Bankruptcy

Atlanta Based Credit Card Marketer CompuCredit Charged With Deceptive Marketing And Abusive Debt Collection Tactics

By Scott Riddle

From the Atlanta Business Chronicle -

The Federal Trade Commission has sued Atlanta-based credit card marketer CompuCredit Corp. and its debt collection unit Jefferson Capital Systems LLC, charging them with using deceptive marketing and abusive debt collection tactics on consumers in the subprime market. 

...  The federal government is seeking $200 million in fines and restitution from CompuCredit (NASDAQ: CCRT), Wilmington, Del.-based First Bank of Delaware and Brookings, S.D.-based First Bank & Trust. FDIC has settled with a third bank, Columbus, Ga.-based Columbus Bank and Trust, a Synovus (NYSE: SNV) banking unit that paid a $2.4 million fine and agreed to a cease and desist order.

The FDIC is further seeking $6.2 million in penalties against CompuCredit.

FTC has alleged CompuCredit misrepresented the amount of credit that would be available immediately to consumers, failing to disclose up-front fees, failing to disclose certain purchases could reduce a consumer's credit limit and misrepresenting a debt collection program as a credit card offer. FTC has accused Jefferson Capital of misrepresenting a debt collection program as a credit card offer and using abusive collection tactics such as making debt collection calls to individual consumers more than 20 times per day, including before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m., and on Sundays. ...

Full post as published by Georgia Bankruptcy Blog on June 10, 2008 (boomark / email).