toward these telephone call

frequencies if they are:

• Placed with the person’s consent given directly to

the collector within the last seven days.

• Not connected to a dialed number. A call does not

connect to the dialed number if, for example, the

collector receives a busy signal or an indication that

the number is not in service. (Comment

14(b)(3)(ii)–1).

• Placed to the consumer’s attorney, a consumer re-

porting agency, the creditor or creditor’s attorney,

or the debt collector’s attorney.

In the case of student loan debts, the term “particular debt”

means all student loan debts that a consumer owes or

allegedly owes that were serviced under a single account

number at the time the debts were obtained by a debt

collector.

False, Deceptive, or Misleading Representations or

Means – 12 CFR 1006.18

A debt collector may not use any false, deceptive, or

misleading representation or means to collect or attempt to

collect a debt. For examp le, a debt collector may not:

• Falsely represent or imp ly that the collector is vouched

for, bonded by, or affiliated with the United States or any

State, including the use of any badge, uniform, or similar

identification.

• Falsely represent the character, amount, or legal status of

the debt, or of any services rendered, or compensation

the collector may receive for collecting the debt.

• Falsely represent or imply that the collector is an

attorney or that communications are from an attorney.

• Threaten to take any action that cannot legally be taken

or that is not intended to be taken.

• Falsely represent or imply that nonpayment of any debt

will result in the arrest or imprisonment of any person or

the seizure, garnishment, attachment or sale of any

property or wages of any person, unless such action is

lawful and intended by the debt collector or creditor.

• Falsely represent or imply that the sale, referral, or other

transfer of the debt will cause the consumer to lose a

claim or a defense to payment, or become subject to any

practice prohibited by the FDCPA or Regulation F.

• Falsely represent or imply that the consumer committed

a crime or other conduct to disgrace the consumer.

• Communicate, or threaten to communicate, credit

information that the debt collector knows or should

know to be false, including not identifying disputed

debts as such.

• Use or distribute written communications made to look

like or falsely represented to be documents authorized,

issued, or approved by any court, official, or agency of

the United States or any State, or that give a false

impression of their source, authorization, or approval.

• Use any false representation or decep tive means to

collect or attempt to collect a debt or to obtain

information about a consumer.

• Fail to disclose in the initial written communication with

the consumer, and in the initial oral communication if it

precedes the initial written communication, that the debt

collector is attemp ting to collect a debt and that any

information obtained will be used for that purpose. In

addition, the debt collector must disclose in subsequent

communications that the communication is from a debt

collector. (These disclosures do not apply to a formal

pleading made in connection with a legal action.)

• Falsely represent or imply that accounts have been sold

to innocent purchasers.

• Falsely represent or imply that documents are legal

process.

• Use any name other than the true name of the debt

collector’s business, company, or organization. (A debt

collector’s employ ee may use an assumed name when

communicating or attempting to communicate with a

person, provided that the employee uses the assumed

name consistently and that the debt collector can readily

identify any employ ee using an assumed name.)

• Falsely represent or imply that documents are not legal

process or do not require action by the consumer.

• Falsely represent or imply that the debt collector

operates or is employed by a consumer reporting agency.

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FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023 VII–3.5

Unfair or Unconscionable Means – 12 CFR 1006.22

A debt collector may not use unfair or unconscionable means

to collect or attemp t to collect a debt. For example, a debt

collector may not:

• Collect any amount, including any interest, fee, charge

or expense incidental to the principal obligation unless it

was exp ressly authorized by the original debt agreement

or permitted by law.

• Accept a check or other instrument post-dated by more

than five days, unless the collector notifies the consumer,

in writing, of any intention to deposit the check or

instrument. That notice must be made not more than ten

(10) or less than three (3) business days before the date

of the deposit.

• Solicit a post-dated check or other post-dated payment

instrument to use as a threat or to institute criminal

prosecution.

• Deposit or threaten to deposit a post-dated check or other

post-dated payment instrument before the date on the

check or instrument.

• Cause communication charges, such as those for collect

telephone calls and telegrams, to be made to any person

by concealing the true purpose of the communication.

• Take or threaten to repossess or disable property when

the creditor has no enforceable right to the property or

does not intend to take possession of it, or if, under law,

the property cannot be taken, repossessed or disabled.

• Communicate with a consumer regarding a debt by

postcard.

• Use any language or symbol, other than the debt

collector’s address, on any envelope when

communicating with a consumer; a debt collector may

use its business name if such name does not indicate it is

in the debt collection business.

• Communicate or attempt to communicate with a

consumer by sending an email to an email address that

the debt collector knows is provided to the consumer by

the consumer’s employer, with certain exceptions.

