For years, debt collectors have complained about the Catch-22 they face under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)—provide too much detail and face liability for confusing the unsophisticated consumer, but provide not enough detail and face liability for omitting information necessary to that same unsophisticated consumer. In Delgado v. Client Services, Inc., 17 C 4364, Judge Sara L. Ellis of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois acknowledged that dilemma while dismissing Delgado’s FDCPA claim.
Delgado defaulted on a credit card and the debt was transferred to Client Services for collection. In May 2017, Client Services sent Delgado a letter which contained the following itemization of the amount due: (1) Balance Due at Charge Off – $2,619.26; (2) Interest – $0.00; (3) Other Charges – $0.00; (4) Payments Made – $20.00; (5) Current Balance – $2,599.26.