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VOLUME 6, ISSUE 1
 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency
                                                                                      January/February 2011



NRA Today
“A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™”

                                                                2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010



New Mexico Attorney General Releases Rule Regarding Collecting
Time-Barred Debt
DBA International 12/15/10                 1. “We are required by New              make any payment of the debt;
                                         Mexico Attorney General Rule              sign a paper in which you admit
	       On Dec. 15, 2010, the New        to notify you of the following            that you owe the debt or in which
Mexico Attorney General released         information. This information is not      you make a new promise to pay;
a rule concerning the collection of      legal advice.”;                           sign a paper in which you give up
time-barred debt in New Mexico.            2. The debt is or may not be            (“waive”) your right to stop the
The rule requires debt collectors        enforceable through lawsuit               debt collector from suing you in
to determine whether a debt is           because the applicable statute of         court to collect the debt.
time-barred and provide certain          limitations has or may have expired;      	      In written communications
disclosures when collecting time-          3. If the debt is time-barred, the      the disclosure is required to be
barred debt in New Mexico. The           consumer cannot be required pay           clear, in plain language and
rule defines time-barred debt as         through a lawsuit;                        conspicuously placed on the front
“any debt that is not enforceable          4. Admission, affirmation or
in a judicial proceeding because         acknowledgment of the debt,
the applicable statute of limitations
has run.” A copy of the final rule,
                                         a promise to pay the debt,
                                         payment of the debt or a waiver
                                                                                        Inside this issue:
as well as the Attorney General’s        of the consumer’s rights regarding
statement regarding adoption             the expiration of the statute of
of the rule, is available on ACA’s       limitations is not required; and          New Mexico AG Releases
website.                                   5. The consequences of reviving         Rule Regarding Collecting
	       The rule is effective Dec.       the statute of limitations by             Time Barred Debt		        		
15, 2010. In response to a request       acknowledging the debt, promising         				                      P.1
by ACA, the Attorney General             to pay the debt or waiving the            		
will delay enforcement of the rule       statute of limitations.                   NRA Kicks off Healthy
until March 15, 2011. However,           	       The rule provides a model         Employee Contest	         P.2
ACA’s Compliance Department              disclosure deemed to be in
                                                                                   	
is currently reviewing whether           compliance with the rule (ITALICS
                                         NOT REQUIRED):
                                                                                   SSAE 16 Overview	         P.3
a consumer may immediately
enforce this new rule. ACA               We are required by New Mexico
members should immediately               Attorney General Rule to notify you       Harrisburg ranks among
review this new rule and undertake       of the following information. This        top 10 cities for business      P.4
appropriate internal review of           information is not legal advice:
their policies and procedures to         	       This debt may be too old for      New Federal Law Bans
determine steps to comply with the       you to be sued on it in court. If it is   Caller ID Manipulation	         P.6
rule.                                    too old, you can’t be required to
	       If the debt collector has        pay it through a lawsuit.
                                                                                   Social Security Checks
reason to know or knows a debt           	       You can renew the debt
                                         and start the time for the filing of a
                                                                                   going electronic	 	             P.7
is time-barred, the collector
must inform the consumer of the          lawsuit against you to collect the
following:                               debt if you do any of the following:

                                                                                                                       
                        © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                       TODAY
                                                                    January/February 2011     Volume 6       Issue 1




 METHODS OF ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT:
 National Recovery places great emphasis on the importance
 of recovering our client’s portfolio. In addition to traditional
 methods of payment such as cash, money orders, personal,
 bank, and certified checks, we accept the following
 methods of debtor payment over the phone; as well as
 the ability to pay online at www.nationalrecovery.com.

   •    Western Union/Quick Collect
   •    Credit AND DEBIT Cards
   •    MoneyGram
   •    Bank Wire
   •    Check By Phone




                                                                         NRA KICKS OFF ITS
                                                                      BIGGEST LOSER CONTEST
                                                                       ON FEBRUARY 4, 2011
NRA is in its final stages of developing its NEW
consumer site at www.nationalrecovery.com.
                                                                      For many people, adding lean protein to the diet
Implementing the new site is expected to be
                                                                      may promote healthy weight loss. Protein lends a
made available to the public by March 1, 2011
                                                                      feeling of satiety—especially when combined with
                                                                      fiber—and also provides a platform for exercise.
                                                                      Experts believe protein helps with weight loss in
                                                                      part because of an increase in thermogenesis,
   NRA RECOGNIZED AS:                                                 meaning the body burns more calories just to
                                                                      digest higher–protein foods. Today, challenge
                                                                      yourself to learn protein basics and up your
                                                                      protein intake. Remember: Not all proteins are
                                                                      equal—replace high–fat foods and highly refined
                                                                      carbohydrates with lean protein sources only.

       Sponsored by: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL




                                                                                                                    

                          © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                   TODAY
                                                                January/February 2011         Volume 6         Issue 1



CONSUMER REPORTS MAGAZINE                                          SSAE 16 Overview
SURVEY STATISTICS
                                                                   Statement on
* One-third of Americans do not own a credit card.                 Standards for
                                                                   Attestation
* 54% pay their balance in full each month.                        Engagements
                                                                   (SSAE) No.
* 33% carry balances up to $10,000 (median balance:                16, Reporting
$2,254)                                                            on Controls
                                                                   at a Service
* 13% carry balances over $10,000 (median balance:                 Organization,
$17,366)                                                           was finalized
                                                                   by the Auditing
* 21% of consumers said they were treated unfairly by card         Standards Board
companies and 32% have paid off and closed a card since            of the American
January 2008.                                                      Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in
* 16% canceled their cards in response to the actions of           January 2010. SSAE 16 effectively replaces SAS 70 as
credit-card issuers cutting limits, hiking rates, or imposing      the authoritative guidance for reporting on service
fees.                                                              organizations. SSAE 16 was formally issued in April 2010
                                                                   with an effective date of June 15, 2011. You can order
* 45% of survey respondents say they are charging less.            a copy of SSAE 16 from the AICPA’s online store at
                                                                   http://www.cpa2biz.com - publication number 023035.
* 11% are charging more than they did a year ago.
                                                                   SSAE 16 was drafted with the intention and purpose
                                                                   of updating the US service organization reporting
                                                                   standard so that it mirrors and complies with the new
                          LET US “HOOK” YOU UP BY
                                                                   international service organization reporting standard
                        TURNING YOUR OUTSTANDING
                                                                   – ISAE 3402.
                          DEBT INTO LIQUID CAPITAL.
                                                                   For service organizations that currently have a SAS
                     call us today!!                               70 service auditor’s examination (“SAS 70 audit”)
                                                                   performed, some changes will be required to
                                                                   effectively reporting under the new SSAE 16 standard.
           1/800-360-9953 OR VISIT US ONLINE AT
                                                                   Additional information on SSAE 16 and Service
                  WWW.NRAGROUP.COM
                                                                   Organization Control reports can be viewed at the
                                                                   AICPA’s new web page (http://www.aicpa.org/soc).

              IDENTITY THEFT, FRAUD
* The number of U.S. identity fraud victims rose 12%                 National Recovery Agency will be “Bowling for
to 11.1 million adults in 2009.                                      Kids’ Sake” for the third consecutive year. This
                                                                     annual fundraiser benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters
* Women were 26% more likely to be victims of                        of the Capital Region.
identity fraud than men.
                                                                     Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more
* The average fraud resolution time dropped 30%                      than a couple of hours of
to 21 hours.                                                         bowling. It’s Big Brothers
                                                                     Big Sisters’ THANK YOU
* Arizona has the highest and South Dakota has the                   for helping raise funds for
lowest identity theft complaints per 100,000 people.                 mentoring programs!




                                                                                                                       

                       © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                   TODAY
                                                              January/February 2011         Volume 6         Issue 1




 Hours a day Americans in
 debt worry about money
                                                                NAVIGATE WEBINAR
                                                                    Conducted by Trish Moritz,
                                                                      Director Client Service
                                            4 hours               FEBRUARY 23, 2011 at 2:00 E.S.T.
                                            or more
                                               22%               Must register by Friday February
                          1-3 hours                              18, 2011 - REGISTRATION IS FREE!
                            63%                0 hours
                                                                     Register via email to Trish
                                                  15%            tmoritz@nationalrecovery.com

                                                                 An invite and instructions for the
                                       Average
                                                                  Go To Meeting will be sent on
                                       Hours: 3.3                  Monday February 20, 2011



                               Source: FreeScore.com survey


Harrisburg ranks among top 10
cities for business                                                 VIEW YOUR ACCOUNTS ON-LINE WITH “NAVIGATE”.
                                                                                  WWW.NRAGROUP.COM
Wednesday, December 22, 2010                                     THIS IS A USER-FRIENDLY AND SECURE SITE THAT YOU CAN
By Eric Veronikis                                                USE TO CHECK THE STATUS OF YOUR ACCOUNTS, UPLOAD
                                                               FILES AND MORE. NAVIGATE IS A CONVENIENT SITE FOR OUR
Harrisburg ranked ninth in the U.S. on a financial                                       CLIENTS.
information and news website’s Best Cities for Business
                                                                              FOR LOGIN INFORMATION
list.
                                                                          PLEASE CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES!
Marketwatch.com included 102 cities in its annual
survey. Scores are based on the concentration of
businesses within a metro area and other metrics,
including unemployment, job growth, population
growth, personal income and local gross domestic
product. Total scores are made up by company score                               Bankruptcy
and economic score for each city.
Harrisburg jumped 25 spots on the list this year with the                   Filings Jump In 2010
help of metrics included in the survey, the Harrisburg
Regional Chamber and Capital Region Economic                        The number of U.S. consumers who filed for
Development Corp. said yesterday. The city ranked in              bankruptcy in 2010 topped 1.5 million last year,
the top third of cities surveyed in tourism and military           up 9% compared with 2009 as high long-term
GDPs, and it ranked among the top 10 cities with the              jobless rates and depressed home prices drove
highest personal income levels. Harrisburg benefits from            more households to seek court protection.
being a small city with a few influential companies in its
backyard, according to marketwatch.com.
Washington, D.C., topped this year’s list.

                                                                                                                        

                        © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA FILE TRANSFER VERIFICATION FORM
PLEASE FORWARD THIS INFORMATION TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHO PLACES YOUR
ACCOUNTS WITH OUR AGENCY.

Effective immediately, the following process applies to any and all clients who are referring accounts
electronically to NRA. When referring an account file electronically, please use the format below
to ensure timely download/upload of your data. It is suggested that you save this page and submit
it with each electronic file.




FILE NAME:

DATE OF TRANSFER:

						                                  CLIENT NAME:

						                                  CONTACT NAME:

						                                  CONTACT PHONE:

						                                  CLIENT NUMBER:



 PLACEMENT TOTALS

 TOTAL NUMBER OF ACCOUNTS PLACED

 DOLLAR VALUE OF ACCOUNTS PLACED                        $


                        PLEASE SUBMIT THIS FORM TO
                     INTSUP@NATIONALRECOVERY.COM

                    If you have any questions, please feel free to call IT Support
                                     at 1-800-360-9953 x 6736
NRA                    TODAY
                                                              January/February 2011        Volume 6         Issue 1



Continued from page 

of the page. If the communication
is oral, the disclosure must be         New Federal Law Bans
made verbally immediately
before or after the first statement     Caller ID Manipulation
requesting payment. If no request
for payment is made during oral         The Truth in Caller ID Act of 2009
communication, the disclosure           was signed into law Dec. 23, 2010.
must be made immediately after          The Act amends the Telephone
the first reference of the debt.        Consumer Protection Act by
	       The disclosures are required    adding a new section that prohibits
for both initial and subsequent         any person, in connection with
communications.                         any telecommunications service or
	       Importantly, the rule           Internet Protocol-enabled service,     January	        	       February
specifically states the above           from causing a caller ID service to    Penni Lee	     	        Robin Kirkpatrick
disclosures must be given only to       knowingly transmit misleading or       Tandra Walker	 	        Shell Sharma
those consumers whom the debt           inaccurate caller ID information       Susan Russell		         Fran Simmons
collector reasonably and in good        with the intend to defraud, cause      Brandi Clark		          Sandra Ortiz
faith determines owe a debt that is     harm or wrongfully obtain anything     Faith Farr		            Kevin Porter
time-barred.                            of value.                              Mallory Herman	         Biancha Tatum
                                                                               			                     Janet Hernandez
Lastly, if a debt collector makes an    The Truth in Caller ID Act broadly     		             	        Schkira Washington
erroneous determination regarding       applies to any person attempting       			                     Yvonne Ruby
the status of a debt, the collector     to manipulate a caller ID service,     			                     Tiffany Riser
may not be liable for a violation of    including third-party debt             			                     Shantee Williams
the rule if the collector exercised     collectors, creditors and asset        	      		               Melvin Rojo
reasonable efforts to determine         buyers.                                	      		               Dashea Chester
whether the debt was time-barred.       The Federal Trade Commission
Documentation must be provided          is in charge of developing and
in support of the collector’s           implementing regulations related
determination for the defense to        to the Act no later than June 23,
                                        2011.
stand.                                                                          Seven States Raise
A violation of the rule constitutes a
violation of the New Mexico Unfair                                              Minimum Wage
Practices Act.                          UPCOMING EVENTS
                                                                                DOL.gov - Dec. 9, 2010
ACA, the New Mexico Collectors
Association, and other groups such                                              Minimum wage rates will change in
as DBA International submitted                                                  Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Ohio,
comments opposing the rule and          DBA International 14th Annual           Oregon, Vermont, and Washington,
offering alternative solutions when     Conference                              as of Jan. 1, 2011. The Department
the rule was originally proposed in     The Mirage Casino  Hotel               of Labor notes the states’ average
early 2009. Although the final rule     Las Vegas, NV                           increase is 10 cents per hour. Increases
adopted or incorporated certain         February 8 - 10, 2011                   of 12 cents per hour in Colorado and
suggestions and commentary from                                                 Washington top the list with the highest
ACA and other groups, ACA was                                                   changes set to take effect.
unaware of any revised version of
                                        Platts 10th Annual Credit And
the rule between June 2009 and
                                        Collections Conference for Utilities
December 2010. ACA will continue                                                Correction to December’s Issue:
to communicate with the New             Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress             Jerry Livingston has been employed with
Mexico Attorney General’s office        Orlando, FL                             NRA for more than 14 years.
to seek clarification of the new rule   March 1-3, 2011
as appropriate.




