On May 23, 2017, the District of Columbia Attorney General’s Office announced that it had entered into a consent order with a Maryland debt relief company and its owner for violating the District of Columbia’s Consumer Credit Service Organizations Act, D.C. Code § 28-4601, et seq., by falsely promising to help consumers reduce or eliminate debt.
The debt relief company allegedly engaged in unlawful and deceptive practices that misled consumers by promising debt relief services in exchange for significant fees, when similar services were available for free elsewhere. After consumers paid the company large fees for the promised assistance, the company would send a generic letter to the consumer’s creditors disputing the consumer’s debt and directing debt collectors to stop communications with the debtor.
Under the consent order, which resolves litigation filed by the Attorney General’s Office in the Superior Court of the District of Columbia, the company agreed to reimburse District of Columbia consumers for all payments received, totaling over $51,000, to pay $40,000 in civil penalties and costs to the District of Columbia, and to stop offering the challenged services in the District of Columbia.