• Communicate or attempt to communicate with a person

in connection with the collection of a debt through a

social media platform if the communication or attempt to

communicate is viewable by the general public or the

person’s social media contacts.

Collection of Time-Barred Debts – 12 CFR 1006.26

A debt collector may not bring, or threaten to bring, a legal

action against a consumer to collect a time-barred debt (i.e., a

debt for which the applicable statute of limitations has

expired).

Other Prohibited Practices – 12 CFR 1006.30

Passive Collections

In general, a debt collector may not furnish information

about a debt to a consumer reporting agency before the debt

collector:

• Speaks to the consumer about the debt in person or

by telephone; or

• Sends a letter or electronic message to the

consumer about the debt and waits a reasonable

period of time (14 days is a safe harbor) to receive

a notice of undeliverability.

This prohibition does not apply to a debt collector’s

furnishing of information to a nationwide specialty consumer

reporting agency that compiles information on a consumer’s

check-writing history.

Selling or Placing for Collection Certain Debt

A debt collector may not, with certain exceptions, sell,

transfer for consideration, or place for collection a debt

that it knows or should know has been paid or settled or

discharged in bankruptcy.

Multiple Debts

If a consumer owes several debts that are being collected by

the same debt collector and makes any single p ayment, that

payment must be ap plied according to the consumer’s

instructions if such instructions are provided. No payment

may be applied to a disputed debt.

Legal Actions by Debt Collectors

A debt collector may file a lawsuit to enforce a security

interest in real property only in the judicial district in which

the real p rop erty is located. Other legal actions may be

brought only in the judicial district in which the consumer

lives or in which the contract creating the debt was signed.

Furnishing Certain Deceptive Forms

No debt collector (and under 15 USC 1692j, no person) may

design, compile, and furnish any form knowing that such

form would be used to create the false impression that

someone other than the creditor (for example, a debt

collector) is participating in the collection of a debt.

Validation of Debts – 12 CFR 1006.34 and 1006.38

The debt collector must provide the consumer with

“validation information” in a “clear and conspicuous” form

in the initial communication or within five days of the initial

communication. If not provided in the initial communication,

the validation information must be provided in writing or

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VII–3.6 FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023

electronically. If the consumer pays the debt within five days

of the initial communication, then the debt collector is not

required to provide the validation information.

The validation information must include the following:

• The debt collector communication disclosure re-

quired by 12 CFR 1006.34(c)(1).

• The information about the debt required by 12 CFR

1006.34(c)(2).

• The information about consumer protections re-

quired by 12 CFR 1006.34(c)(3).

• The consumer-response information required by 12

CFR 1006.34(c)(4).

The document containing this information is often called a

“validation notice.” A model validation notice appears in

appendix B-1 to Regulation F. Use of the model notice is not

required, but a debt collector who uses it has complied with

the validation information content and form requirements. A

debt collector has the option to use a version of the model

validation notice that adds or omits certain optional content,

a version that includes certain content on a separate page, or

a version that is otherwise substantially similar to the model

validation notice. A debt collector may make these changes

and retain the safe harbor for compliance with the validation

information content and form requirements received through

use of the model validation notice.

During the validation period (as defined in 12 CFR

1006.34(b)(5)), the debt collector must not engage in any

collection activities or communications that overshadow or

are inconsistent with the disclosure of the consumer’s rights

to dispute the debt and to request the name and address of the

original creditor.

If, within 30 days of receiving the validation notice, the

consumer disputes in writing any portion of the debt or

requests the name and address of the original creditor, the

collector must stop all collection efforts until the collector

sends the consumer, in writing or electronically, a copy of a

judgment or verification of the debt, or the name and address

of the original creditor, as applicable.

Sending Required Disclosures – 12 CFR 1006.42

With certain exceptions, whenever the FDCPA or Regulation

F requires a debt collector to provide a disclosure and the

disclosure is provided in writing or electronically, the debt

collector must provide the disclosure in a manner that is

____________________

15 USC 7001(c).

reasonably expected to provide actual notice and in a form

that the consumer may keep and access later.

To comply with this requirement, a debt collector sending

the following disclosures electronically must do so in

accordance with the Electronic Signatures in Global and

National Commerce Act:

• The validation notice described in 12 CFR

1006.34(a)(1)(i)(B).

• The response to a request for original-creditor in-

formation described in 12 CFR 1006.38(c).

• The response to a dispute described in 12 CFR

1006.38(d)(2)(i).

Record Retention – 12 CFR 1006.100

A debt collector must retain records that are evidence of

compliance or noncompliance with the FDCPA and

Regulation F starting on the date that the collector begins

collection activity on the debt and until at least three years

after the last collection activity on the debt. A debt collector

must retain any recordings of telephone calls in connection

with the collection of a debt for three years after the date of

the call.

