
The total number of collections tradelines on credit reports declined by 33%, 261 million tradelines in 2018 to 175 million tradelines in 2022, according to a CFPB report released Tuesday examining trends in credit reporting of debt in collections.
The share of consumers with a collection tradeline on their credit report decreased by 20% in the same timeframe, the report stated.
The CFPB also released additional analysis examining factors that increase the likelihood of inaccurate medical collections reporting and may contribute to the decline in medical collections tradelines.
“Our analysis of credit reports provides yet another indicator that, due to a strong labor market and emergency programs during the pandemic, household financial distress reduced over the last two years,” said Rohit Chopra, CFPB director. “However, false and inaccurate medical debt on credit reports continues to be a drag on household financial health.”
Collections tradelines are furnished to credit reporting companies by third-party debt collectors, and commonly reported collection items include medical, rental and leasing, credit card and utility accounts.