If you're in debt up to your ears, you might be worried that a debt collector might sue you for not paying on your debt. But did you know that there are many reasons for which you can actually sue them instead?
With the understanding that I am not a lawyer and am not giving any legal advice, here are the facts:
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, also known as the FDCPA, defines specific practices in which debt collectors may not engage. According to the FDCPA, you have the right to sue a collector in a State or Federal court if they engage in any of these forbidden practices.
What are the forbidden practices that debt collectors may not engage in?
The first, and most common, is harassment. Under the FDCPA, harassment means use of "threats of violence or harm", using obscene language, or annoying someone through repeated use of the telephone.
Another forbidden practice is making false statements. The FDCPA forbids debt collectors from lying to try to collect a debt. Examples of this include falsely claiming that they are attorneys or that they represent the government, lying about how much you owe them, or falsely stating that your outstanding debt makes you a criminal. Debt collectors have a long history of saying what they have to in order to collect on a debt, including outright lies and subtle misrepresentations.
Debt collectors are also not allowed to publicize the fact that you owe money on a debt. This means they cannot contact other people about your debt, contact you via postcard (since the contents of a postcard can be seen by anyone), or publish your name on a list of people who have outstanding debts. The only time they can contact other people about a debt you owe is to discover your address, telephone number, or place of employment.
So, what are the consequences if a debt collector does break the rules and engage in one of these forbidden practices?
If this happens, your first action should be to tell the debt collector that you know your rights under the FDCPA, and that you demand that they cease their illegal actions. Most of the time, this will fix their misbehavior without you needing to use legal action.
If that doesn't fix the problem, however, you can still sue them in state or Federal court up to a year from the time they violated the restrictions of the FDCPA. You can sue them for any damages that their illegal practices demonstrably caused, including medical bills and lost wages.
If you can't fully prove that they caused any real damages, the judge can still make them pay you up to $1,000. Additionally, the judge can make them pay you back for your attorney's fees.
Remember that just because the debt collections agent broke the law while trying to collect money from you, it doesn't mean that the debt disappears. If you still owe the debt, you still have to pay the debt. The only difference is that their breaking the law means that you can sue them under the FDCPA.
Know the law. Know your rights. And if your rights are violated under law, make sure you use the law to enforce your rights. - 29866
With the understanding that I am not a lawyer and am not giving any legal advice, here are the facts:
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, also known as the FDCPA, defines specific practices in which debt collectors may not engage. According to the FDCPA, you have the right to sue a collector in a State or Federal court if they engage in any of these forbidden practices.
What are the forbidden practices that debt collectors may not engage in?
The first, and most common, is harassment. Under the FDCPA, harassment means use of "threats of violence or harm", using obscene language, or annoying someone through repeated use of the telephone.
Another forbidden practice is making false statements. The FDCPA forbids debt collectors from lying to try to collect a debt. Examples of this include falsely claiming that they are attorneys or that they represent the government, lying about how much you owe them, or falsely stating that your outstanding debt makes you a criminal. Debt collectors have a long history of saying what they have to in order to collect on a debt, including outright lies and subtle misrepresentations.
Debt collectors are also not allowed to publicize the fact that you owe money on a debt. This means they cannot contact other people about your debt, contact you via postcard (since the contents of a postcard can be seen by anyone), or publish your name on a list of people who have outstanding debts. The only time they can contact other people about a debt you owe is to discover your address, telephone number, or place of employment.
So, what are the consequences if a debt collector does break the rules and engage in one of these forbidden practices?
If this happens, your first action should be to tell the debt collector that you know your rights under the FDCPA, and that you demand that they cease their illegal actions. Most of the time, this will fix their misbehavior without you needing to use legal action.
If that doesn't fix the problem, however, you can still sue them in state or Federal court up to a year from the time they violated the restrictions of the FDCPA. You can sue them for any damages that their illegal practices demonstrably caused, including medical bills and lost wages.
If you can't fully prove that they caused any real damages, the judge can still make them pay you up to $1,000. Additionally, the judge can make them pay you back for your attorney's fees.
Remember that just because the debt collections agent broke the law while trying to collect money from you, it doesn't mean that the debt disappears. If you still owe the debt, you still have to pay the debt. The only difference is that their breaking the law means that you can sue them under the FDCPA.
Know the law. Know your rights. And if your rights are violated under law, make sure you use the law to enforce your rights. - 29866
About the Author:
Sean Payne is a personal finance and debt reduction enthusiast. After getting out of debt himself, he spent over a decade learning all he could about how to pay off massive amounts of debt. Check out Sean's fascinating e-course about how to sue debt collectors and get out of debt, quickly and easily.
