ACA members help navigate the validation notice template. The ACA Huddle series on part two of the rule continues through Jan. 15. Editor’s note: This article is available for members only.
1/8/2021 12:00
In the latest ACA Huddle, which is part of the series on part two of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s final debt collection rule, members led a Q&A on the validation notice template as a follow up to the Jan. 7 ACA Huddle on information required in the validation notice.
Rick Perr, co-managing partner at Kaufman Dolowich Voluck, Kelly Knepper-Stephens, vice president of legal and compliance at TrueAccord, and Dennis Barton III, owner and managing attorney at The Barton Law Group LLC, reviewed steps that led to the current validation notice in the CFPB’s rule, what to do now, and how the validation notice intersects with state laws on the subject
For quick reference, here’s a copy of the Model Form B-1, “Model Form for Validation Notice.”
The final rule provides a safe harbor for debt collectors who use the model form, which contains “validation information” and optional disclosures. Those who use the model validation notice or a “substantially similar form,” as permitted by the rule, will fall within the protections of this safe harbor, ACA previously reported.
A few keynotes:
- Remember, a request for verification is an opportunity to collaborate with a consumer.
- Take time now to create validation notices based on the CFPB’s template and send drafts internally to test it out, especially itemization and dates.
- There is a reason why there is a year to implement the requirements in the rule. Review the content now and prepare. The compliance date is Nov. 30, 2021.
- Changes in leadership in Washington, D.C., and at the CFPB now that the rule is here are not likely to result in changes to the rule.
ACA is here to help. In addition to ACA Huddle webinars continuing through next week, session presentations and recordings are available. Tune in to the Q&A discussion with Perr, Knepper-Stephens and Barton on the ACA Huddle website. Archived materials are available within 24-48 hours.
ACA Huddle CFPB Rule Series Webinars Continue
ACA’s panel of experts continues to review the comprehensive rule and will be providing detailed analysis and compliance resources throughout this series of complimentary webinars, which continue through Jan. 15. Log on to acainternational.org and select My ACA to subscribe to Member Alerts under email subscriptions.
On Monday, Jan. 11, Mike Etmund, attorney at Moss & Barnett, Lauren Valenzuela, corporate counsel at Performant Recovery Inc., and John Bedard, owner of Bedard Law Group, will dive more into electronic communication requirements in the rule from a legal perspective.
On Tuesday, Jan. 12, Jessica Klander, shareholder at Bassford Remele, Rob Augg, vice president of business development and marketing at Renkim Corp., and Paul Daniels, chief revenue officer of Intelligent Contacts Inc., will review delivery requirements and electronic communication requirements in the rule from a vendor’s perspective.
Read more on all the upcoming webinars and register here.
ACA members can also download the ACA Mobile app for reminders on the upcoming ACA Huddle webinars and listen to the presentations, live or recorded, on the go.
Thank you to the sponsors of the ACA Huddle CFPB Rule Series, Neustar and Ontario Systems.
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