Civil Liability – 15 USC 1692k, 1692n, 1692o

A debt collector who fails to comply with any provision of

the FDCPA or Regulation F is liable for:

• Any actual damages sustained as a result of that failure.

• Punitive damages as allowed by the court:

° in an individual action, up to $1,000; or

° in a class action, up to $1,000 for each named

plaintiff and an award to be divided among all

members of the class of an amount up to $500,000

or 1 percent of the debt collector’s net worth,

whichever is less.

• Costs and a reasonable attorney’s fee in any such action.

In determining punitive damages, the court must consider the

nature, frequency and persistency of the violations and the

extent to which they were intentional. In a class action, the

court must also consider the resources of the debt collector

and the number of persons adversely affected.

Intent

A debt collector may have a bona fide error defense to civil

liability if it shows by a preponderance of the evidence that

the violation was not intentional and was the result of a bona

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FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023 VII–3.7

fide error that arose despite procedures reasonably designed

to avoid any such error. The collector is also not civilly liable

if the collector, in good faith, relied on an advisory opinion

of the CFPB even if the ruling is later amended, rescinded, or

determined to be invalid for any reason.

Jurisdiction and S tatute of Limitations

Action against debt collectors for violations of the FDCPA

or Regulation F may be brought in any appropriate U.S.

district court or other court of competent jurisdiction. The

consumer has one year from the date on which the violation

occurred to start such an action.

State Law – 12 CFR 1006.104, 1006.108

Relation to S tate Law

The FDCPA and Regulation F preempt state law only to the

extent that a state law is inconsistent with them. A state law

that is more protective of the consumer is not considered

inconsistent with the FDCPA or Regulation F.

Exemption for State Regulation

The CFPB may exemp t certain classes of debt collection

practices within any state from the requirements of the

FDCPA and Regulation F if the CFPB has determined that

the law of that state imp oses substantially similar

requirements and that there is adequate provision for

enforcement.

References

Laws

15 USC 1692 et seq., Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

(FDCPA)

Regulations

Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Regulation 12 CFR

Part 1006, Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F)

Guides

CFPB compliance guides

J ob Ai ds

Examination Objectives

To assess the quality of the institution’s compliance

management system for FDCPA and Regulation F.

____________________

The CFPB has issued frequently asked questions, a small-entity compliance

guide, and other reference materials related to the FDCPA and Regulation F.

See https://www.consumerfinance.gov/compliance/compliance-

resources/other-applicable-requirements/debt-collection/.

1. To determine compliance with FDCPA and Regulation

2. To initiate corrective action when the institution’s

compliance management sy stem is deficient, or when

violations of law or regulation are identified.

Examination Procedures

Each examination should be risk-based and may not require

an examiner to address all of the procedures below. In

addition, each supervising agency may have its own

supervisory strategy that will dictate which examination

procedures are required to be completed.

General Procedures

1. Determine if the institution acts as a debt collector under

the FDCPA and Regulation F.

2. Determine if the institution places debt for collection by,

or sells debt to, one or more debt collectors under the

FDCPA and Regulation F.

3. Through discussions with management and review of

relevant documents, determine the adequacy of the

institution’s compliance management system for the

FDCPA and Regulation F.

4. If the institution and, if consistent with the scope of the

review, any service providers with which the institution

places debt for collection has acted or is acting as a debt

collector, assess compliance with the FDCPA and

Regulation F. Consider, among other things practices

and contracts for debt placements, purchases and sales,

collection letters, dunning notices, envelopes, electronic

communications, call logs, call recordings, scripts used

by collection personnel, validation notices, individual

collection files, complaint files, and other relevant

records. Determine if the institution has:

a. Communicated with the consumer or third

parties in any prohibited manner (12 CFR

1006.6, 1006.10);

b. Used any harassing, abusive, unfair, or deceptive

collection practice or any other prohibited

practice (12 CFR 1006.14, 1006.18, 1006.22,

1006.30);

c. Brought or threatened to bring a legal action

against a consumer to collect a time-barred debt

(12 CFR 1006.26);

These reflect FFIEC-approved procedures, including changes to Regulation

F through January 2021.

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VII–3.8 FDIC Consumer Compliance Examination Manual — September 2023

d. Furnished the written validation notice within

the required time period and otherwise complied

with applicable validation requirements (12 CFR

1006.34, 1006.38);

e. Sent required disclosures in the prescribed

manner (12 CFR 1006.42); and

f. Retained records as required (12 CFR

1006.100).