We discussed the debt collection practices of Capital One in December, outlining the aggressive and harassing methods they used to recover money from debtors. In quite a few of the situations involving Capital One, the debtor was being pursued in an illegal fashion.
Well, new evidence founded by the Federal Trade Commission shows a 17% increase in the number of complaints about debt collectors filed by consumers in 2010. The total number of debt collection complaints - a staggering 140,036, nearly 400 a day - is the highest amount for any industry in the FTC's report.
Debt relief is something so many Americans are striving for nowadays. Given the economic climate, the number of debtors has increased across the nation, but that does not mean debt collection companies can abuse their consumers. Remember that you do have rights as a debtor to not be harassed by a collector, as stated in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
The FDCPA protects consumers from a wide range of abusive practices employed by debt collectors, including continuous or repetitive engagement in telephone conversation, threatening arrest or legal action, reporting false information and calling debtors when they are represented by an attorney.
According to the FTC report, around 50% of the complaints were in regards to repeated or harassing phone calls. Such a statistic shows the illegal lengths debt collectors will go to, and it serves as a reminder to secure an attorney when you think a collector is infringing on the FDCPA. Not only will a reputable legal representative in the area of bankruptcy law provide you with the support and guidance necessary to build your potential case, but it protects you from abusive collectors under the FDCPA.
Source: St. Louis Post-Dispatch, "Complaints about aggressive debt collectors on rise," Kavita Kumar, Jan. 15, 2012
1 Comment
Edward "Swarovski" James
February 10, 2012 at 2:14 PM
I do not advocate breaking the law. However in my younger days 35 years ago I was involved with Firestone when we carried our own financing at the local level. Each store could extend credit and was responsible for collecting.
It was the worst experience I ever had in trying to get those who failed to pay to meet a minimum monthly payment every 3 months. At that time our performance and financial performance was based on getting a minimum payment to avoid a write off of bad debt.
I saw some very sad cases of people who could not pay. If you remember in the mid 70's the auto industry was in terrible shape and I was working for Firestone in Flint, Michigan.
We did everything legally possible to collect. I took a hundred people to court. The courts were a waste of time because a $500 debt payment plan would end the finance dollars and then set up $5 a month payments taking 10 years to get the debt paid off. Even if the debtor missed the payment there was no assistance from the courts in collecting.
I can understand if a collector goes beyond the limits of the law. It is not right but it can be very frustrating to be on the other side.
I never minded someone filing bankruptcy as it seemed so necessary for some people to start over. So my hat is off to the lawyers who help those people.
Edward
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