Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection
What is debt collector harassment?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection People often ask, "what is debt collector harassment?" It is a good question, and can be hard to nail down.
Debt collectors must treat you with truth, fairness, dignity, and respect. Any debt collector who crosses the line and abuses you for the collection of a consumer debt can be sued in federal court for damages under a law called the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). In California they can also be sued under California's Rosenthal Act.
Debt Collectors Are Prohibited From Doing Lots of Things* Threatening lawsuits, garnishment, liens, or arrest for not paying a bill
* Calling your family, friends, neighbors or employers to collect a debt
* Leaving abusive phone messages
* Insulting, yelling or swearing at you
* Calling your workplace after telling the collector not to call you there
* Lying, threatening, or otherwise harassing you in any wayIf you have suffered from any of these abusive bill collection practices, you may be entitled to compensation. We can help any consumer who is currently in collections, or has suffered from collection harassment. Call us today at (619) 233-7770 to speak with an attorney and get a free phone consultation on your case. You can also start the process of evaluating your case by filling out an online evaluation, here.
What to Do if You're Abused By a Collector
If you're contacted by a debt collector, you have a right to dispute the debt either verbally or in writing. If you want to preserve some rights under the FDCPA, you must send a written dispute within 30 days of your receipt of the first "validation notice" from the debt collector. Even if you owe the debt, or you cannot pay, you still have rights under the FDCPA. Most of our clients owe the debt being collected but because of financial circumstances, or a dispute over the goods or services, they cannot pay it. In order to preserve your rights under the law, it's important for you to keep good records of all of the contacts.
Important Steps You Can Take To Help Your Case1. Save copies of all letters and notices from collection agencies.
2. Save all phone messages and voice mails- this is very important!
3. Make note of your conversations with these bill collectors.
4. Call a consumer rights attorney to help you recover your damages.Do I have any recourse if I think a debt collector has violated the law?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection You have the right to sue a collector in a state or federal court within one year from the date the law was violated. If you win, the judge can require the collector to pay you for any damages you can prove you suffered because of the illegal collection practices, like lost wages and medical bills. The judge can require the debt collector to pay you up to $1,000, even if you can’t prove that you suffered actual damages. Furthermore, in some states, such as California, you will receive additional damages. You must also be reimbursed for your attorney’s fees and court costs. A group of people also may sue a debt collector as part of a class action lawsuit and recover money for damages up to $500,000, or one percent of the collector’s net worth, whichever amount is lower. Even if a debt collector violates the FDCPA in trying to collect a debt, the debt does not go away if you owe it. Can federal benefits be garnished?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection Many federal benefits are exempt from garnishment, that is, they cannot be taken by a debt collector or creditor, including:
- Social Security Benefits
- Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits
- Veterans’ Benefits
- Civil Service and Federal Retirement and Disability Benefits
- Service Members’ Pay
- Military Annuities and Survivors’ Benefits
- Student Assistance
- Railroad Retirement Benefits
- Merchant Seamen Wages
- Longshoremen’s and Harbor Workers’ Death and Disability Benefits
- Foreign Service Retirement and Disability Benefits
- Compensation for Injury, Death, or Detention of Employees of U.S. Contractors Outside the U.S.
- Federal Emergency Management Agency Federal Disaster Assistance
But federal benefits may be garnished under certain circumstances, including to pay delinquent taxes, alimony, child support, or student loans.
If you are concerned that your wages are about to be garnished, that your bank account is about to be attached, that a lien is about to be placed on your home or some other piece of property, you need to contact our office immediately so that we can discuss your situation.Can a debt collector garnish my bank account or my wages?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection If you don’t pay a debt, a creditor can generally sue you to collect. If they win, the court will enter a judgment against you. The judgment states the amount of money you owe, and allows the creditor or collector to get a garnishment order against you, directing a third party, like your bank, to turn over funds from your account to pay the debt.