                                                                                                                    

                        © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                         TODAY
                                                                January/February 2011             Volume 6           Issue 1



                                   Soon the government                              save $1 billion over the next decade from
                                                                                    phasing out paper checks, he said.
                                   check won’t be in the mail                       The final rules, scheduled to be unveiled
                                   Government announces                             Tuesday, are very similar to the proposal
                                                                                    the government put forward in June.
           Ask Dr. Debt            deadline for phasing out                         But in response to public comments, the
 Consumers seeking solutions       paper benefit checks                             government has decided to allow people
  to debt problems have a new                                                       who are 90 and over and are still getting
     online resource through
                                   including Social Security                        Social Security benefit checks to continue
    Ask Dr. Debt, a financial                                                       to receive their benefits the same way. The
                                   Martin Crutsinger, AP Economics Writer,
                                                                                    government estimates there are 275,000
 education Web site that ACA       On Tuesday December 21, 2010
                                                                                    people who fall into that category.
  International -- a nonprofit                                                      For people who do not have accounts at
                                   WASHINGTON (AP) -- Before too long,
  credit association unveiled.                                                      a bank or credit union, the government
                                   the government check will no longer
    “It’s essentially an online                                                                         has an option that allows
                                   be in the mail.
   version of ‘Dear Abby’ for                                                                           them to use a Direct
                                   Officials have settled
                                                                  “Switching now eliminates             Express debit MasterCard
   consumers with credit and       on the dates when
                                                                   the risks of lost and stolen         issued by Comerica Bank,
  debt questions,” John Nemo,      millions of people will
                                                                     checks and provides                Treasury’s financial agent.
                                   no longer be able to
     public relations director                                    immediate access to your              More than 1.5 million
                                   get their Social Security
     for ACA International,                                       money on payment day,”                people have obtained
                                   and other benefit
                                                                                                        these cards, which were
     said in an e-mail. Nemo       checks by mail.
                                                                                                        first issued in 2008.
      said visitors to the site    New recipients of
                                                                                                        In addition to the
                                   benefits will have to
      will be able to search a                                                                          automatic waiver from
                                   accept paperless payments starting on
 database of frequently asked                                                       electronic payments for those 90 and over,
                                   May 1 of next year, three months later
   questions and submit their                                                       people living in remote areas who might
                                   than first proposed.
                                                                                    have trouble getting to a bank can also
  own. Ask Doctor Debt also        Those already on Social Security will
                                                                                    petition for a waiver from the new rules.
    contains interactive tools     have until March 1, 2013 to make the
                                                                                    Gregg said that the government expects
                                   switch to direct deposits or a debit
   to educate consumers, such                                                       fewer than 1 percent of current benefit
                                   card.
    as budget calculators and                                                       recipients will petition for a waiver.
                                   More than 58 million retirees, disabled
                                                                                    Social Security Commissioner Michael J.
     a free personal financial     people and surviving family members
                                                                                    Astrue said that people should not wait
    management Web course.         receive Social Security or Supplemental
                                                                                    until the deadlines to make the switch to
                                   Security benefits. Already eight out
                                                                                    electronic payments.
                                   of 10 people getting federal benefits
                                                                                    “Switching now eliminates the risks of lost
                                   receive those payments electronically,
DID YOU KNOW ?                     officials say.
                                                                                    and stolen checks and provides immediate
                                                                                    access to your money on payment day,”
                                   The switch to electronic payments will
National Recovery Agency                                                            Astrue said.
                                   eliminate the problem of lost or stolen
 is PPMS, PCI-DSS and                                                               The new deadlines for the switchover
                                   checks and also the problems faced
                                                                                    were announced by Treasury’s Financial
SAS-70 Type II Certified           by people displaced from their homes
                                                                                    Management Service, the agency that
                                   who have to worry about getting their
                                                                                    processes payments for the federal
                                   checks mailed to them, said Richard
                                                                                    government.
                                   L. Gregg, the Treasury Department’s
                                                                                    Congress passed a law in 1996 giving the
                                   assistant fiscal secretary.
                                                                                    agency the power to halt mailing paper
                                   “Even though we have done a good
                                                                                    checks for all government payments
                                   job of encouraging people to switch
                                                                                    outside of refund checks from the Internal
                                   over, we still are making 120 million
                                                                                    Revenue Service.
                                   payments by mail for Social Security
                                                                                    To help with the switchover for those still
                                   every year and another 15 million
                                                                                    getting paper checks, the government has
                                   annually for veterans and other types
                                                                                    created a website, http://www.GoDirect.
 NRA IS LOOKING FOR                of benefits,” Gregg said.
                                                                                    org and a toll-free phone number, 1-
 GOOD EMPLOYEES!!                  Every year, the government has to
                                                                                    800-333-1795, that people can call for
                                   process about 600,000 claims for lost
                                                                                    assistance.
                                   or stolen checks. Social Security will

                                                                                                                             

                         © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
VOLUME 6, ISSUE 2
 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency
                                                                          Special Edition - February 2011



NRA Today
“A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™”

                                                              2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010


Court Rules FDCPA Applies to Communications with Debtor’s Attorney
by insideARM.com Staff
January 14, 2011

The U.S. Court of Appeals for            exempted its communications              recognized for its guidance in
the Third Circuit has ruled that         with the debtor’s attorney from          structuring and documenting new
the federal Fair Debt Collection         FDCPA liability. The Third Circuit       consumer financial services products,
Practices Act (FDCPA) applies to a       remanded the case to the District        its experience with the full range of
debt collector’s communications          Court, indicating that whether the       federal and state consumer credit
with the debtor’s attorney.              plaintiff had stated a viable FDCPA      laws throughout the country, and
                                         claim depended only on whether           its skill in litigation defense and
In Allen v. LaSalle Bank, issued on      the amounts the collection               avoidance (including pioneering
January 12, 2011, the Third Circuit      firm attempted to collect on             work in pre-dispute arbitration
reversed the District Court, which       her mortgage were expressly              programs). For more information,
had dismissed the plaintiff’s claims     authorized by the loan agreement         please contact group Chair Alan S.
that letters sent to her attorney        or permitted by law.                     Kaplinsky, 215.864.8544
by a law firm representing the           The federal courts of appeals are
servicer of her defaulted home           split on the issue of whether the
mortgage violated the FDCPA
provision making it an “unfair or
                                         FDCPA applies to communications
                                         from a debt collector to a debtor’s
                                                                                      Inside this issue:
unconscionable” practice for             attorney. In ruling that the FDCPA
a debt collector to collect or           does apply, the Third Circuit joins
attempt to collect unauthorized          the Fourth Circuit. The Second          Court Rules FDCPA Applies
amounts. The Third Circuit rejected      Circuit has stated in dicta and         to Communications with
the District Court’s holding that        the Ninth Circuit has ruled that        Debtor’s Attorney	      P.1
communications to a debtor’s             statements made exclusively             		
attorney should be analyzed              to a debtor’s attorney are not
from the perspective of a
                                                                                 SSAE 16 Overview
                                         actionable under the FDCPA.
competent attorney for purposes of                                               Navigate Webinar Set	   P.2
determining whether they violate         Reprinted with permission from          	
the FDCPA.                               Ballard Spahr LLP                       Court Ruling Increases
                                         The onslaught of FDCPA claims           Requirements for Debt
Characterizing the FDCPA as “a           in recent years and decisions           Collection Lawsuits	    P.4
strict liability statute,” the Third     such as Allen show, once again,
Circuit observed that “it would          the need for collection firms to        NRA Launches New
undermine the deterrent effect           exercise extreme caution in their       Consumer Website	                P.4
of strict liability” if an otherwise     operations. Ballard Spahr lawyers
improper communication could             regularly consult with their clients
escape FDCPA liability because           engaged in consumer debt                Bill Collectors Face
it was directed to the debtor’s          collection on the application           Disclosure Rules	 	              P.6
attorney. The Court also rejected        of the FDCPA and state debt
the collection law firm’s argument       collection laws.
that New Jersey’s litigation privilege   Ballard Spahr’s Consumer Financial
                                         Services Group is nationally

                                                                                                                    
                        © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                       TODAY
                                                                   February - Special Edition 2011        Volume 6       Issue 2



                                                                         SSAE 16 Overview
METHODS OF ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT:                                           Statement on
                                                                         Standards for
National Recovery places great emphasis on the importance                Attestation En-
of recovering our client’s portfolio. In addition to traditional
                                                                         gagements (SSAE)
methods of payment such as cash, money orders, personal,
bank, and certified checks, we accept the following                      No. 16, Reporting
methods of debtor payment over the phone; as well as                     on Controls at a
the ability to pay online at www.nationalrecovery.com.
                                                                         Service Organiza-
  •   Western Union/Quick Collect                                        tion, was finalized
  •   Credit AND DEBIT Cards                                             by the Auditing
  •   MoneyGram
  •   Bank Wire
                                                                         Standards Board
  •   Check By Phone                                                     of the American
                                                                         Institute of Certified
                                                                         Public Accountants
                                                                         (AICPA) in January 2010. SSAE 16 effectively replaces
                                                                         SAS 70 as the authoritative guidance for reporting on
                                                                         service organizations. SSAE 16 was formally issued in
                                                                         April 2010 with an effective date of June 15, 2011. You
                                                                         can order a copy of SSAE 16 from the AICPA’s online
                                                                         store at http://www.cpa2biz.com - publication number
                                                                         023035.

                                                                         SSAE 16 was drafted with the intention and purpose
                                                                         of updating the US service organization reporting
                                                                         standard so that it mirrors and complies with the new
                                                                         international service organization reporting standard

NAVIGATE WEBINAR                                                         – ISAE 3402.

                                                                         For service organizations that currently have a SAS 70
   Conducted by Trish Moritz,                                            service auditor’s examination (“SAS 70 audit”) per-
                                                                         formed, some changes will be required to effectively
     Director Client Service                                             reporting under the new SSAE 16 standard.
 FEBRUARY 23, 2011 at 2:00 E.S.T.
                                                                         Additional information on SSAE 16 and Service Orga-
                                                                         nization Control reports can be viewed at the AICPA’s
Must register by Friday February                                         new web page (http://www.aicpa.org/soc).

18, 2011 - REGISTRATION IS FREE!
    Register via email to Trish
                                                                           National Recovery Agency will be “Bowling for
tmoritz@nationalrecovery.com                                               Kids’ Sake” for the third consecutive year. This
                                                                           annual fundraiser benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters
An invite and instructions for the                                         of the Capital Region.
 Go To Meeting will be sent on                                             Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more
  Monday February 20, 2011                                                 than a couple of hours of
                                                                           bowling. It’s Big Brothers
                                                                           Big Sisters’ THANK YOU
                                                                           for helping raise funds for
                                                                           mentoring programs!




                                                                                                                             

                         © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA FILE TRANSFER VERIFICATION FORM
PLEASE FORWARD THIS INFORMATION TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHO PLACES YOUR
ACCOUNTS WITH OUR AGENCY.

Effective immediately, the following process applies to any and all clients who are referring accounts
electronically to NRA. When referring an account file electronically, please use the format below
to ensure timely download/upload of your data. It is suggested that you save this page and submit
it with each electronic file.




FILE NAME:

DATE OF TRANSFER:

						                                  CLIENT NAME:

						                                  CONTACT NAME:

						                                  CONTACT PHONE:

						                                  CLIENT NUMBER:



 PLACEMENT TOTALS

 TOTAL NUMBER OF ACCOUNTS PLACED

 DOLLAR VALUE OF ACCOUNTS PLACED                        $


                        PLEASE SUBMIT THIS FORM TO
                     INTSUP@NATIONALRECOVERY.COM

                    If you have any questions, please feel free to call IT Support
                                     at 1-800-360-9953 x 6736
NRA                     TODAY
                                                                February - Special Edition 2011          Volume 6        Issue 2



Court Ruling Increases Requirements
for Debt Collection Lawsuits                                           NRA LAUNCHES NEW CONSUMER SITE
insideARM.com – February 10, 2011
                                                                    	       Through the new website, consumers can
A recent state appellate court ruling requiring debt                communicate with NRA, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week,
purchasers to provide documented proof of account                   365 days a year. They are provided with payment options
ownership as part of its evidence to bring a lawsuit                in resolving their debt and information on what to do if
against a debtor foreshadows changes for debt buyers’               they’ve been contacted by NRA. Consumers have the
and collectors’ use of the court system, according to               option of communicating with via email or opt to have a
one ARM legal expert.                                               representative call them with just the click of a button.
On February 1, the Second Division of the Illinois First
District Appellate Court ruled that collection agencies             	      “Consumers are looking for a way to
filing a lawsuit to collect a claim on a debt buyer’s               communicate better with our staff,” said Steve Kusic,
behalf must include copies of all previous owners, the              Chief Executive Officer. “Today, more and more
date of assignment to those owners, and the amount                  consumers are using the Internet to communicate
paid by the debt buyer.                                             and make payments. With the launch of www.
                                                                    nationalrecovery.com, consumers searching the
Typically, collection attorneys are allowed to submit               Internet for NRA will quickly find the tools they need to
to the courts a list of delinquent accounts with some               communicate with us.” They will also find the resources
identifying consumer information and amounts owed                   needed to assist them if they are a victim of Identity Theft
to initiate a lawsuit. But in Unifund CCCR Partners v.              and how to obtain credit report information.
Mohammad Shah, the three-judge panel unanimously
agreed that Illinois law requires more than an affidavit
of the debt’s chain of title to prove assignment. Justice
Maureen E. Conner wrote that state law requires that an
                                                                          Check it out at
affidavit must accompany copies of each assignment
to ensure that the person suing someone has the legal
                                                                     www.nationalrecovery.com
right to do so.

