Investment & Financial Articles
Title: Stop Debt Collectors Cold and get Back on Your Financial Feet
Author: John Ventura, Gerri Detweiler
Article:
As a consumer law attorney who counsels people with debt
problems, I've heard my share of horror stories about debt
collectors. For example, a college student client was threatened
that she'd be arrested if she did not pay a credit card debt,
and another client was called 12 times in one day at work about
a debt that was 14 years old. If they knew their rights, these
people could have avoided the emotional stress they experienced
at the hands of aggressive debt collectors.
This article provides you with an overview of those rights so
you don't have to suffer like my clients did. You don't have to
put up with abuse from debt collectors! Despite what they may
tell you, debt collectors cannot put you in jail, make you lose
your job, or ruin your credit forever if you don't pay a debt.
The federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) sets very
strict limits on what debt collectors can and cannot do. Those
limits include when they can call you, what they can say and
what they can do to collect a debt.
The FDCPA in a Nutshell
The FDCPA applies to outside debt collection agencies, but not
to creditors collecting their own debts. However, your state may
have a law that applies to in-house debt collectors. Call your
state attorney general's office to find out.
Among other things, the FDCPA says that debt collectors cannot:
· Lie to you, use racial slurs or insults, or threaten you with
violence. · Call you repeatedly, or call before 8 a.m. or after
9 p.m. · Call you at work if you've told them you can't accept
their calls on the job. · Contact your employer about a debt
unless the debt collector is trying to collect past due child
support payments from you. · Tell others about your debt. ·
Garnish your wages without taking you to court first. · Make
false statements, such as telling you they will ruin your credit
"
forever". They can't.
You have the right, within 60 days of first being contacted by a
collector, to ask for written proof of the debt, and the debt
collector must provide it. Be sure to ask for proof if there is
any question that you owe a debt or if you need time to figure
out how to pay a debt you know you owe. Keep careful notes
regarding each conversation you have with a debt collector, and
copies of all correspondence to and from the collector. These
records will be helpful if you need to sue a debt collector.
You Can STOP Debt Collectors
You can write to a debt collector to tell him not to contact you
anymore. After he receives your letter, the FDCPA requires the
collector to cease all contact with you other than to let you
know about a specific action he is going to take -- sue you for
example. The drawback of ceasing contact however, is you
eliminate the option of negotiating a payment arrangement with
the collector or settling your debt for less.However, if you
believe you really don't owe a debt or if you truly can't afford
to pay it, telling a debt collector to stop contacting you may
make sense.
Time and again I've seen collectors try to pressure consumers
into paying them immediately by threatening to seize their
assets, take money from their bank accounts, or garnish their
wages. However, a debt collector cannot do any of these things
without getting the court's permission first. Furthermore, you
will have plenty of notice from the court about what a debt
collector wants to do so you can hire an attorney to stop him.
What To Do If A Collector Violates The Law
If you believe that a debt collector has violated your rights,
or you need advice about the best way to deal with a collector,
contact a consumer attorney (visit www.naca.net for a referral).
You should also register a complaint about the collector with
the Federal Trade Commission at www.ftc.gov. For much more
information about dealing with debt collectors, visit my website
at http://www.StopDebtCollectorsCold.com, or contact my
Co-author, Gerri Detweiler, at gerri@ultimatecredit.com.
About the author:
John Ventura is a consumer law attorney and board certified in
bankruptcy law. He is also a national authority on consumer and
small business financial and legal issues. He has a consumer law
firm in the Rio Grande Valley of South Texas and is the author
of 13 books, including The Bankruptcy Kit and The Credit Repair
Kit, and the new ebook, Stop Debt Collectors Cold. He has been
featured on CNN, National Public Radio and in numerous newspaper
and magazine articles nationwide.
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