According to a recent year-in-review report by WebRecon, reversing the trend of the last two years, filings under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) increased in 2023 as compared to 2022. Likewise, complaints filed with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) were up for the year. Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) filings, however, were both down from the previous year. In all, the FCRA maintained its lead in the number of filings, followed by the FDCPA, and with the TCPA in third place.
WebRecon reports the overall statistics for consumer litigation throughout 2023 as follows:
- 5,587 FCRA cases were filed, representing a 0.9% decrease from 2022;
- 4,165 FDCPA cases were filed, representing a 8.2% decrease from 2022;
- 1,683 TCPA cases filed, representing a 9.4% increase from 2022; and
- 68,706 complaints filed with the CFPB, representing a 2.1% increase from 2022.
Focusing specifically on the month of December 2023, the report indicates that FCRA, FDCPA, and TCPA filings each decreased from the previous month by 14.1%, 0.3% and 4.3%, while CFPB complaint filings increased by 9.4%.