Along with recapping the regulator’s notable activities associated with auto financing, the latest Supervisory Highlights report from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) also touched on debt collection.

The CFPB reiterated that it has supervisory authority to examine certain institutions that engage in consumer debt collection activities, including very large depository institutions, nonbanks that are larger participants in the consumer debt collection market and nonbanks that are service providers to certain covered persons.

The bureau indicated in the Supervisory Highlights that recent examinations of larger participant debt collectors identified violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) as well as the Consumer Financial Protection Act of 2010 (CFPA).

“Examiners found that debt collectors advised consumers that if they paid the balance in full by a date certain, any interest assessed on the debt would be reversed,” officials said. “The debt collectors then failed to credit the consumers’ accounts with the accrued additional interest, resulting in the consumers paying more than the agreed upon amount.

“Examiners found this practice to be deceptive in violation of the CFPA. In response to these findings, supervision directed the debt collectors to remediate all consumers who had overpaid,” the bureau continued.

The CFPB also discussed its recent actions involving vehicle repossessions and other parts of auto financing in the Supervisory Highlights, which can be downloaded via this website.