Collection attorney Ronald Canter, of The Law                         Clients: for information regarding
Offices of Ronald S. Canter, LLC in Rockville, Md.,                   your accounts placed with NRA,
said the court’s decision reflects a growing trend of
requiring debt collection professionals to provide more             please visit www.nragroup.com and
paperwork if they want to sue debtors.
                                                                              access NAVIGATE.
“There is reason to believe that the trial courts in Illinois
will follow this decision and require debt buyers who sue
on purchased accounts in their own name to include
the full documented chain of title, a statement of                    UPCOMING EVENTS
consideration paid for the debt, and an account exhibit
that includes a specific reference to the assignment
and/or bill of sale,” Canter said.

The Federal Trade Commission issued a report last year              Platts 10th Annual Credit And Collections Conference for
that called the legal debt collection system “broken”,              Utilities
and encouraged states to take the lead in rectifying                Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress
the perceived problems. Given the FTC’s stance and                  Orlando, FL
political interest in protecting consumers in the wake of           March 1-3, 2011
the housing mortgage debacle, Canter said “spread
sheet accounting is no longer going to be accepted.
That’s where the trend is moving both for legislators,
regulars and in court decisions.”

                             Continued to page 

                                                                                                                               

                         © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                     TODAY
                                                               February - Special Edition 2011        Volume 6       Issue 2


Continued from page 
Mark Parsells, executive chairman of Global Debt
Registry, LLC, agreed. He said some federal and state
regulars have met with the Delaware-based debt titling                    VIEW YOUR ACCOUNTS ON-LINE WITH “NAVIGATE”.
company to educate themselves about available                                          WWW.NRAGROUP.COM
solutions to track and verify consumer debt.                        THIS IS A USER-FRIENDLY AND SECURE SITE THAT YOU CAN USE
                                                                   TO CHECK THE STATUS OF YOUR ACCOUNTS, UPLOAD FILES AND
“We’ve met with various regulators at their request and              MORE. NAVIGATE IS A CONVENIENT SITE FOR OUR CLIENTS.
they’ve asked us to explain the solutions,” Parsells said.
“They like the solutions and particularly like the fact that                       FOR LOGIN INFORMATION
our records provide an accurate chain of title at the                          PLEASE CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES!
account level every time the account is transferred.”

But Canter fears that the ruling adds an extra burden
on debt buyers and collection agencies doing business
because the extra paperwork will increase the cost of
the paper and collections. Even scarier, he said, is that           National Recovery Agency will be “Bowling for
debt buyers may have to reveal what they paid for the
                                                                    Kids’ Sake” for the third consecutive year.
debt as a condition for suing.
                                                                    This annual fundraiser benefits Big Brothers
“The public filing of price information disadvantages the           Big Sisters of the Capital Region.
debt buyer whose competitors can find out what price
the debt buyer/plaintiff paid for their accounts based              Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more than a couple of
on a review of court filings,” Canter said. “Public notice
of the price also will add ammunition to consumer
                                                                    hours of bowling. It’s Big Brothers Big Sisters’
advocates who constantly complain about accounts                    THANK YOU for helping raise funds for
sold for pennies on the dollar.”                                    mentoring programs!
Some collection agencies and debt buyers may be
                                                                    When: Sunday, April 3rd
tempted to fight the changes. But Canter said now is
the time for the industry to change and adapt because               	     Saturday, March 26th
more courts, legislators and regulars are likely to require
the information because it’s available.

“There will have to be an effort to make this information
available in a cost effective way…for it to be sold with
the account or accessed with the account,” he said.

Permalink: http://www.insidearm.com/daily/debt-buy-
ing-topics/debt-buying/court-ruling-increases-require-
ments-for-debt-collection-lawsuits/


                                                                       NRA RECOGNIZED AS:


      February                   Janet Hernandez
      Robin Kirkpatrick          Schkira Washington
      Shell Sharma               Yvonne Ruby                            Sponsored by: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL
      Fran Simmons               Tiffany Riser
      Sandra Ortiz               Shantee Williams
      Kevin Porter               Melvin Rojo
      Biancha Tatum              Dashea Chester
      			
                                                                                                                          

                          © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                         TODAY
                                                           February - Special Edition 2011         Volume 6        Issue 2


                                   Bill Collectors Face Disclosure Rules
                                   By SARA MURRAY
                                                                               “People can make old debts fresh again
                                      Bill collectors in New Mexico will       by making partial payments.”
                                   be soon required to inform borrowers             The Federal Trade Commission has
           Ask Dr. Debt                                                        urged states to take a harder line on
                                   they can’t be taken to court for
 Consumers seeking solutions       long-overdue debts, changing                collecting old debts.
  to debt problems have a new      the landscape for consumers and                  “Consumers are not aware that
     online resource through       creditors in the state.                     collectors cannot lawfully sue to recover
                                      A handful of states and cities           on time-barred debt,” the FTC said in July.
    Ask Dr. Debt, a financial                                                        .”To prevent deception, collectors who
                                   have addressed the issue, which has
 education Web site that ACA                                                   seek to collect debt they know or should
                                   gained attention from the Federal
  International -- a nonprofit     Trade Commission as debt-collector          know is time barred should disclose that
  credit association unveiled.     complaints have risen.                      they cannot lawfully sue the consumers.”
                                      Since April 2010, New York City               Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill,
    “It’s essentially an online
                                   has required debt collectors to notify      in a speech in July, said, “I believe that it
   version of ‘Dear Abby’ for                                                  is time for Congress to amend federal law
                                   consumers in writing if the debt has
   consumers with credit and       passed the statute of limitations,          to prohibit such collection efforts.” She
  debt questions,” John Nemo,      known as “time barred.”                     warned of more FTC enforcement efforts
     public relations director        Wisconsin and Mississippi have laws      in this area.
                                   that not only eliminate the right to sue         Debt-collection agencies say the
     for ACA International,                                                    new rules create unfair burdens on their
                                   on time-barred debts but extinguish
     said in an e-mail. Nemo                                                   industry and aren’t as helpful to borrowers
                                   the debt entirely.
      said visitors to the site       Statutes vary by state but nearly all    as they appear.
      will be able to search a     have a time limit for credit-card debt.          The disclaimer could create a false
                                      In New Mexico, Attorney General          sense of comfort for consumers, David
 database of frequently asked
                                   Gary King adopted a rule in                 Cherner, legislative director of state
   questions and submit their                                                  government affairs for the Association of
                                   December requiring debt collectors to
  own. Ask Doctor Debt also        inform borrowers if the loan they are       Credit and Collection Professionals, said of
    contains interactive tools     inquiring about has passed the statute      the New Mexico rule.
   to educate consumers, such      of limitations—four years for most               “We’ve indirectly put them in a position
                                   credit-card debt in that state. By law,     to believe the debt is not going to impact
    as budget calculators and                                                  their life,” Mr. Cherner said.
                                   lenders can’t go to court to collect on
     a free personal financial                                                      Nathalie Martin, a University of New
                                   such loans.
    management Web course.            The rule, which goes into effect         Mexico law professor, says that many
                                   in March, is designed to protect            people in the state “can’t afford to pay all
                                   consumers, but collection agencies          the debts that they owe, so they’re going
                                                                               to have to prioritize.”
DID YOU KNOW ?                     say that it will lead consumers to
                                   believe they will escape penalties               The new rules may make it tougher to
                                                                               convince debtors to pay their loans.
National Recovery Agency           entirely for not paying their debts.
                                      Instead, the debt can linger on a             A survey by Ms. Martin and colleague
 is PPMS, PCI-DSS and                                                          Timothy Goldsmith presented nearly 150
                                   credit report, generally for seven years.
SAS-70 Type II Certified              Complicating the decision for            respondents with a hypothetical debt,
                                   debtors is that even a partial payment      and found 34% said they wouldn’t agree
                                   on old debt can restart the clock on        to a payment plan when informed the
                                   the obligation and render it no longer      debt couldn’t be enforced in court. Of
                                   “time barred”—a disclosure that the         those who weren’t told the debt wasn’t
                                   new rule requires debt collectors           legally enforceable, just 6% said they
                                   to make. The risk of unknowingly            would decline to pay.
                                   reaffirming a debt was part of the               New Mexico’s rule stems from a lawsuit
                                   impetus behind New York’s rule.             against Merchants’ Credit Guide Co., a
                                      “One of the abuses in the                debt-collection company, for violating
                                   debt-collection industry was debt           state law by failing to notify consumers
 NRA IS LOOKING FOR                collectors who would misrepresent           that it was trying to collect debts that
 GOOD EMPLOYEES!!                  to people what the risks were about         had passed the statute of limitations
                                   very old debt,” said Jonathan Mintz,        even though that information would be
                                   commissioner of the New York City           important, or material, to the consumer.
                                   Department of Consumer Affairs.                                                     

                         © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
VOLUME 6, ISSUE 2
 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency
                                                                                             March/April 2011



NRA Today
“A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™”

                                                                2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010


Creditors Must Be Wary of California’s Rosenthal Act and the FDCPA
by Tomio Narita                           collecting from a California resident
Simmonds  Narita LLP                     may be violating California law.
February 23, 2011                         	       There are two significant

	      Should creditors care
about the FDCPA? For the most
                                          exceptions to section 1788.17 of
                                          the Rosenthal Act: creditors do not
                                          need to provide consumers with
                                                                                      ATTENTION:
part, original creditors – including      the “mini-Miranda” notice required
banks, credit card issuers, finance       by section 1692e(11) of the FDCPA,          THIS IS A VERY
companies, telecommunications
companies, payday lenders, and
                                          nor must creditors send consumers        IMPORTANT MESSAGE
                                          the validation notice mandated by
other entities that extend credit         section 1692g of the FDCPA. See                 FROM
directly to consumers – do not
operate as “debt collectors” as
                                          Cal. Civ. Code § 1788.17. But the
                                          remaining substantive provisions of
                                                                                   NATIONAL RECOVERY
defined by the FDCPA. For this            the FDCPA, as well as the remedies             AGENCY
reason, when creditors are trying         provided by section 1692k(a)(3)
to collect money from their own           of the Act, apply to creditors who
customers, they may not pay much          collect in California. Id.              For the past six months, NRA has been
attention to the requirements of the      	       The FDCPA can be an             advancing its technology in many
FDCPA, or the myriad of cases that        awkward fit when it is applied to       ways. NRA would like to inform you
have interpreted the statute. But         creditors collecting from their own     that it has made a decision to upgrade
ignoring the FDCPA is not a good          customers. Despite this, courts         from CR Platinum to the Titanium ORE
idea for creditors who want to collect    will often rely on the reasoning        Collection System. This notice is the
money from customers located in           employed by FDCPA decisions             first in a series of notifications that is
California.                               when evaluating Rosenthal Act           intended to keep you updated and
	      Any creditor who attempts          claims filed against creditors.         informed of the status of our collection
to collect a consumer debt from a         See, e.g., Reyes v. Wells Fargo         system upgrade.
California consumer likely qualifies as   Bank, N.A., 2011 WL 30759 (N.D.
a “debt collector” under California’s     Cal. Jan. 3, 2011) (using “least        NRA is excited about the additional
debt collection statute – the             sophisticated debtor” standard          flexibility that this system and
Rosenthal Act. See Cal. Civ. Code §       to evaluate Rosenthal Act claims        software offer, thus providing an
1788.2(c) (“debt collector” includes      against creditor); Thompson v.
                                                                                  open receivables environment (ORE)
anyone “who, in the ordinary course       Chase Bank, N.A., 2010 WL 1329061,
of business, regularly, on behalf of                                              allowing us to mange collections with
                                          at *3 (S.D. Cal. March 30, 2010)
himself or herself or others, engages     (refusing to dismiss Rosenthal Act      unparalleled scalability, simplicity and
in debt collection.”). The Rosenthal      claims alleging that collection calls   speed.
Act not only includes its own set         made on Easter Sunday, Memorial
of requirements regulating debt           Day and Mothers’ Day were at            We will be providing updates
collection, but also incorporates by      “inconvenient” or “unusual” times).     each Thursday as to the status
reference most of the requirements        Creditors, like traditional debt        and our progress regarding this
of the FDCPA. See Cal. Civ. Code          collectors, must be aware of            conversion.
§1788.17. Thus, a creditor who fails      the volume and pattern of their
to comply with the FDCPA while            collection phone calls. Creditors

                                          Continued to page 
                                                                                                                         
                        © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                    TODAY
                                                              March/April 2011          Volume 6         Issue 2


Continued from page 

obviously have a legitimate need to     	        Will courts utilize the Foti
contact their delinquent customers
by phone to make payment
                                        line of cases when evaluating the
                                        content of voice mail messages
                                                                                           Inside this issue:
arrangements. But the Rosenthal Act,    left by creditors? The reasoning of
like the FDCPA, prohibits creditors fromthe Foti decisions likely will not make
                                                                                      Creditors Must Be Wary of
placing telephone calls repeatedly or   sense when applied to a creditor’s
                                                                                      California’s Rosenthal Act
continuously with the intent to annoy   voice mails messages, and to date,
                                                                                      and the FDCPA		                  P.1
the person called. See Cal. Civ. Code   there are no published decisions
                                                                                      		
