Consumer Claims Global Trust Management Erred with Settlement Offer

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A Wisconsin consumer alleges in a proposed class action that Global Trust Management, LLC made a settlement offer in a debt collection notice that did not line up with the 30-day validation period mandated by the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). According to the lawsuit, the defendant claimed in its notice that in order for the plaintiff to take advantage of the settlement offer, first payment must be received by October 17, 2016. The case notes, however, that the collection notice was only mailed to the plaintiff on September 12, 2016, meaning the 30-day validation period would end only a few days before the settlement offer purportedly expired.

The complaint asserts Global Trust Management’s settlement offer is unlawfully confusing because the company demanded payment within the validation period (or shortly thereafter), yet failed to explain how the FDCPA validation notice and settlement deadline “fit together.”

“In order to preserve the settlement offer in the event of a written dispute, and to preserve the 30-day validation period itself, any explanatory language should make clear that a dispute will extend the settlement offer while the debt collector is in the process of complying with its obligation to verify the debt,” the lawsuit reads.