Compliance Challenges Discussed by Industry Experts in Podcast

GERMANTOWN, Md. -- Compliance and regulatory matters in the accounts receivable management (ARM) industry is an important and complicated topic. Mike Ginsberg was joined by subject matter experts Ari Derman and Mike Frost to discuss some of the most pressing matters impacting the ARM industry today in a five part, informative podcast series.

In the first part of the series, Ari addressed challenges involving consent revocation under the TCPA. He explained the 2015 reminder from the FCC stating that “revocation was allowable if reasonable … it’s very uncertain what that actually means but we know revocation can happen, revocation is allowed.” How is consent revocation impacting the ARM industry?

During the next podcast, the three experts discussed voicemail messages. Should you leave a voicemail? If you do leave a voicemail, what kind should you leave? The question largely remains unanswered. Mike Frost began the conversation by discussing the FTC Opinion and the CFPB proposed rules on voicemail. Later, Ari brings up a case that the New York District Court’s dealt with a few years ago regarding the consequences of hanging up on voicemails.

The third part of the series addresses the importance of carefully selected language in letters and emails. As long as there are accounts to be collected, letters will be mailed, and past letters will be scrutinized. As an example, Ari explained an important case, Pantoja vs. Portfolio, involving one party sending a benign letter on aged debt. Will actions be taken?

Later in the series, when credit reporting was discussed, the experts mentioned mixed messages from the bureaus, specifically Encore’s pay-for-delete effort; if more than two years have passed since the account became delinquent, it will be removed after paid in full. Later in the podcast, Mike Frost discussed a different credit reporting issue impacting him: mass dispute letters. He explains that hundreds of letters, “from the same law firm with the same consumer signature, so the consumer signatures are all identical but somehow they’re claiming that they are getting consent to sign somebody’s name – forge a name to a document.” Do the consumers know that they are being represented in this way?

The podcast series ends with the topic of consumer complaints. Have consumer complaints gone down, industry-wide, year-to-date? If they have, why?

These podcasts are available exclusively to KG Prime members for free. To access them, and other important timely ARM market research, please log in to your KG Prime account or request a company here.

Ari Derman serves as General Counsel for Harris & Harris, Ltd. and has been a member of the Harris staff since 2010. Ari takes great pride in acting as the company’s key legal strategist on all major business transactions and complex compliance matters. As part of his role, he advises executive management on regulatory issues within the industry, drafts and negotiates client and vendor contracts, spearheads all legal defense efforts for the company, and oversees the selection and management of all outside counsel.

Mike Frost joined CBE Companies in 2004, and manages various teams of professionals including sales, marketing, legal, quality assurance, regulatory compliance, legislative affairs, litigation defense, corporate governance, and enterprise risk. Mike is a trusted industry expert, serving in leadership roles and as a speaker for many associations. He is a member of the Board of Directors of ACA International, Inc., the Black Hawk County Selective Service, and the Hawkeye Community Foundation. Mike is also an active member of the American and Iowa Bar Associations, Iowa Collectors Association (past-president), NARCA, TRMA, RMA, and is a quest speaker for a variety of legal and compliance associations and forums.

Mike Ginsberg is the president and CEO of Kaulkin Ginsberg, offering M&A and strategic advisory expertise to the ARM industry for over 25 years, and KG Prime, offering market intelligence for ARM professionals on client industries, economic- and industry-specific trends. He is also co-founder of Topline Valuation Group, providing ARM owners and executives with authoritative technical, financial, and benchmarking services designed to improve decisions at the corporate and operational levels.