§§ 1788.11(d), 1788.11(e). Is there a   on the issue. But creditors should
                                                                                      Technology Upgrade	              P.1
limit on how many call attempts a       consider that California courts
creditor can make?                      have held that a debt collector’s
                                                                                      ACA International
	       To date, there are no clear     failure to properly identify itself in
                                                                                      Education Foundation
answers, because the reported           a voice mail message can violate
                                                                                      Fundraiser			                    P.2
decisions have involved calls placed    both the FDCPA and the Rosenthal
                                                                                      	
by traditional debt collectors, not by  Act. See, e.g., Hosseinzadeh v.               InsideARM Consumer
creditors. But we can expect that the   M.R.S. Associates, Inc., 387 F. Supp.         Complaint Annual Report	         P.3
courts will be guided by the reasoning  2d 1104,1117-18 (N.D. Cal. 2005)
used in FDCPA cases, considering        (collector’s failure to properly identify     Mass. law boosts debt
not only the volume of the calls,       itself in voice mail messages violated        collection protections           P.5
but also the calling pattern and the    FDCPA and Rosenthal Act); Joseph
individual facts of the case. See e.g., v. J.J. Mac Intyre, L.L.C., 238 F. Supp.
                                                                                      Casey rules to ensure work
Arteaga v. Asset Acceptance, 733 F.     2d. 1158, 1168 (N.D. Cal. 2002)
                                                                                      reaches subcontractors           P.5
Supp. 2d 1218, 1229 (E.D. Cal. 2010)    (same, denying motion to dismiss).
(summary judgment for debt collector;   Most creditors have procedures in
                                                                                      Bowl For Kids Sake Event         P.6
evidence of “daily” calls not sufficientplace for dealing with consumers
to support claim for intent to harass   who are represented by attorneys.
under FDCPA or section 1788.11 of the   When a consumer notifies the
Rosenthal Act); Rucker v. Nationwide    creditor in writing that she has              (S.D. Cal. 2010) (granting judgment
Credit, Inc., 2011 WL 25300 (E.D. Cal.  retained an attorney, the Rosenthal           on the pleadings; monthly billing
Jan. 5, 2011) (refusing to dismiss claims
                                        Act prohibits the creditor from               statements sent directly to represented
under FDCPA or sections 1788.11(d),     initiating communications directly            consumer did not violate section 1788.17
(e) of Rosenthal Act where collector    with the consumer – “other than               of Rosenthal Act); Moya v. Chase
allegedly placed 80 calls to consumer   statements of account” – in an                Cardmember Service, 661 F. Supp. 2d
in one year).                           attempt to collect the debt. See              1129 (N.D. Cal. 2009) (denying motion
                                                          Cal. Civ. Code              to dismiss claim that monthly statements
                                                          § 1788.14(c). But           sent to represented consumer violated
National Recovery Agency is holding its annual
                                                          what if the creditor        section 1788.14 of Rosenthal Act).
fundraiser in the month of April to benefit               mails a monthly            Should creditors be concerned about
the ACA International Education Foundation.               statement directly         facing Rosenthal Act class actions?
Donate in April - then wear the entire month of           to a represented           Section 1788.30 of the Rosenthal Act
May:                                                      consumer, and the          does not allow for class actions, and in
                                                          statement includes         fact, it specifically limits consumers to
                                                          language noting            pursuing claims “only in an individual
	      Jeans for $25                                      that the account           action.” See Cal. Civ. Code §§
	      Sneakers for $25                                   is delinquent?             1788.30(a), 1788.30(b). Under section
	      Flip Flops for $25                                 Unfortunately, the         1788.17 of the Rosenthal Act, however,
                                                          Rosenthal Act does         creditors are “subject to the remedies”
	      Jeans  Sneakers/Flip Flops for $40
                                                          not define the term        of section 1692k of the FDCPA. A
                                                          “statements of             number of courts have held that
Money raised will be donated to the ACA                   account” and the           consumers may pursue class actions
International Foundation and will allow the               courts in California       under the Rosenthal Act. See, e.g.
Foundation to expand its important work in                are split on this issue.   Abels v. JBC Legal Group, P.C., 227
                                                          See, e.g., Marcotte v.     F.R.D. 541 (N.D. Cal. 2005) (granting
financial education.                                      GE Capital Services,       motion to certify Rosenthal Act class
                                                          709 F. Supp. 2d 994        action); Gonzalez v. Arrow Financial
                                                                                     Continued to page 
                                                                                                                        

                        © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                         TODAY
                                                                     March/April 2011        Volume 6         Issue 2


Continued from page 
Services LLC, 489 F. Supp. 2d 1140 (S.D. Cal. 2007)                   however, refused to grant a creditor’s motion to strike
(denying motion to decertify Rosenthal Act class action).             portions of a Rosenthal Act complaint that sought $1000
The Rosenthal Act allows consumers to recover any                     per violation. See Hamberg v. JP Morgan Chase Bank,
actual damages they sustain by reason of the violation.               2010 WL 2523947 (S.D. Cal. June 22, 2010).
See Cal. Civ. Code § 1788.30(a). Unlike the FDCPA,                    	       What about defenses? Like the FDCPA, the
however, the Rosenthal Act is not a strict liability statute.         Rosenthal Act includes a “bona fide error” defense,
Statutory penalties ranging from $100 to $1000 may                    which allows a creditor to prove that any violation
be recovered, but only if the consumer demonstrates                   was not intentional, and occurred notwithstanding
the defendant “willfully and knowingly” violated the                  maintenance of procedures reasonably adapted to
Rosenthal Act. See Cal. Civ Code § 1788.30(b).                        avoid the violation. See Cal. Civ. Code § 1788.30(e).
	       If a willful and knowing violation is shown, are              The Rosenthal Act also has a “right to cure” defense,
the statutory damages limited to $1000 per action, as                 which permits a creditor, within 15 days of discovering
in FDCPA cases, or may the consumer recover $1000                     any violation which is “able to be cured” or after written
per violation? The better-reasoned decisions hold that                notice of any such violation, to notify the debtor of the
the consumer is limited to $1000 per action. See, e.g.,               violation and to make any adjustments or corrections
Scott v. Federal Bond and Collection Service, Inc., 2011              necessary to cure the violation. See Cal. Civil Code §
WL 176846, at *3 (N.D. Cal. Jan 19, 2011) (Rosenthal                  1788.30(d).
Act statutory damages limited to $1000 per action);                   	       The Rosenthal Act has been around for decades,
Marseglia v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, 2010 WL 4595549                    and the statute has always applied to creditors. During
(S.D. Cal. Nov. 12, 2010) (same). One California court,               the past few years, however, the Rosenthal Act has
                                                                      become a favorite of consumer attorneys, and the trend
                                                                      appears likely to continue. Creditors with customers in
   METHODS OF ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT:
                                                                      California must be aware that, in light of section 1788.17
  National Recovery places great emphasis on the importance           of the Rosenthal Act, any attempts to collect in California
  of recovering our client’s portfolio. In addition to traditional    must comply with the Rosenthal Act and the FDCPA.
  methods of payment such as cash, money orders, personal,
  bank, and certified checks, we accept the following                 	       Tomio Narita is a partner of Simmonds  Narita
  methods of debtor payment over the phone; as well as                LLP, a California law firm specializing in defending claims
  the ability to pay online at www.nationalrecovery.com.
                                                                      arising under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the
    •   Western Union/Quick Collect                                   Fair Credit Reporting Act, and the Rosenthal Act.
    •   Credit AND DEBIT Cards
    •   MoneyGram
    •   Bank Wire
    •   Check By Phone


                                                                        InsideArm.com
                                                                        March, 2011

                                                                        In its annual report on consumer complaints,
                                                                        released in March 2011, debt collection agencies
                                                                        resolved 84 percent of the complaints received
                                                                        compared to an average of 75.8 percent for all
                                                                        industries tracked. Collections agencies rank 19th in
                                                                        the number of inquiries and fifth in the total number
                                                                        of complaints.

                                                                        Overall, the BBB received 535,224 inquiries about
                                                                        collection agencies in 2010. Of these, 14,966 were
        Check out our client website at                                 complaints and 12,568 were resolved based on BBB
            www.nragroup.com                                            standards. Since 2002, collection agencies have
                                                                        been above the national average in resolving
                                                                        more than 80 percent of the complaints filed with
    Check out our consumer website at                                   the BBB.
       www.nationalrecovery.com


                                                                                                                             

                             © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA FILE TRANSFER VERIFICATION FORM
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ACCOUNTS WITH OUR AGENCY.

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                    If you have any questions, please feel free to call IT Support
                                     at 1-800-360-9953 x 6736
NRA                     TODAY
                                                              March/April 2011         Volume 6         Issue 2

Mass. law boosts debt                        books since the Colonial era, has      Casey rules to ensure work
                                             some archaic exemptions, like two
collection protections                       cows, 12 sheep, two swine, and         reaches subcontractors
                                             four tons of hay. It has now been
                                             amended to allow each family to        Central Penn Business Journal
Governor Deval Patrick
                                             keep a computer and a television.      Thursday, March 17, 2011 12:16 PM
By Beth Healy

                                             “This new law will protect thousands   An amendment introduced by U.S.
Globe Staff / January 8, 2011
                                             of struggling Massachusetts            Sen. Bob Casey and approved by the
                                             residents, and allow them to house,    Senate aims to increase accountability
Governor Deval Patrick yesterday
                                             feed, and support their families and   by government contractors who list
signed into law a bill to provide
                                             continue to work as they struggle      small women- and minority-owned
Massachusetts consumers with
                                             to pay debts and get back on their     business as subcontractors.
greater protection from debt
collectors who try to seize their            feet after an economic setback,’’
                                             said Robert J. Hobbs, deputy           The amendment to the Small Business
belongings and bank accounts.
                                             director of the National Consumer      Innovation Research reauthorization bill,
The new law updates decades-
                                             Law Center.                            passed Wednesday by a vote of 99-0,
old property exemptions, allowing
                                                                                    includes requirements for contractors
consumers to keep a car worth up to
                                             Beth Healy can be reached at           to tell subcontractors that they would
$7,500 out of reach of collectors, up
                                             bhealy@globe.com.                      be listed on a bid before submitting
from $700 in the past. Owners who
                                                                                    for work from an executive agency,
are 60 or older or disabled will get a
                                                                                    according to a statement from Casey,
$15,000 car exemption. Consumers
                                                                                    D-Pennsylvania.
also may hold on to $2,500 in a bank
                                                                                    It also would also create a system for
account, five times the current level.
                                                                                    subcontractors to report potential fraud,
                                                                                    his office said.
“It’s a wonderful victory for
consumers,’’ said Barbara Anthony,
                                                                              The amendment came about after
undersecretary of the state’s Office
                                                                              senator heard concerns from small
of Consumer Affairs and Business
                                                                              businesses in Pennsylvania about
Regulation. “It’s drawing a bright
                                                                              contractors listing minority- and women-
line here in terms of debt collection
                                                                              owned businesses on applications
practices. As a state, we’re not
                                                                              to strengthen their chances of
going to tolerate these shoddy,               HAPPY BIRTHDAY NRA EMPLOYEES: 	 receiving work without the potential
unscrupulous debt collection
                                                                              subcontractors’ knowledge.
practices.’’                                Craig Andrus     Julius Flynn
                                                                              The prime contractor then might
                                            Sarah Brown	      Deb Sterling    not allocate the work to the listed
The legislation, which was sponsored        Charlene Sarver Bryan Wentz       subcontractors, who never knew they
by Senator Patricia D. Jehlen and           Thomas Zalonis    Tasha Adams     should get the work in the first place,
passed by the Legislature last week,        Tanisha Ellis     Regina Andrews according to Casey’s office.
takes effect April 7. It followed a
                                            Damon Ogden      Mecca Holman
Globe Spotlight series in 2006 that
                                            Melissa Briner	  Keth Blow              The full Small Business Innovation
found debt collectors routinely suing
                                            April Robles                            Research reauthorization bill still needs
people who have fallen behind on
                                            LaDonna Fletcher                        to be passed by the Senate, reconciled
credit card bills, and seizing their cars
                                                                                    with the U.S. House of Representatives
and other property, often without           Rashad Bennett
                                                                                    and then sent for President Barack
properly alerting them. Small claims        Michael West                            Obama’s signature to become law,
courts have since overhauled their          Tammy Rudy                              according to an e-mail statement from
rules, but some consumers have still
                                                                                    Casey’s office.
been subject to towing in the past
year.
A group of Massachusetts collection
lawyers did not oppose the new                                VIEW YOUR ACCOUNTS ON-LINE WITH “NAVIGATE”.
exemptions when the bill was being                                        WWW.NRAGROUP.COM
written, saying that towing cars was          THIS IS A USER-FRIENDLY AND SECURE SITE THAT YOU CAN USE TO CHECK THE STATUS
often counterproductive.                     OF YOUR ACCOUNTS, UPLOAD FILES AND MORE. NAVIGATE IS A CONVENIENT SITE FOR
                                                                              OUR CLIENTS.
The law, which has been on the
                                                                        FOR LOGIN INFORMATION
                                                                    PLEASE CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES!
                                                                                                                       

                         © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                         TODAY
                                                            March/April 2011           Volume 6     Issue 2




                                                                               National Recovery Agency third
                                                                               annual “Bowling for Kids’ Sake”
                                                                               fundraiser benefits Big Brothers Big
           Ask Dr. Debt                                                        Sisters of the Capital Region.
 Consumers seeking solutions
  to debt problems have a new                                                  Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more than a
     online resource through                                                   couple of hours of bowling. It’s Big
    Ask Dr. Debt, a financial                                                  Brothers Big Sisters’ THANK YOU for
 education Web site that ACA                                                   helping raise funds for mentoring
  International -- a nonprofit                                                 programs!
  credit association unveiled.
    “It’s essentially an online
   version of ‘Dear Abby’ for
   consumers with credit and
  debt questions,” John Nemo,
     public relations director
     for ACA International,
     said in an e-mail. Nemo
      said visitors to the site
      will be able to search a
 database of frequently asked
   questions and submit their
  own. Ask Doctor Debt also
    contains interactive tools
   to educate consumers, such
    as budget calculators and
     a free personal financial
    management Web course.


