TV Spotlight Shines Bright on Debt Collectors This Week

The credit and collection industry is a major focus of two segments airing on high-profile TV outlets this week.

The first ran yesterday on NBC’s TODAY Show.

In a segment on the popular morning show entitled “Debt Collectors and You: The Danger of Debt Buyers,” NBC examines the plight of a few consumers against the backdrop of rising complaints against ARM professionals. The segment features the typical recordings of debt collectors overstepping their bounds and pointed references (with graphics!) to rising complaints.

But NBC did interview members of the ARM community for the piece. Mark Neeb, president-elect of ACA International, and Barbara Sinsley from DBA International appeared on-camera in the piece.

Here is the final product:

I spoke with Sinsley and ACA International about how they felt the piece portrayed the industry.

Sinsley noted that she continually rebutted the oft-used “pennies on the dollar” objection that is so familiar to debt buyers. She said that during the interview, she pointed out – on several occasions – that by purchasing the debt at a steep discount, debt buyers are often more flexible in dealing with consumers on settlements. She also noted that complaints against the industry make up a very small percentage of overall contacts made by collectors each year. Neither of those points made into the final cut.

“But most importantly, I wanted the public to know that this industry wants to sit down with Professor Warren [special advisor to the President overseeing the development of the new Consumer Financial Protection Bureau] and have a conversation about the realities of debt collection,” said Sinsley. “There is currently a disconnect between technology and the law and we’d like to talk about that openly so there is a better understanding of our industry.”

ACA International CEO Rozanne Andersen said that the piece rehashed themes that are common in media portrayals of the industry.

“We appreciate that ACA had the opportunity to play a role in this segment,” said Andersen. “But the piece was a restatement of the obvious,” referring to the focus on complaint numbers from the FTC.

Andersen noted that complaint resolution is a key to industry not only improving its image, but its operations, a point that was made by Neeb but also left out of the finished piece.

On Thursday, October 21, CNN will be running a special called “Almighty Debt.” The program is part of an occasional series called “Black in America.”

While CNN’s piece focuses more on one clergyman’s drive to educate his congregation on matters of debt, and debt collectors aren’t even mentioned in the teaser trailer (below), a prominent FDCPA litigant attorney has used the opportunity to focus on the ARM industry’s treatment of African American debtors. In a press release issued today, he noted that the piece does not go far enough in highlighting “the ways in which the African American community is victimized by the debt collection industry.”

So keep an eye out for more on that.