Wage garnishment happens when your employer withholds part of your compensation to pay your debts. Your wages usually can be garnished only as the result of a court order. Don’t ignore a lawsuit summons. If you do, you lose the opportunity to fight a wage garnishment.
If you are concerned that your wages are about to be garnished, that your bank account is about to be attached, that a lien is about to be placed on your home or some other piece of property, you need to contact our office immediately so that we can discuss your situation.Can I control which debts my payments apply to?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection Absolutely. If a debt collector is trying to collect more than one debt from you, the collector must apply any payment you make to the debt you select. Equally important, a debt collector may not apply a payment to a debt you don’t think you owe. Furthermore, you do not have to pay debts that you do not believe you all. For example, suppose someone says you all $300 for a debt plus $25 as an overcharge fee. If you believe that you do not owe the overcharge fee you do not have to pay that. Be sure to tell the creditor, in writing, that you do not want any money applied towards the overcharged fee. If the debt collector or creditor applies any of the money you send them after that to the overcharged fee that violates the law. What is the definition of a "debt collector?"
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection Generally speaking, the term ‘‘debt collector’’ means any person who is in the business of collecting debts, or who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts. If the debt involved is a business debt, the FDCPA does not apply. However, debt collectors can be almost anyone. Attorneys and law firms are debt collectors under the FDCPA. Many times debt collectors will tell you that they are not debt collectors. Not only is this untrue, but this statement alone violates the FDCPA. If someone is calling you on the phone, or writing you a letter, and asking you to pay a debt, they are almost certainly a debt collector. What practices are off limits for debt collectors?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection The things that a debt collector may not do are considerable. You should not decide that you know what conduct is in violation of the law. That is the job for a qualified consumer rights attorney. However, a good rule of thumb is this. If a debt collector does or says anything you feel is unjustified, that causes you any embarrassment, that causes you any stress, or that just does not seem right to you, you need to contact our office immediately so that we can discuss the situation with you. Even conduct that you may feel is not outrageous can violate the law. The best thing for you to do is not to try to determine whether or not the debt collector is abusing you, but instead contact us upon hearing from the debt collector so that we can talk about not only whether a violation took place but what is the best next step for you. Can a debt collector keep contacting me if I don’t think I owe any money?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection Contrary to what many people seem to believe, you do not have to put up with being contacted by debt collectors, even if you truly owe the debt. Owing a debt is not a crime. And there is no legal justification for a debt collector or a creditor to continue to hound you if you can't pay the debt. This is not to say you should not pay the debt. Obviously, if you can pay the debt, and it doesn't cause you undue hardship in other areas of your life, you should give serious consideration to paying the debt. However, not paying a debt is not the end of the world, and you should not feel as though the abuse you are enduring is in someway justified. It is not. Debt collectors do not have the right to contact you. It is a privilege, and it is a privilege that you alone control.
If you want a debt collector to stop contacting you, make a copy of the letter they sent you and attach another document telling the debt collector either/or 1) that you do not owe the debt, 2) that you will not pay the debt, or 3) that you want them to stop contacting you. Be sure you put the date on the second letter, and be sure you make a copy of everything before you mail it. There is no requirement that you send the letter by certified mail, and pay for a “return receipt,” but you may want to do that to ensure you have proof.
You can also send a letter within 30 days after you receive the validation notice telling the debt collector that you dispute the debt or some portion of it. However the debt collector can begin contacting you again if it sends you written verification of the debt, like a copy of a bill for the amount you owe.
By far, the best way to get a debt collector to stop contacting you is send a letter to the debt collector and tell the debt collector that you do not intend to pay the debt. Believe it or not, that is all you have to do.
If you are being contacted by a debt collector, the best thing you can do is contact our office. We do not charge anything to speak with you, and we are glad to discuss the situation with you. By reviewing your situation with us, you can ensure that your legal rights are respected and that you are doing everything prudent.What does the debt collector have to tell me about the debt?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection Every debt collector must send you a written “validation notice” telling you how much money you owe within five days after they first contact you. This notice also must include the name of the creditor to whom you owe the money, and how to proceed if you don’t think you owe the money.