DID YOU KNOW ?
National Recovery Agency
 is PPMS, PCI-DSS and
SAS-70 Type II Certified




                                     “NRA BOWLING STONES”
 NRA IS LOOKING FOR                 Pictured below back row: Tasey Leitzell, Michael Goodyear, Ed Stauffer,
 GOOD EMPLOYEES!!                   Penni Lee, Emma Goodyear


                                                                                                                      

                         © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
NRA                   TODAY
                                                             March/April 2011           Volume 6      Issue 2




                                                         “NRA BOWL DOGS”
“NRA BABES WITH BALLS”                                   Pictured below back row: Chris Bowen, Craig Andrus,
                                                         and Tyler Andrus
Pictured below from Left to Right: Cathy Talalai, Tara   Front Row: Yvonne Cooper, Winnie Smith
Gonzalez, Andrea Ross, and Autumn Ware.




                                                                    “NRA PIN COLLECTORS”
                                                                   Pictured from Left to Right: Kimberly Summerlot,
                                                                   Danelle O’Connor, Andrew Schwalm, Karina
                                                                   Goldsmith, Brad Huffman




                                                                                                                      

                          © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
VOLUME 6, ISSUE 5
 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency
                                                                                               May 2011



NRA Today
“A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™”

                                                               2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010


National Recovery Agency Acquires California Collection Agency

                                         the benefit of all of our clients, no   and timely information for
by insideARM.com – April 25, 2011
                                         matter what size, both immediately      outsourced business services
                                         and long term,” said Steven Kusic.      companies since 1989. The firm has
Steven Kusic, President  CEO
                                                                                 completed over 130 transactions
of National Recovery Agency
                                         Founded in 1969, American               representing in excess of $3
(NRA), announced Monday that an
                                         Agencies has a well-established         billion in shareholder value for
agreement has been reached with
                                         foundation as a leader in the           a variety of clients – from small
the shareholder of ACA Receivables,
                                         collection industry for over 40         family businesses to Fortune
LLC d/b/a American Agencies
                                         years. Having a diversified client      500 companies. In 2011 Kaulkin
(AA) to acquire the assets of the
                                         base, licensing and authority           Ginsberg is celebrating twenty
California-based consumer accounts
                                         across the United States, American      years in the ARM industry
receivable management firm. NRA
will operate American Agencies as a      Agencies is a national collection
wholly owned subsidiary. Terms of        agency leading in commercial and
the transaction were not disclosed.      consumer collections.                         Inside this issue:
“NRA is an impressive organization
with visionary leadership that made      National Recovery Agency, with
                                                                                 NRA Acquires CA Agency	              P.1
the transaction seamless.                over 350 employees, is a leading
                                                                                 		
                                         nationwide provider of receivables      USPS Rate Hikes	  	                  P.2
NRA plans to immediately leverage        management and business
American Agencies sales team with        process outsourcing solutions.          Regulation Z Amended	                P.2
representatives in 14 different states   Headquartered in Harrisburg, PA,
and offices in Provo, Utah and Los       the company offers outsourced           CR Software collections 	            P.3
                                         collections, payment processing,        and receivable certified	
Angeles, CA, to expand its national
                                         and call center services to             	
footprint. NRA expects that                                                      NRA’s Biggest Losers - Win Big	   P.3
this acquisition will immediately        healthcare facilities, governmental
be significantly accretive to its        entities, utility companies, retail     NRA Joins IPI Trade Association   P.5
earnings”, noted Michael D. Lamm         and direct marketing, financial
of Kaulkin Ginsberg, an MA              services, higher education              Featured Book of the Month P.5
advisor on the transaction.              institutions, and debt buyers.
                                         NRA has offices in Harrisburg, PA;      Foreclosure Activity
“With the acquisition of American        Mechanicsburg, PA; Provo, Utah;         Decreases in First Quarter 	      P.6
Agencies, NRA is able to further         Los Angles, CA; Panama City,
                                         Panama and Pune, India.                 Compliance Alert		                P.7
strengthen our infrastructure to
enhance our collection services for      Kaulkin Ginsberg is the leading
                                         source of MA, strategic advice,

                                                                                                                      
                        © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
2011
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2011

