Failure to Include License Number in Collection Notice does not Violate FDCPA

In a recent case, a debt collector sent a validation notice to the consumer, who was a resident of New York City. New York City rules require licensed debt collectors to provide their assigned license number in all written materials to consumers. The debt collector was properly licensed to collect in New York City; however, the letter provided to the consumer did not include the required license number.

The consumer alleged a violation of § 807 of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), asserting the failure to include the required license number in the validation notice was a false and misleading representation. The court initially entered default judgment in favor of the consumer, but requested an inquest on damages. A United States Magistrate recommended the consumer’s requests for costs and damages under the FDCPA be denied and to dismiss the complaint. The consumer filed an objection to the magistrate’s report and recommendation alleging the debt collector purposefully withheld its license number so that consumers would be unable to register complaints of the debt collector’s actions with the New York City licensing authority.

The district court adopted the magistrate’s opinion. While the debt collector could be in violation of local law for failure to provide the required license number in the validation letter, the court agreed a violation of local law is not in itself a violation of the FDCPA. The consumer did not identify any reasoning that the debt collector’s failure to include their assigned license number in the validation notice constitutes a false and misleading representation under the FDCPA. Further, as the validation notice provided the debt collector’s name, address and contact phone number, a violation of § 807 could not be established because a consumer could still contact the city’s licensing authority to file a complaint with the provided information.

Accordingly, the court denied the consumer’s request for costs and damages and dismissed the consumer’s complaint.

This article originally appeared in ACA International’s The Paper newsletter from their Asset Buyers Division.

This information is not to be construed as legal advice. Legal advice must be tailored to the specific circumstances of each case. Every effort has been made to assure that this information is up–to–date as of the date of publication. It is not intended to be a full and exhaustive explanation of the law in any area. This information is not intended as legal advice and may not be used as legal advice. It should not be used to replace the advice of your own legal counsel.