According to a recent year-in-review report by WebRecon, Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) filings continued their upward trajectory throughout 2021. This stands in contrast to filings under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) or the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA), which decreased from the previous year. Meanwhile, complaints filed with the CFPB increased substantially from 2020.

WebRecon reported the overall statistics for consumer litigation throughout 2021 as follows:

• 70,333 complaints filed with the CFPB, a 30.4% increase from 2020
• 5,406 FCRA cases filed, a 3.5% increase from 2020
• 6,582 FDCPA cases filed, a 4.4% decrease from 2020
• 1,708 TCPA cases filed, a 48.3% decrease from 2020

Focusing specifically on the month of December 2021, the report indicates that FCRA filings increased by 12.8% from the previous month, while CFPB complaints, FDCPA filings, and TCPA filings each decreased by 13.8%, 3.0%, and 6.7%, respectively.

The continued increase in FCRA filings, particularly in comparison to other consumer litigation, emphasizes the important need for companies falling within the law’s scope to continually review and implement appropriate compliance measures. Troutman Pepper will continue to monitor and report on overall litigation trends and specific case law developments to assist with that process.