  • 1. VOLUME 6, ISSUE 1 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency January/February 2011 NRA Today “A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™” 2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010 New Mexico Attorney General Releases Rule Regarding Collecting Time-Barred Debt DBA International 12/15/10 1. “We are required by New make any payment of the debt; Mexico Attorney General Rule sign a paper in which you admit On Dec. 15, 2010, the New to notify you of the following that you owe the debt or in which Mexico Attorney General released information. This information is not you make a new promise to pay; a rule concerning the collection of legal advice.”; sign a paper in which you give up time-barred debt in New Mexico. 2. The debt is or may not be (“waive”) your right to stop the The rule requires debt collectors enforceable through lawsuit debt collector from suing you in to determine whether a debt is because the applicable statute of court to collect the debt. time-barred and provide certain limitations has or may have expired; In written communications disclosures when collecting time- 3. If the debt is time-barred, the the disclosure is required to be barred debt in New Mexico. The consumer cannot be required pay clear, in plain language and rule defines time-barred debt as through a lawsuit; conspicuously placed on the front “any debt that is not enforceable 4. Admission, affirmation or in a judicial proceeding because acknowledgment of the debt, the applicable statute of limitations has run.” A copy of the final rule, a promise to pay the debt, payment of the debt or a waiver Inside this issue: as well as the Attorney General’s of the consumer’s rights regarding statement regarding adoption the expiration of the statute of of the rule, is available on ACA’s limitations is not required; and New Mexico AG Releases website. 5. The consequences of reviving Rule Regarding Collecting The rule is effective Dec. the statute of limitations by Time Barred Debt 15, 2010. In response to a request acknowledging the debt, promising P.1 by ACA, the Attorney General to pay the debt or waiving the will delay enforcement of the rule statute of limitations. NRA Kicks off Healthy until March 15, 2011. However, The rule provides a model Employee Contest P.2 ACA’s Compliance Department disclosure deemed to be in is currently reviewing whether compliance with the rule (ITALICS NOT REQUIRED): SSAE 16 Overview P.3 a consumer may immediately enforce this new rule. ACA We are required by New Mexico members should immediately Attorney General Rule to notify you Harrisburg ranks among review this new rule and undertake of the following information. This top 10 cities for business P.4 appropriate internal review of information is not legal advice: their policies and procedures to This debt may be too old for New Federal Law Bans determine steps to comply with the you to be sued on it in court. If it is Caller ID Manipulation P.6 rule. too old, you can’t be required to If the debt collector has pay it through a lawsuit. Social Security Checks reason to know or knows a debt You can renew the debt and start the time for the filing of a going electronic P.7 is time-barred, the collector must inform the consumer of the lawsuit against you to collect the following: debt if you do any of the following: © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 2. NRA TODAY January/February 2011 Volume 6 Issue 1 METHODS OF ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT: National Recovery places great emphasis on the importance of recovering our client’s portfolio. In addition to traditional methods of payment such as cash, money orders, personal, bank, and certified checks, we accept the following methods of debtor payment over the phone; as well as the ability to pay online at www.nationalrecovery.com. • Western Union/Quick Collect • Credit AND DEBIT Cards • MoneyGram • Bank Wire • Check By Phone NRA KICKS OFF ITS BIGGEST LOSER CONTEST ON FEBRUARY 4, 2011 NRA is in its final stages of developing its NEW consumer site at www.nationalrecovery.com. For many people, adding lean protein to the diet Implementing the new site is expected to be may promote healthy weight loss. Protein lends a made available to the public by March 1, 2011 feeling of satiety—especially when combined with fiber—and also provides a platform for exercise. Experts believe protein helps with weight loss in part because of an increase in thermogenesis, NRA RECOGNIZED AS: meaning the body burns more calories just to digest higher–protein foods. Today, challenge yourself to learn protein basics and up your protein intake. Remember: Not all proteins are equal—replace high–fat foods and highly refined carbohydrates with lean protein sources only. Sponsored by: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 3. NRA TODAY January/February 2011 Volume 6 Issue 1 CONSUMER REPORTS MAGAZINE SSAE 16 Overview SURVEY STATISTICS Statement on * One-third of Americans do not own a credit card. Standards for Attestation * 54% pay their balance in full each month. Engagements (SSAE) No. * 33% carry balances up to $10,000 (median balance: 16, Reporting $2,254) on Controls at a Service * 13% carry balances over $10,000 (median balance: Organization, $17,366) was finalized by the Auditing * 21% of consumers said they were treated unfairly by card Standards Board companies and 32% have paid off and closed a card since of the American January 2008. Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in * 16% canceled their cards in response to the actions of January 2010. SSAE 16 effectively replaces SAS 70 as credit-card issuers cutting limits, hiking rates, or imposing the authoritative guidance for reporting on service fees. organizations. SSAE 16 was formally issued in April 2010 with an effective date of June 15, 2011. You can order * 45% of survey respondents say they are charging less. a copy of SSAE 16 from the AICPA’s online store at http://www.cpa2biz.com - publication number 023035. * 11% are charging more than they did a year ago. SSAE 16 was drafted with the intention and purpose of updating the US service organization reporting standard so that it mirrors and complies with the new LET US “HOOK” YOU UP BY international service organization reporting standard TURNING YOUR OUTSTANDING – ISAE 3402. DEBT INTO LIQUID CAPITAL. For service organizations that currently have a SAS call us today!! 70 service auditor’s examination (“SAS 70 audit”) performed, some changes will be required to effectively reporting under the new SSAE 16 standard. 1/800-360-9953 OR VISIT US ONLINE AT Additional information on SSAE 16 and Service WWW.NRAGROUP.COM Organization Control reports can be viewed at the AICPA’s new web page (http://www.aicpa.org/soc). IDENTITY THEFT, FRAUD * The number of U.S. identity fraud victims rose 12% National Recovery Agency will be “Bowling for to 11.1 million adults in 2009. Kids’ Sake” for the third consecutive year. This annual fundraiser benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters * Women were 26% more likely to be victims of of the Capital Region. identity fraud than men. Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more * The average fraud resolution time dropped 30% than a couple of hours of to 21 hours. bowling. It’s Big Brothers Big Sisters’ THANK YOU * Arizona has the highest and South Dakota has the for helping raise funds for lowest identity theft complaints per 100,000 people. mentoring programs! © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 4. NRA TODAY January/February 2011 Volume 6 Issue 1 Hours a day Americans in debt worry about money NAVIGATE WEBINAR Conducted by Trish Moritz, Director Client Service 4 hours FEBRUARY 23, 2011 at 2:00 E.S.T. or more 22% Must register by Friday February 1-3 hours 18, 2011 - REGISTRATION IS FREE! 63% 0 hours Register via email to Trish 15% tmoritz@nationalrecovery.com An invite and instructions for the Average Go To Meeting will be sent on Hours: 3.3 Monday February 20, 2011 Source: FreeScore.com survey Harrisburg ranks among top 10 cities for business VIEW YOUR ACCOUNTS ON-LINE WITH “NAVIGATE”. WWW.NRAGROUP.COM Wednesday, December 22, 2010 THIS IS A USER-FRIENDLY AND SECURE SITE THAT YOU CAN By Eric Veronikis USE TO CHECK THE STATUS OF YOUR ACCOUNTS, UPLOAD FILES AND MORE. NAVIGATE IS A CONVENIENT SITE FOR OUR Harrisburg ranked ninth in the U.S. on a financial CLIENTS. information and news website’s Best Cities for Business FOR LOGIN INFORMATION list. PLEASE CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES! Marketwatch.com included 102 cities in its annual survey. Scores are based on the concentration of businesses within a metro area and other metrics, including unemployment, job growth, population growth, personal income and local gross domestic product. Total scores are made up by company score Bankruptcy and economic score for each city. Harrisburg jumped 25 spots on the list this year with the Filings Jump In 2010 help of metrics included in the survey, the Harrisburg Regional Chamber and Capital Region Economic The number of U.S. consumers who filed for Development Corp. said yesterday. The city ranked in bankruptcy in 2010 topped 1.5 million last year, the top third of cities surveyed in tourism and military up 9% compared with 2009 as high long-term GDPs, and it ranked among the top 10 cities with the jobless rates and depressed home prices drove highest personal income levels. Harrisburg benefits from more households to seek court protection. being a small city with a few influential companies in its backyard, according to marketwatch.com. Washington, D.C., topped this year’s list. © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 5. NRA FILE TRANSFER VERIFICATION FORM PLEASE FORWARD THIS INFORMATION TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHO PLACES YOUR ACCOUNTS WITH OUR AGENCY. Effective immediately, the following process applies to any and all clients who are referring accounts electronically to NRA. When referring an account file electronically, please use the format below to ensure timely download/upload of your data. It is suggested that you save this page and submit it with each electronic file. FILE NAME: DATE OF TRANSFER: CLIENT NAME: CONTACT NAME: CONTACT PHONE: CLIENT NUMBER: PLACEMENT TOTALS TOTAL NUMBER OF ACCOUNTS PLACED DOLLAR VALUE OF ACCOUNTS PLACED $ PLEASE SUBMIT THIS FORM TO INTSUP@NATIONALRECOVERY.COM If you have any questions, please feel free to call IT Support at 1-800-360-9953 x 6736
  • 6. NRA TODAY January/February 2011 Volume 6 Issue 1 Continued from page of the page. If the communication is oral, the disclosure must be New Federal Law Bans made verbally immediately before or after the first statement Caller ID Manipulation requesting payment. If no request for payment is made during oral The Truth in Caller ID Act of 2009 communication, the disclosure was signed into law Dec. 23, 2010. must be made immediately after The Act amends the Telephone the first reference of the debt. Consumer Protection Act by The disclosures are required adding a new section that prohibits for both initial and subsequent any person, in connection with communications. any telecommunications service or Importantly, the rule Internet Protocol-enabled service, January February specifically states the above from causing a caller ID service to Penni Lee Robin Kirkpatrick disclosures must be given only to knowingly transmit misleading or Tandra Walker Shell Sharma those consumers whom the debt inaccurate caller ID information Susan Russell Fran Simmons collector reasonably and in good with the intend to defraud, cause Brandi Clark Sandra Ortiz faith determines owe a debt that is harm or wrongfully obtain anything Faith Farr Kevin Porter time-barred. of value. Mallory Herman Biancha Tatum Janet Hernandez Lastly, if a debt collector makes an The Truth in Caller ID Act broadly Schkira Washington erroneous determination regarding applies to any person attempting Yvonne Ruby the status of a debt, the collector to manipulate a caller ID service, Tiffany Riser may not be liable for a violation of including third-party debt Shantee Williams the rule if the collector exercised collectors, creditors and asset Melvin Rojo reasonable efforts to determine buyers. Dashea Chester whether the debt was time-barred. The Federal Trade Commission Documentation must be provided is in charge of developing and in support of the collector’s implementing regulations related determination for the defense to to the Act no later than June 23, 2011. stand. Seven States Raise A violation of the rule constitutes a violation of the New Mexico Unfair Minimum Wage Practices Act. UPCOMING EVENTS DOL.gov - Dec. 9, 2010 ACA, the New Mexico Collectors Association, and other groups such Minimum wage rates will change in as DBA International submitted Arizona, Colorado, Montana, Ohio, comments opposing the rule and DBA International 14th Annual Oregon, Vermont, and Washington, offering alternative solutions when Conference as of Jan. 1, 2011. The Department the rule was originally proposed in The Mirage Casino Hotel of Labor notes the states’ average early 2009. Although the final rule Las Vegas, NV increase is 10 cents per hour. Increases adopted or incorporated certain February 8 - 10, 2011 of 12 cents per hour in Colorado and suggestions and commentary from Washington top the list with the highest ACA and other groups, ACA was changes set to take effect. unaware of any revised version of Platts 10th Annual Credit And the rule between June 2009 and Collections Conference for Utilities December 2010. ACA will continue Correction to December’s Issue: to communicate with the New Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress Jerry Livingston has been employed with Mexico Attorney General’s office Orlando, FL NRA for more than 14 years. to seek clarification of the new rule March 1-3, 2011 as appropriate. © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 7. NRA TODAY January/February 2011 Volume 6 Issue 1 Soon the government save $1 billion over the next decade from phasing out paper checks, he said. check won’t be in the mail The final rules, scheduled to be unveiled Government announces Tuesday, are very similar to the proposal the government put forward in June. Ask Dr. Debt deadline for phasing out But in response to public comments, the Consumers seeking solutions paper benefit checks government has decided to allow people to debt problems have a new who are 90 and over and are still getting online resource through including Social Security Social Security benefit checks to continue Ask Dr. Debt, a financial to receive their benefits the same way. The Martin Crutsinger, AP Economics Writer, government estimates there are 275,000 education Web site that ACA On Tuesday December 21, 2010 people who fall into that category. International -- a nonprofit For people who do not have accounts at WASHINGTON (AP) -- Before too long, credit association unveiled. a bank or credit union, the government the government check will no longer “It’s essentially an online has an option that allows be in the mail. version of ‘Dear Abby’ for them to use a Direct Officials have settled “Switching now eliminates Express debit MasterCard consumers with credit and on the dates when the risks of lost and stolen issued by Comerica Bank, debt questions,” John Nemo, millions of people will checks and provides Treasury’s financial agent. no longer be able to public relations director immediate access to your More than 1.5 million get their Social Security for ACA International, money on payment day,” people have obtained and other benefit these cards, which were said in an e-mail. Nemo checks by mail. first issued in 2008. said visitors to the site New recipients of In addition to the benefits will have to will be able to search a automatic waiver from accept paperless payments starting on database of frequently asked electronic payments for those 90 and over, May 1 of next year, three months later questions and submit their people living in remote areas who might than first proposed. have trouble getting to a bank can also own. Ask Doctor Debt also Those already on Social Security will petition for a waiver from the new rules. contains interactive tools have until March 1, 2013 to make the Gregg said that the government expects switch to direct deposits or a debit to educate consumers, such fewer than 1 percent of current benefit card. as budget calculators and recipients will petition for a waiver. More than 58 million retirees, disabled Social Security Commissioner Michael J. a free personal financial people and surviving family members Astrue said that people should not wait management Web course. receive Social Security or Supplemental until the deadlines to make the switch to Security benefits. Already eight out electronic payments. of 10 people getting federal benefits “Switching now eliminates the risks of lost receive those payments electronically, DID YOU KNOW ? officials say. and stolen checks and provides immediate access to your money on payment day,” The switch to electronic payments will National Recovery Agency Astrue said. eliminate the problem of lost or stolen is PPMS, PCI-DSS and The new deadlines for the switchover checks and also the problems faced were announced by Treasury’s Financial SAS-70 Type II Certified by people displaced from their homes Management Service, the agency that who have to worry about getting their processes payments for the federal checks mailed to them, said Richard government. L. Gregg, the Treasury Department’s Congress passed a law in 1996 giving the assistant fiscal secretary. agency the power to halt mailing paper “Even though we have done a good checks for all government payments job of encouraging people to switch outside of refund checks from the Internal over, we still are making 120 million Revenue Service. payments by mail for Social Security To help with the switchover for those still every year and another 15 million getting paper checks, the government has annually for veterans and other types created a website, http://www.GoDirect. NRA IS LOOKING FOR of benefits,” Gregg said. org and a toll-free phone number, 1- GOOD EMPLOYEES!! Every year, the government has to 800-333-1795, that people can call for process about 600,000 claims for lost assistance. or stolen checks. Social Security will © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 8. VOLUME 6, ISSUE 2 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency Special Edition - February 2011 NRA Today “A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™” 2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010 Court Rules FDCPA Applies to Communications with Debtor’s Attorney by insideARM.com Staff January 14, 2011 The U.S. Court of Appeals for exempted its communications recognized for its guidance in the Third Circuit has ruled that with the debtor’s attorney from structuring and documenting new the federal Fair Debt Collection FDCPA liability. The Third Circuit consumer financial services products, Practices Act (FDCPA) applies to a remanded the case to the District its experience with the full range of debt collector’s communications Court, indicating that whether the federal and state consumer credit with the debtor’s attorney. plaintiff had stated a viable FDCPA laws throughout the country, and claim depended only on whether its skill in litigation defense and In Allen v. LaSalle Bank, issued on the amounts the collection avoidance (including pioneering January 12, 2011, the Third Circuit