This notice requirement is one of the hotbed issues with regard to litigation. For some reason, debt collectors love to "tinker" with the notices in their letters. The notice may appear correct to you even when it's not correct. Because of this, if you get a letter from a debt collector you should always contact our office immediately. We will be more than happy to review the letter for you at no cost. Do not assume that you know what the notice should say.
Furthermore, some states have additional notice requirements. For example, California's Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act has additional notices built into it.Can a debt collector contact anyone else about my debt?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection If an attorney is representing you about the debt, the debt collector must contact the attorney, rather than you. If you don’t have an attorney, a collector may contact other people – but only to find out your address, your home phone number, and where you work. Other than to obtain this location information about you, a debt collector is not permitted to discuss your debt with anyone other than you, your spouse, or your attorney.
Contacting third parties is one of the most common, and most of you soon, tactics used by debt collectors. Collectors may try to contact your coworkers, your supervisor at work, your HR department, your neighbors, your parents, your brother or sister, a roommate, or even your children. Any of this is a violation of the FDCPA and deserves immediate attention. If a debt collector contacts a third person with regard to your debt you need to immediately contact our office and discussed the situation with us. This is not a minor concern. The court system regrds third-party communications as a serious violation of the law.How can I stop a debt collector from contacting me?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection If a collector contacts you about a debt, you may want to talk to them even if you don’t think you owe the debt, can’t repay it immediately, or think that the collector is contacting you by mistake. If you decide after this that you don’t want the collector to contact you again, tell the collector – in writing – to stop contacting you. Here’s how to do that:
Make a copy of the letter they sent you and attach another document telling the debt collector either/or 1) that you do not owe the debt, 2) that you will not pay the debt, or 3) that you want them to stop contacting you. Be sure you put the date on the second letter, and be sure you make a copy of everything before you mail it. There is no requirement that you send the letter by certified mail, and pay for a “return receipt,” but you may want to do that to ensure you have proof. Once the collector receives your letter, they may not contact you again, with two exceptions: a collector can contact you to tell you there will be no further contact or to let you know that they or the creditor intend to take a specific action, like filing a lawsuit. Sending such a letter to a debt collector you owe money to does not get rid of the debt, but it should stop the contact. The creditor or the debt collector still can sue you to collect the debt.
If, after sending this letter to the debt collector or creditor, you receive any communications what so ever from them be sure that you immediately contact our office and discuss the matter. Generally speaking, any communication with you after you tell them one of these three things violates the law.When Is A Debt Collector Allowed To Contact Me?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection A debt collector may not contact you at inconvenient times or places, such as before 8 in the morning or after 9 at night, your local time, unless you agree to it. Keep in mind that the word is "inconvenient." It is you, and not the debt collector or the creditor that determines what is inconvenient. The eight o'clock in the morning until nine o'clock at night number is merely a guideline. If you work at night and you sleep in the morning, that means that having them call you in the morning is inconvenient to you. All you have to do is tell the debt collector that you do not want them to call you before noon, for example, and if they call you after being told that at 10 AM, that violates the FDCPA. In other words, contrary to what a debt collector might have you believe, it is you, and not them, that is in charge.
And collectors may not contact you at work if they’re told (orally or in writing) that you’re not allowed to get calls there. Our advice is to always tell them to stop calling you at work, that it is in convenient to get calls at work, and that your employer does not want me to get calls at work. If you do that and the debt collector call you back after that that is a clear-cut violation of the law.What types of debts are covered by the FDCPA?
Questions & Answers Concerning Debt Collection The FDCPA covers personal, family, and household debts, including money you owe on a personal credit card account, an auto loan, a medical bill, and your mortgage. The FDCPA doesn’t cover debts you incurred to run a business.