Abusive Debt Collection

Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

I am being harassed by a bill collector for a debt that I don’t even owe.

I have told them I never had an account with the credit card company they represent, but they call me a liar and insist that I pay at once.

I have told them not to bother me, but they never stop.

What can I do?

Paul

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First of all read Bill Collectors. It spells out all the rights and protections provided to debtors by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

That being said, it is becoming more common for debt collection agencies to ignore this law and harass alleged debtors in spite of its provisions.

Bill collection agencies buy this debt, sometimes for as little a twenty-five cents per hundred dollars. Even if they manage to squeeze just a few dollars out of you, they make a big profit.

In their rush to chase this profit, they deliberately ignore debtors complaints that they never had the disputed account or that they paid it off or that it was discharged in bankruptcy.

Big nationwide bill collectors, such as Allied Interstate, Capital Acquisitions and Applied Card Systems have been charged by the FTC and/or state attorneys-general with such practices as using illegal tactics to coerce payment, continuous calls to the wrong people in spite of requests to stop, use of obscene language and more.

They have faced fines and injunctions, but seem to plow right ahead.

Get the name, address and phone number of the bill collector, if you don’t already have it. Send him a certified letter, return receipt requested, stating that you do not owe the bill and that you demand that all contact with you stop immediately.

If that doesn’t work, contact the FTC and your local state attorney general and file a complaint.

Then find a lawyer that specializes in consumer finance cases. Your local bar association’s Lawyer Referral Service is a good place to start. Or contact the National Association of Consumer Advocates who can refer you to a qualified attorney.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act provides a private right of action against abusive debt collectors and in my mind should be freely used by victims of their tactics, such as yourself.

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