firm attempted to collect on work in pre-dispute arbitration reversed the District Court, which her mortgage were expressly programs). For more information, had dismissed the plaintiff’s claims authorized by the loan agreement please contact group Chair Alan S. that letters sent to her attorney or permitted by law. Kaplinsky, 215.864.8544 by a law firm representing the The federal courts of appeals are servicer of her defaulted home split on the issue of whether the mortgage violated the FDCPA provision making it an “unfair or FDCPA applies to communications from a debt collector to a debtor’s Inside this issue: unconscionable” practice for attorney. In ruling that the FDCPA a debt collector to collect or does apply, the Third Circuit joins attempt to collect unauthorized the Fourth Circuit. The Second Court Rules FDCPA Applies amounts. The Third Circuit rejected Circuit has stated in dicta and to Communications with the District Court’s holding that the Ninth Circuit has ruled that Debtor’s Attorney P.1 communications to a debtor’s statements made exclusively attorney should be analyzed to a debtor’s attorney are not from the perspective of a SSAE 16 Overview actionable under the FDCPA. competent attorney for purposes of Navigate Webinar Set P.2 determining whether they violate Reprinted with permission from the FDCPA. Ballard Spahr LLP Court Ruling Increases The onslaught of FDCPA claims Requirements for Debt Characterizing the FDCPA as “a in recent years and decisions Collection Lawsuits P.4 strict liability statute,” the Third such as Allen show, once again, Circuit observed that “it would the need for collection firms to NRA Launches New undermine the deterrent effect exercise extreme caution in their Consumer Website P.4 of strict liability” if an otherwise operations. Ballard Spahr lawyers improper communication could regularly consult with their clients escape FDCPA liability because engaged in consumer debt Bill Collectors Face it was directed to the debtor’s collection on the application Disclosure Rules P.6 attorney. The Court also rejected of the FDCPA and state debt the collection law firm’s argument collection laws. that New Jersey’s litigation privilege Ballard Spahr’s Consumer Financial Services Group is nationally © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 9. NRA TODAY February - Special Edition 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 SSAE 16 Overview METHODS OF ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT: Statement on Standards for National Recovery places great emphasis on the importance Attestation En- of recovering our client’s portfolio. In addition to traditional gagements (SSAE) methods of payment such as cash, money orders, personal, bank, and certified checks, we accept the following No. 16, Reporting methods of debtor payment over the phone; as well as on Controls at a the ability to pay online at www.nationalrecovery.com. Service Organiza- • Western Union/Quick Collect tion, was finalized • Credit AND DEBIT Cards by the Auditing • MoneyGram • Bank Wire Standards Board • Check By Phone of the American Institute of Certified Public Accountants (AICPA) in January 2010. SSAE 16 effectively replaces SAS 70 as the authoritative guidance for reporting on service organizations. SSAE 16 was formally issued in April 2010 with an effective date of June 15, 2011. You can order a copy of SSAE 16 from the AICPA’s online store at http://www.cpa2biz.com - publication number 023035. SSAE 16 was drafted with the intention and purpose of updating the US service organization reporting standard so that it mirrors and complies with the new international service organization reporting standard NAVIGATE WEBINAR – ISAE 3402. For service organizations that currently have a SAS 70 Conducted by Trish Moritz, service auditor’s examination (“SAS 70 audit”) per- formed, some changes will be required to effectively Director Client Service reporting under the new SSAE 16 standard. FEBRUARY 23, 2011 at 2:00 E.S.T. Additional information on SSAE 16 and Service Orga- nization Control reports can be viewed at the AICPA’s Must register by Friday February new web page (http://www.aicpa.org/soc). 18, 2011 - REGISTRATION IS FREE! Register via email to Trish National Recovery Agency will be “Bowling for tmoritz@nationalrecovery.com Kids’ Sake” for the third consecutive year. This annual fundraiser benefits Big Brothers Big Sisters An invite and instructions for the of the Capital Region. Go To Meeting will be sent on Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more Monday February 20, 2011 than a couple of hours of bowling. It’s Big Brothers Big Sisters’ THANK YOU for helping raise funds for mentoring programs! © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 10. NRA FILE TRANSFER VERIFICATION FORM PLEASE FORWARD THIS INFORMATION TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHO PLACES YOUR ACCOUNTS WITH OUR AGENCY. Effective immediately, the following process applies to any and all clients who are referring accounts electronically to NRA. When referring an account file electronically, please use the format below to ensure timely download/upload of your data. It is suggested that you save this page and submit it with each electronic file. FILE NAME: DATE OF TRANSFER: CLIENT NAME: CONTACT NAME: CONTACT PHONE: CLIENT NUMBER: PLACEMENT TOTALS TOTAL NUMBER OF ACCOUNTS PLACED DOLLAR VALUE OF ACCOUNTS PLACED $ PLEASE SUBMIT THIS FORM TO INTSUP@NATIONALRECOVERY.COM If you have any questions, please feel free to call IT Support at 1-800-360-9953 x 6736
  • 11. NRA TODAY February - Special Edition 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 Court Ruling Increases Requirements for Debt Collection Lawsuits NRA LAUNCHES NEW CONSUMER SITE insideARM.com – February 10, 2011 Through the new website, consumers can A recent state appellate court ruling requiring debt communicate with NRA, 24 hours a day, 7 days a week, purchasers to provide documented proof of account 365 days a year. They are provided with payment options ownership as part of its evidence to bring a lawsuit in resolving their debt and information on what to do if against a debtor foreshadows changes for debt buyers’ they’ve been contacted by NRA. Consumers have the and collectors’ use of the court system, according to option of communicating with via email or opt to have a one ARM legal expert. representative call them with just the click of a button. On February 1, the Second Division of the Illinois First District Appellate Court ruled that collection agencies “Consumers are looking for a way to filing a lawsuit to collect a claim on a debt buyer’s communicate better with our staff,” said Steve Kusic, behalf must include copies of all previous owners, the Chief Executive Officer. “Today, more and more date of assignment to those owners, and the amount consumers are using the Internet to communicate paid by the debt buyer. and make payments. With the launch of www. nationalrecovery.com, consumers searching the Typically, collection attorneys are allowed to submit Internet for NRA will quickly find the tools they need to to the courts a list of delinquent accounts with some communicate with us.” They will also find the resources identifying consumer information and amounts owed needed to assist them if they are a victim of Identity Theft to initiate a lawsuit. But in Unifund CCCR Partners v. and how to obtain credit report information. Mohammad Shah, the three-judge panel unanimously agreed that Illinois law requires more than an affidavit of the debt’s chain of title to prove assignment. Justice Maureen E. Conner wrote that state law requires that an Check it out at affidavit must accompany copies of each assignment to ensure that the person suing someone has the legal www.nationalrecovery.com right to do so. Collection attorney Ronald Canter, of The Law Clients: for information regarding Offices of Ronald S. Canter, LLC in Rockville, Md., your accounts placed with NRA, said the court’s decision reflects a growing trend of requiring debt collection professionals to provide more please visit www.nragroup.com and paperwork if they want to sue debtors. access NAVIGATE. “There is reason to believe that the trial courts in Illinois will follow this decision and require debt buyers who sue on purchased accounts in their own name to include the full documented chain of title, a statement of UPCOMING EVENTS consideration paid for the debt, and an account exhibit that includes a specific reference to the assignment and/or bill of sale,” Canter said. The Federal Trade Commission issued a report last year Platts 10th Annual Credit And Collections Conference for that called the legal debt collection system “broken”, Utilities and encouraged states to take the lead in rectifying Hyatt Regency Grand Cypress the perceived problems. Given the FTC’s stance and Orlando, FL political interest in protecting consumers in the wake of March 1-3, 2011 the housing mortgage debacle, Canter said “spread sheet accounting is no longer going to be accepted. That’s where the trend is moving both for legislators, regulars and in court decisions.” Continued to page © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 12. NRA TODAY February - Special Edition 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 Continued from page Mark Parsells, executive chairman of Global Debt Registry, LLC, agreed. He said some federal and state regulars have met with the Delaware-based debt titling VIEW YOUR ACCOUNTS ON-LINE WITH “NAVIGATE”. company to educate themselves about available WWW.NRAGROUP.COM solutions to track and verify consumer debt. THIS IS A USER-FRIENDLY AND SECURE SITE THAT YOU CAN USE TO CHECK THE STATUS OF YOUR ACCOUNTS, UPLOAD FILES AND “We’ve met with various regulators at their request and MORE. NAVIGATE IS A CONVENIENT SITE FOR OUR CLIENTS. they’ve asked us to explain the solutions,” Parsells said. “They like the solutions and particularly like the fact that FOR LOGIN INFORMATION our records provide an accurate chain of title at the PLEASE CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES! account level every time the account is transferred.” But Canter fears that the ruling adds an extra burden on debt buyers and collection agencies doing business because the extra paperwork will increase the cost of the paper and collections. Even scarier, he said, is that National Recovery Agency will be “Bowling for debt buyers may have to reveal what they paid for the Kids’ Sake” for the third consecutive year. debt as a condition for suing. This annual fundraiser benefits Big Brothers “The public filing of price information disadvantages the Big Sisters of the Capital Region. debt buyer whose competitors can find out what price the debt buyer/plaintiff paid for their accounts based Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more than a couple of on a review of court filings,” Canter said. “Public notice of the price also will add ammunition to consumer hours of bowling. It’s Big Brothers Big Sisters’ advocates who constantly complain about accounts THANK YOU for helping raise funds for sold for pennies on the dollar.” mentoring programs! Some collection agencies and debt buyers may be When: Sunday, April 3rd tempted to fight the changes. But Canter said now is the time for the industry to change and adapt because Saturday, March 26th more courts, legislators and regulars are likely to require the information because it’s available. “There will have to be an effort to make this information available in a cost effective way…for it to be sold with the account or accessed with the account,” he said. Permalink: http://www.insidearm.com/daily/debt-buy- ing-topics/debt-buying/court-ruling-increases-require- ments-for-debt-collection-lawsuits/ NRA RECOGNIZED AS: February Janet Hernandez Robin Kirkpatrick Schkira Washington Shell Sharma Yvonne Ruby Sponsored by: THE WALL STREET JOURNAL Fran Simmons Tiffany Riser Sandra Ortiz Shantee Williams Kevin Porter Melvin Rojo Biancha Tatum Dashea Chester © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 13. NRA TODAY February - Special Edition 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 Bill Collectors Face Disclosure Rules By SARA MURRAY “People can make old debts fresh again Bill collectors in New Mexico will by making partial payments.” be soon required to inform borrowers The Federal Trade Commission has Ask Dr. Debt urged states to take a harder line on they can’t be taken to court for Consumers seeking solutions long-overdue debts, changing collecting old debts. to debt problems have a new the landscape for consumers and “Consumers are not aware that online resource through creditors in the state. collectors cannot lawfully sue to recover A handful of states and cities on time-barred debt,” the FTC said in July. Ask Dr. Debt, a financial .”To prevent deception, collectors who have addressed the issue, which has education Web site that ACA seek to collect debt they know or should gained attention from the Federal International -- a nonprofit Trade Commission as debt-collector know is time barred should disclose that credit association unveiled. complaints have risen. they cannot lawfully sue the consumers.” Since April 2010, New York City Federal Trade Commissioner Julie Brill, “It’s essentially an online has required debt collectors to notify in a speech in July, said, “I believe that it version of ‘Dear Abby’ for is time for Congress to amend federal law consumers in writing if the debt has consumers with credit and passed the statute of limitations, to prohibit such collection efforts.” She debt questions,” John Nemo, known as “time barred.” warned of more FTC enforcement efforts public relations director Wisconsin and Mississippi have laws in this area. that not only eliminate the right to sue Debt-collection agencies say the for ACA International, new rules create unfair burdens on their on time-barred debts but extinguish said in an e-mail. Nemo industry and aren’t as helpful to borrowers the debt entirely. said visitors to the site Statutes vary by state but nearly all as they appear. will be able to search a have a time limit for credit-card debt. The disclaimer could create a false In New Mexico, Attorney General sense of comfort for consumers, David database of frequently asked Gary King adopted a rule in Cherner, legislative director of state questions and submit their government affairs for the Association of December requiring debt collectors to own. Ask Doctor Debt also inform borrowers if the loan they are Credit and Collection Professionals, said of contains interactive tools inquiring about has passed the statute the New Mexico rule. to educate consumers, such of limitations—four years for most “We’ve indirectly put them in a position credit-card debt in that state. By law, to believe the debt is not going to impact as budget calculators and their life,” Mr. Cherner said. lenders can’t go to court to collect on a free personal financial Nathalie Martin, a University of New such loans. management Web course. The rule, which goes into effect Mexico law professor, says that many in March, is designed to protect people in the state “can’t afford to pay all consumers, but collection agencies the debts that they owe, so they’re going to have to prioritize.” DID YOU KNOW ? say that it will lead consumers to believe they will escape penalties The new rules may make it tougher to convince debtors to pay their loans. National Recovery Agency entirely for not paying their debts. Instead, the debt can linger on a A survey by Ms. Martin and colleague is PPMS, PCI-DSS and Timothy Goldsmith presented nearly 150 credit report, generally for seven years. SAS-70 Type II Certified Complicating the decision for respondents with a hypothetical debt, debtors is that even a partial payment and found 34% said they wouldn’t agree on old debt can restart the clock on to a payment plan when informed the the obligation and render it no longer debt couldn’t be enforced in court. Of “time barred”—a disclosure that the those who weren’t told the debt wasn’t new rule requires debt collectors legally enforceable, just 6% said they to make. The risk of unknowingly would decline to pay. reaffirming a debt was part of the New Mexico’s rule stems from a lawsuit impetus behind New York’s rule. against Merchants’ Credit Guide Co., a “One of the abuses in the debt-collection company, for violating debt-collection industry was debt state law by failing to notify consumers NRA IS LOOKING FOR collectors who would misrepresent that it was trying to collect debts that GOOD EMPLOYEES!! to people what the risks were about had passed the statute of limitations very old debt,” said Jonathan Mintz, even though that information would be commissioner of the New York City important, or material, to the consumer. Department of Consumer Affairs. © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 14. VOLUME 6, ISSUE 2 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency March/April 2011 NRA Today “A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™” 2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010 Creditors Must Be Wary of California’s Rosenthal Act and the FDCPA by Tomio Narita collecting from a California resident Simmonds Narita LLP may be violating California law. February 23, 2011 There are two significant Should creditors care about the FDCPA? For the most exceptions to section 1788.17 of the Rosenthal Act: creditors do not need to provide consumers with ATTENTION: part, original creditors – including the “mini-Miranda” notice required banks, credit card issuers, finance by section 1692e(11) of the FDCPA, THIS IS A VERY companies, telecommunications companies, payday lenders, and nor must creditors send consumers IMPORTANT MESSAGE the validation notice mandated by other entities that extend credit section 1692g of the FDCPA. See FROM directly to consumers – do not operate as “debt collectors” as Cal. Civ. Code § 1788.17. But the remaining substantive provisions of NATIONAL RECOVERY defined by the FDCPA. For this the FDCPA, as well as the remedies AGENCY reason, when creditors are trying provided by section 1692k(a)(3) to collect money from their own of the Act, apply to creditors who customers, they may not pay much collect in California. Id. For the past six months, NRA has been attention to the requirements of the The FDCPA can be an advancing its technology in many FDCPA, or the myriad of cases that awkward fit when it is applied to ways. NRA would like to inform you have interpreted the statute. But creditors collecting from their own that it has made a decision to upgrade ignoring the FDCPA is not a good customers. Despite this, courts from CR Platinum to the Titanium ORE idea for creditors who want to collect will often rely on the reasoning Collection System. This notice is the money from customers located in employed by FDCPA decisions first in a series of notifications that is California. when evaluating Rosenthal Act intended to keep you updated and Any creditor who attempts claims filed against creditors. informed of the status of our collection to collect a consumer debt from a See, e.g., Reyes v. Wells Fargo system upgrade. California consumer likely qualifies as Bank, N.A., 2011 WL 30759 (N.D. a “debt collector” under California’s Cal. Jan. 3, 2011) (using “least NRA is excited about the additional debt collection statute – the sophisticated debtor” standard flexibility that this system and Rosenthal Act. See Cal. Civ. Code § to evaluate Rosenthal Act claims software offer, thus providing an 1788.2(c) (“debt