Victims of a debt collector’s robo-signing scheme will get a settlement from Midland Funding LLC, Oklahoma Attorney General Mike Hunter announced Tuesday. Oklahoma is joined by 41 other states and the District of Columbia in the settlement. Hunter says 266 Oklahomans will receive $327,437 in credit as part of the settlement.
“The practice that was undertaken by Midland is inexcusable,” Attorney General Hunter said. “Affected individuals often could not afford attorneys to defend themselves, resulting in a default judgment, which hurt their credit and resulted in their wages being garnished. That is another reason why as part of the settlement we required the company to include safeguards in its collecting practices so customers won’t be taken advantage of again.”
The investigating states found that between 2003 and 2009 Midland signed and filed affidavits to collect consumer debt without verifying the information contained in the affidavits. This practice is known as ‘robo-signing’, a term used to describe employees signing legal documents without reviewing the contents.
As part of the new protections, the company must reform its affidavit signing and litigation practices; it must carefully verify the information in affidavits and present accurate documents in court proceedings, provide all customers with accurate information about valid debts and maintain proper oversight and training for employees and law firms it uses. The agreement also prohibits the company from reselling debt for two years.
