March Consumer Litigation Filings Show Sharp Rise in FCRA and FDCPA Activity

Consumer litigation filings increased sharply in March, driven by substantial month-over-month gains in Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) lawsuits, while Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) litigation cooled slightly from February levels.

According to litigation data compiled by WebRecon, CFPB complaint activity also accelerated during the month, despite the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau continuing to scale back broader enforcement activity tied to the receivables industry.

Key Litigation Trends From March

WebRecon reported the following month-over-month changes for March 2026 consumer litigation activity:

• 931 FCRA lawsuits filed, up 18.9%
• 413 FDCPA lawsuits filed, up 17.3%
• 283 TCPA lawsuits filed, down 3.1%
• 33,397 CFPB complaints filed, up 18.9%

Year-to-date filings remain elevated across all major consumer litigation categories compared to the same period in 2025:

• FCRA filings up 40.1%
• FDCPA filings up 12.1%
• TCPA filings up 23.7%
• CFPB complaints up 46.6%

WebRecon’s year-to-date totals for 2026 include:

• 2,546 FCRA lawsuits
• 1,162 FDCPA lawsuits
• 798 TCPA lawsuits
• 4,001 total consumer lawsuits filed

TCPA Class Actions Remain Historically High

Although TCPA filings declined slightly in March, class action exposure under the statute remained unusually elevated. WebRecon reported that 77.7% of TCPA lawsuits filed during the month were putative class actions, compared to:

• 6.8% of FDCPA filings
• 1.3% of FCRA filings

The report noted that TCPA class action levels remain “extraordinarily high, historically speaking.”

For creditors, debt buyers, collection agencies, and servicers, TCPA class action exposure continues to represent one of the most significant litigation risks tied to consumer outreach activity, particularly involving dialing technology, consent management, and communication practices.

Repeat Filers Continue to Drive Consumer Litigation

WebRecon found that approximately 43% of plaintiffs who filed consumer lawsuits in March had previously filed similar litigation.

Key litigation statistics from March included:

• Approximately 1,358 unique plaintiffs filed lawsuits
• Repeat plaintiffs collectively filed about 11,421 lawsuits since 2001
• Lawsuits were filed across 164 federal district court branches
• About 807 collection firms and creditors were sued

The most active filing jurisdictions included:

• Georgia Northern District Court, Atlanta: 94 lawsuits
• California Central District Court, Los Angeles: 93 lawsuits
• Illinois Northern District Court, Chicago: 92 lawsuits
• Florida Middle District Court, Tampa: 72 lawsuits
• California Central District Court, Santa Ana: 54 lawsuits

South Florida attorney Gerald Donald Lane continued to lead all consumer attorneys in filings, representing 115 consumers during March and 267 consumers year-to-date.

CFPB Complaint Activity Continues Climbing

The CFPB received 33,397 debt collection complaints during March involving 1,206 different debt collectors.

The largest debt categories associated with complaints were:

• “I do not know”: 66%
• Other debt: 11%
• Credit card debt: 11%
• Telecommunications debt: 4%
• Rental debt: 3%

The most common complaint issues included:

• Attempts to collect debt not owed: 48%
• Threatened or negative legal action: 24%
• Written notification issues: 15%
• False statements or representations: 10%

The top complaint subissues were:

• Debt is not yours: 30%
• Threatened or suggested credit damage: 22%
• Identity theft-related debt: 14%
• Insufficient verification information: 10%
• Attempted collection of wrong amount: 9%

Texas generated the highest number of CFPB debt collection complaints during March with 6,021 filings, followed by Florida, Georgia, California, and South Carolina.

Why It Matters

March’s litigation and complaint data reinforce several operational pressure points for the receivables industry.

FCRA litigation continues to expand rapidly, reflecting ongoing scrutiny surrounding credit reporting accuracy, dispute investigations, identity theft handling, and data furnishing practices. FDCPA filings also remain elevated as collection communication activity continues to face close legal examination.

Meanwhile, TCPA class action exposure remains a significant compliance concern despite the month-over-month decline in overall filings.

The CFPB complaint data also suggests that disputes involving debt ownership, validation, identity theft, and alleged inaccurate balances remain central drivers of consumer frustration and regulatory scrutiny.

For ARM companies, the trends reinforce the importance of maintaining strong documentation practices, dispute resolution workflows, communication controls, and complaint response procedures as litigation and complaint volumes continue to track above prior-year levels.