collector” includes against creditor); Thompson v. open receivables environment (ORE) anyone “who, in the ordinary course Chase Bank, N.A., 2010 WL 1329061, of business, regularly, on behalf of allowing us to mange collections with at *3 (S.D. Cal. March 30, 2010) himself or herself or others, engages (refusing to dismiss Rosenthal Act unparalleled scalability, simplicity and in debt collection.”). The Rosenthal claims alleging that collection calls speed. Act not only includes its own set made on Easter Sunday, Memorial of requirements regulating debt Day and Mothers’ Day were at We will be providing updates collection, but also incorporates by “inconvenient” or “unusual” times). each Thursday as to the status reference most of the requirements Creditors, like traditional debt and our progress regarding this of the FDCPA. See Cal. Civ. Code collectors, must be aware of conversion. §1788.17. Thus, a creditor who fails the volume and pattern of their to comply with the FDCPA while collection phone calls. Creditors Continued to page © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 15. NRA TODAY March/April 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 Continued from page obviously have a legitimate need to Will courts utilize the Foti contact their delinquent customers by phone to make payment line of cases when evaluating the content of voice mail messages Inside this issue: arrangements. But the Rosenthal Act, left by creditors? The reasoning of like the FDCPA, prohibits creditors fromthe Foti decisions likely will not make Creditors Must Be Wary of placing telephone calls repeatedly or sense when applied to a creditor’s California’s Rosenthal Act continuously with the intent to annoy voice mails messages, and to date, and the FDCPA P.1 the person called. See Cal. Civ. Code there are no published decisions §§ 1788.11(d), 1788.11(e). Is there a on the issue. But creditors should Technology Upgrade P.1 limit on how many call attempts a consider that California courts creditor can make? have held that a debt collector’s ACA International To date, there are no clear failure to properly identify itself in Education Foundation answers, because the reported a voice mail message can violate Fundraiser P.2 decisions have involved calls placed both the FDCPA and the Rosenthal by traditional debt collectors, not by Act. See, e.g., Hosseinzadeh v. InsideARM Consumer creditors. But we can expect that the M.R.S. Associates, Inc., 387 F. Supp. Complaint Annual Report P.3 courts will be guided by the reasoning 2d 1104,1117-18 (N.D. Cal. 2005) used in FDCPA cases, considering (collector’s failure to properly identify Mass. law boosts debt not only the volume of the calls, itself in voice mail messages violated collection protections P.5 but also the calling pattern and the FDCPA and Rosenthal Act); Joseph individual facts of the case. See e.g., v. J.J. Mac Intyre, L.L.C., 238 F. Supp. Casey rules to ensure work Arteaga v. Asset Acceptance, 733 F. 2d. 1158, 1168 (N.D. Cal. 2002) reaches subcontractors P.5 Supp. 2d 1218, 1229 (E.D. Cal. 2010) (same, denying motion to dismiss). (summary judgment for debt collector; Most creditors have procedures in Bowl For Kids Sake Event P.6 evidence of “daily” calls not sufficientplace for dealing with consumers to support claim for intent to harass who are represented by attorneys. under FDCPA or section 1788.11 of the When a consumer notifies the Rosenthal Act); Rucker v. Nationwide creditor in writing that she has (S.D. Cal. 2010) (granting judgment Credit, Inc., 2011 WL 25300 (E.D. Cal. retained an attorney, the Rosenthal on the pleadings; monthly billing Jan. 5, 2011) (refusing to dismiss claims Act prohibits the creditor from statements sent directly to represented under FDCPA or sections 1788.11(d), initiating communications directly consumer did not violate section 1788.17 (e) of Rosenthal Act where collector with the consumer – “other than of Rosenthal Act); Moya v. Chase allegedly placed 80 calls to consumer statements of account” – in an Cardmember Service, 661 F. Supp. 2d in one year). attempt to collect the debt. See 1129 (N.D. Cal. 2009) (denying motion Cal. Civ. Code to dismiss claim that monthly statements § 1788.14(c). But sent to represented consumer violated National Recovery Agency is holding its annual what if the creditor section 1788.14 of Rosenthal Act). fundraiser in the month of April to benefit mails a monthly Should creditors be concerned about the ACA International Education Foundation. statement directly facing Rosenthal Act class actions? Donate in April - then wear the entire month of to a represented Section 1788.30 of the Rosenthal Act May: consumer, and the does not allow for class actions, and in statement includes fact, it specifically limits consumers to language noting pursuing claims “only in an individual Jeans for $25 that the account action.” See Cal. Civ. Code §§ Sneakers for $25 is delinquent? 1788.30(a), 1788.30(b). Under section Flip Flops for $25 Unfortunately, the 1788.17 of the Rosenthal Act, however, Rosenthal Act does creditors are “subject to the remedies” Jeans Sneakers/Flip Flops for $40 not define the term of section 1692k of the FDCPA. A “statements of number of courts have held that Money raised will be donated to the ACA account” and the consumers may pursue class actions International Foundation and will allow the courts in California under the Rosenthal Act. See, e.g. Foundation to expand its important work in are split on this issue. Abels v. JBC Legal Group, P.C., 227 See, e.g., Marcotte v. F.R.D. 541 (N.D. Cal. 2005) (granting financial education. GE Capital Services, motion to certify Rosenthal Act class 709 F. Supp. 2d 994 action); Gonzalez v. Arrow Financial Continued to page © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 16. NRA TODAY March/April 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 Continued from page Services LLC, 489 F. Supp. 2d 1140 (S.D. Cal. 2007) however, refused to grant a creditor’s motion to strike (denying motion to decertify Rosenthal Act class action). portions of a Rosenthal Act complaint that sought $1000 The Rosenthal Act allows consumers to recover any per violation. See Hamberg v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, actual damages they sustain by reason of the violation. 2010 WL 2523947 (S.D. Cal. June 22, 2010). See Cal. Civ. Code § 1788.30(a). Unlike the FDCPA, What about defenses? Like the FDCPA, the however, the Rosenthal Act is not a strict liability statute. Rosenthal Act includes a “bona fide error” defense, Statutory penalties ranging from $100 to $1000 may which allows a creditor to prove that any violation be recovered, but only if the consumer demonstrates was not intentional, and occurred notwithstanding the defendant “willfully and knowingly” violated the maintenance of procedures reasonably adapted to Rosenthal Act. See Cal. Civ Code § 1788.30(b). avoid the violation. See Cal. Civ. Code § 1788.30(e). If a willful and knowing violation is shown, are The Rosenthal Act also has a “right to cure” defense, the statutory damages limited to $1000 per action, as which permits a creditor, within 15 days of discovering in FDCPA cases, or may the consumer recover $1000 any violation which is “able to be cured” or after written per violation? The better-reasoned decisions hold that notice of any such violation, to notify the debtor of the the consumer is limited to $1000 per action. See, e.g., violation and to make any adjustments or corrections Scott v. Federal Bond and Collection Service, Inc., 2011 necessary to cure the violation. See Cal. Civil Code § WL 176846, at *3 (N.D. Cal. Jan 19, 2011) (Rosenthal 1788.30(d). Act statutory damages limited to $1000 per action); The Rosenthal Act has been around for decades, Marseglia v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, 2010 WL 4595549 and the statute has always applied to creditors. During (S.D. Cal. Nov. 12, 2010) (same). One California court, the past few years, however, the Rosenthal Act has become a favorite of consumer attorneys, and the trend appears likely to continue. Creditors with customers in METHODS OF ACCEPTABLE PAYMENT: California must be aware that, in light of section 1788.17 National Recovery places great emphasis on the importance of the Rosenthal Act, any attempts to collect in California of recovering our client’s portfolio. In addition to traditional must comply with the Rosenthal Act and the FDCPA. methods of payment such as cash, money orders, personal, bank, and certified checks, we accept the following Tomio Narita is a partner of Simmonds Narita methods of debtor payment over the phone; as well as LLP, a California law firm specializing in defending claims the ability to pay online at www.nationalrecovery.com. arising under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the • Western Union/Quick Collect Fair Credit Reporting Act, and the Rosenthal Act. • Credit AND DEBIT Cards • MoneyGram • Bank Wire • Check By Phone InsideArm.com March, 2011 In its annual report on consumer complaints, released in March 2011, debt collection agencies resolved 84 percent of the complaints received compared to an average of 75.8 percent for all industries tracked. Collections agencies rank 19th in the number of inquiries and fifth in the total number of complaints. Overall, the BBB received 535,224 inquiries about collection agencies in 2010. Of these, 14,966 were Check out our client website at complaints and 12,568 were resolved based on BBB www.nragroup.com standards. Since 2002, collection agencies have been above the national average in resolving more than 80 percent of the complaints filed with Check out our consumer website at the BBB. www.nationalrecovery.com © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 17. NRA FILE TRANSFER VERIFICATION FORM PLEASE FORWARD THIS INFORMATION TO THE INDIVIDUAL WHO PLACES YOUR ACCOUNTS WITH OUR AGENCY. Effective immediately, the following process applies to any and all clients who are referring accounts electronically to NRA. When referring an account file electronically, please use the format below to ensure timely download/upload of your data. It is suggested that you save this page and submit it with each electronic file. FILE NAME: DATE OF TRANSFER: CLIENT NAME: CONTACT NAME: CONTACT PHONE: CLIENT NUMBER: PLACEMENT TOTALS TOTAL NUMBER OF ACCOUNTS PLACED DOLLAR VALUE OF ACCOUNTS PLACED $ PLEASE SUBMIT THIS FORM TO INTSUP@NATIONALRECOVERY.COM If you have any questions, please feel free to call IT Support at 1-800-360-9953 x 6736
  • 18. NRA TODAY March/April 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 Mass. law boosts debt books since the Colonial era, has Casey rules to ensure work some archaic exemptions, like two collection protections cows, 12 sheep, two swine, and reaches subcontractors four tons of hay. It has now been amended to allow each family to Central Penn Business Journal Governor Deval Patrick keep a computer and a television. Thursday, March 17, 2011 12:16 PM By Beth Healy “This new law will protect thousands An amendment introduced by U.S. Globe Staff / January 8, 2011 of struggling Massachusetts Sen. Bob Casey and approved by the residents, and allow them to house, Senate aims to increase accountability Governor Deval Patrick yesterday feed, and support their families and by government contractors who list signed into law a bill to provide continue to work as they struggle small women- and minority-owned Massachusetts consumers with to pay debts and get back on their business as subcontractors. greater protection from debt collectors who try to seize their feet after an economic setback,’’ said Robert J. Hobbs, deputy The amendment to the Small Business belongings and bank accounts. director of the National Consumer Innovation Research reauthorization bill, The new law updates decades- Law Center. passed Wednesday by a vote of 99-0, old property exemptions, allowing includes requirements for contractors consumers to keep a car worth up to Beth Healy can be reached at to tell subcontractors that they would $7,500 out of reach of collectors, up bhealy@globe.com. be listed on a bid before submitting from $700 in the past. Owners who for work from an executive agency, are 60 or older or disabled will get a according to a statement from Casey, $15,000 car exemption. Consumers D-Pennsylvania. also may hold on to $2,500 in a bank It also would also create a system for account, five times the current level. subcontractors to report potential fraud, his office said. “It’s a wonderful victory for consumers,’’ said Barbara Anthony, The amendment came about after undersecretary of the state’s Office senator heard concerns from small of Consumer Affairs and Business businesses in Pennsylvania about Regulation. “It’s drawing a bright contractors listing minority- and women- line here in terms of debt collection owned businesses on applications practices. As a state, we’re not to strengthen their chances of going to tolerate these shoddy, HAPPY BIRTHDAY NRA EMPLOYEES: receiving work without the potential unscrupulous debt collection subcontractors’ knowledge. practices.’’ Craig Andrus Julius Flynn The prime contractor then might Sarah Brown Deb Sterling not allocate the work to the listed The legislation, which was sponsored Charlene Sarver Bryan Wentz subcontractors, who never knew they by Senator Patricia D. Jehlen and Thomas Zalonis Tasha Adams should get the work in the first place, passed by the Legislature last week, Tanisha Ellis Regina Andrews according to Casey’s office. takes effect April 7. It followed a Damon Ogden Mecca Holman Globe Spotlight series in 2006 that Melissa Briner Keth Blow The full Small Business Innovation found debt collectors routinely suing April Robles Research reauthorization bill still needs people who have fallen behind on LaDonna Fletcher to be passed by the Senate, reconciled credit card bills, and seizing their cars with the U.S. House of Representatives and other property, often without Rashad Bennett and then sent for President Barack properly alerting them. Small claims Michael West Obama’s signature to become law, courts have since overhauled their Tammy Rudy according to an e-mail statement from rules, but some consumers have still Casey’s office. been subject to towing in the past year. A group of Massachusetts collection lawyers did not oppose the new VIEW YOUR ACCOUNTS ON-LINE WITH “NAVIGATE”. exemptions when the bill was being WWW.NRAGROUP.COM written, saying that towing cars was THIS IS A USER-FRIENDLY AND SECURE SITE THAT YOU CAN USE TO CHECK THE STATUS often counterproductive. OF YOUR ACCOUNTS, UPLOAD FILES AND MORE. NAVIGATE IS A CONVENIENT SITE FOR OUR CLIENTS. The law, which has been on the FOR LOGIN INFORMATION PLEASE CONTACT CLIENT SERVICES! © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 19. NRA TODAY March/April 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 National Recovery Agency third annual “Bowling for Kids’ Sake” fundraiser benefits Big Brothers Big Ask Dr. Debt Sisters of the Capital Region. Consumers seeking solutions to debt problems have a new Bowl For Kids’ Sake is more than a online resource through couple of hours of bowling. It’s Big Ask Dr. Debt, a financial Brothers Big Sisters’ THANK YOU for education Web site that ACA helping raise funds for mentoring International -- a nonprofit programs! credit association unveiled. “It’s essentially an online version of ‘Dear Abby’ for consumers with credit and debt questions,” John Nemo, public relations director for ACA International, said in an e-mail. Nemo said visitors to the site will be able to search a database of frequently asked questions and submit their own. Ask Doctor Debt also contains interactive tools to educate consumers, such as budget calculators and a free personal financial management Web course. DID YOU KNOW ? National Recovery Agency is PPMS, PCI-DSS and SAS-70 Type II Certified “NRA BOWLING STONES” NRA IS LOOKING FOR Pictured below back row: Tasey Leitzell, Michael Goodyear, Ed Stauffer, GOOD EMPLOYEES!! Penni Lee, Emma Goodyear © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 20. NRA TODAY March/April 2011 Volume 6 Issue 2 “NRA BOWL DOGS” “NRA BABES WITH BALLS” Pictured below back row: Chris Bowen, Craig Andrus, and Tyler Andrus Pictured below from Left to Right: Cathy Talalai, Tara Front Row: Yvonne Cooper, Winnie Smith Gonzalez, Andrea Ross, and Autumn Ware. “NRA PIN COLLECTORS” Pictured from Left to Right: Kimberly Summerlot, Danelle O’Connor, Andrew Schwalm, Karina Goldsmith, Brad Huffman © 2009-2010 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®
  • 21. VOLUME 6, ISSUE 5 The Official Newsletter of National Recovery Agency May 2011 NRA Today “A Responsible Revenue Recovery Company™” 2007 ~ 2008 ~ 2009 ~ 2010 National Recovery Agency Acquires California Collection Agency the benefit of all of our clients, no and timely information for by insideARM.com – April 25, 2011 matter what size, both immediately outsourced business services and long term,” said Steven Kusic. companies since 1989. The firm has Steven Kusic, President CEO completed over 130 transactions of National Recovery Agency Founded in 1969, American representing in excess of $3 (NRA), announced Monday that an Agencies has a well-established billion in shareholder value for agreement has been reached with foundation as a leader in the a variety of clients – from small the shareholder of ACA Receivables, collection industry for over 40 family businesses to Fortune LLC d/b/a American Agencies years. Having a diversified client 500 companies. In 2011 Kaulkin (AA) to acquire the assets of the base, licensing and authority Ginsberg is celebrating twenty California-based consumer accounts across the United States, American years in the ARM industry receivable management firm. NRA will operate American Agencies as a Agencies is a national collection wholly owned subsidiary. Terms of agency leading in commercial and the transaction were not disclosed. consumer collections. Inside this issue: “NRA is an impressive organization with visionary leadership that made National Recovery Agency, with NRA Acquires CA Agency P.1 the transaction seamless. over 350 employees, is a leading nationwide provider of receivables USPS Rate Hikes P.2 NRA plans to immediately leverage management and business American Agencies sales team with process outsourcing solutions. Regulation Z Amended P.2 representatives in 14 different states Headquartered in Harrisburg, PA, and offices in Provo, Utah and Los the company offers outsourced CR Software collections P.3 collections, payment processing, and receivable certified Angeles, CA, to expand its national and call center services to footprint. NRA expects that NRA’s Biggest Losers - Win Big P.3 this acquisition will immediately healthcare facilities, governmental be significantly accretive to its entities, utility companies, retail NRA Joins IPI Trade Association P.5 earnings”, noted Michael D. Lamm and direct marketing, financial of Kaulkin Ginsberg, an MA services, higher education Featured Book of the Month P.5 advisor on the transaction. institutions, and debt buyers. NRA has offices in Harrisburg, PA; Foreclosure Activity “With the acquisition of American Mechanicsburg, PA; Provo, Utah; Decreases in First Quarter P.6 Agencies, NRA is able to further Los Angles, CA; Panama City, Panama and Pune, India. Compliance Alert P.7 strengthen our infrastructure to enhance our collection services for Kaulkin Ginsberg is the leading source of MA, strategic advice, © 2009-2011 National Recovery Agency. All Rights Reserved.®