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Do you want to expose debt collector harassment? Do you want to have your story told on one of the Big Television Networks? If you live in the State of New Jersey, contact us directly by calling 1-800-NOT-FAIR, or by sending an email, clicking here!
Debt Collection Attorney Craig Kimmel is featured in this story from the Concord Monitor detailing the aggressive tactics that debt collectors employ to collect on debts they purchase for pennies on the dollar. Consumers reported being harassed and threatened. They said collection agents failed to investigate disputed debts and disclosed alleged debt to relatives and employers.
Third-party debt collectors generated 78,000 complaints to the Federal Trade Commission in 2008, twice the number received in 2003, according to the agency’s most recent report. That same year, the agency won more than $1 million in civil damages against collection agencies.
You can read the entire article here: Suits Piling up for Debt Collectors.
The recession means more people are falling behind on their bills. The last person you want to hear from is a debt collector.
Some debt collectors are just doing their job, but others cross the line.
Fox 29 Consumer Reporter Michelle Buckman explains how to stop debt collector harassment and maybe even collect some money from them:
Read the story on MyFoxPhilly.com here: Real Deal: No Harassing Debt Collectors
It’s a decades-old practice known in legal circles as “sewer service”. This occurs when a debt collector fails to properly serve a notice of complaint (litigation) upon the defendant (debtor) and then files a false affidavit claiming the notice has been properly served. When the debtor doesn’t show up in court, the collector can then apply for, and almost always wins, a default judgment. This is a violation of the FDCPA and has become a staple practice for “reputable” and “not reputable” debt collectors alike. If you have been the victim of “sewer service”, contact us today for free representation and immediate relief from the debt collector.
See this story about a class action suit filed in New York regarding this problem: Suit Claims Fraud by New York Debt Collectors
Four hundred million times a year, employees of a little-known company called NCO dial the telephone “just to talk.”
NCO’s hope: A simple chat will convince people to pay old debts.
“We have to strike a bond with someone,” said the company’s CEO, Michael Barrist. “We want them to explain their situation to us, and we’re going to try to work out an arrangement that they and the client can live with. That is our goal, so that they can pay our client.”
Despite the best wishes of Barrist, the world’s largest debt collection company generates thousands of consumer complaints about its practices each year and has paid settlements of $1.8 million to federal and state authorities.
But officials at NCO Group, based in the Philadelphia suburb of Horsham, Pa., insist that NCO takes pains to follow state and federal laws. Abuses by NCO collectors are the exception, not the rule, Barrist said.
“People have a perception of what and who the debt collector is,” Barrist said. “That’s not us.”
With unemployment and foreclosures rising, Americans now face more pressure from debt collectors, who must work harder to squeeze out payments in lean times, according to consumer advocates and industry experts. Consumers are increasingly complaining about debt collection practices to the Federal Trade Commission, and many of those complaints are levied against the industry giant, NCO, which employs 15,000 debt collectors worldwide and holds 600 million to 1 billion collection accounts at any time.
“We clearly understand that people don’t like being called by collection agencies,” Barrist said. “And we can’t make it a pleasant experience because nobody’s ever going to say, ‘Gee, I’m glad you called today.’ But we try very, very hard to make sure it’s done professionally.”
Since 2007, NCO has generated 7,964 consumer complaints to the FTC, nearly twice as many any other debt collection company.
Many of the complaints claim the company violated federal law by misrepresenting debt, repeatedly calling other people, and failing to send written notice, according to the FTC records.
Furthermore, the rate of complaints against NCO is rising faster than the collection industry as a whole. During 2009, all debt collection complaints to federal authorities are on track to increase 6 percent over 2007. In the same time period, complaints against NCO have risen 23 percent.
“I think we have the best record in the industry, statistically,” Barrist said, since the company handling the most accounts is likely to have the most complaints. “With that said, I take every one of these complaints seriously. I’m a big believer that regardless of whether NCO is at fault or not, the first thing we should be doing is saying we’re sorry and hearing what is going on.”
The FTC disciplined NCO in 2004 with a civil penalty for $1.5 million for misreporting consumer information to the credit reporting agencies, according to the FTC. Barrist blamed the blunder on another collection company, now-defunct Commercial Financial Services, which had worked the debts before NCO.
In 2006, Pennsylvania authorities settled with NCO after the company generated 800 complaints over a two-year period. NCO paid the state $300,000 and promised to follow the law. A spokesman for the FTC declined to say if it is taking any action against NCO, and a spokesman for the Pennsylvania’s attorney general office said it doesn’t have any pending cases against NCO.
Founded in 1926 as National Collection Office by Barrist’s grandfather, the company has grown explosively in the last two decades. In 1991, NCO had 63 employees, according to a company profile at the time. Now, it has 34,000 employees, about half of whom work in collections, according to Barrist.
Consumer advocates argue that the only way to get results in tough times is to be as aggressive as possible. Ira Rheingold, executive director of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, points out that NCO pays its collectors in part based on how much money they can recover.
“You’re going to see lots of bad behavior,” Rheingold said. “Institutionally, you have created a system that will encourage abusive behavior and harassment.”
Barrist disagrees. Outrageous tactics don’t work — and they hurt a collection company’s bottom line, he says.
“If you’re abusive to them on the phone, they’re not going to pay you,” he said. “All it does is start a whole chain of complaints and problems for the company.”
Original article here: Scripp News
If you or someone you know is feeling harassed by NCO, you do have rights. Please contact us or call us at 1-800-NOT-FAIR for free legal help.
New York Financier J. Michael Cline had built a complex, billion dollar empire in the debt collection business, handling both sides of arbitration disputes for debt collectors through Minneapolis based NAF (National Arbitration Forum) and Axiant, LLC, a firm he acquired that handles debt collection.
In a July complaint, the Minnesota attorney general’s office alleged NAF deceived consumers and engaged in false advertising. Consumers didn’t realize NAF was financially affiliated with “one of the country’s major debt collection enterprises,” the complaint alleged. Accretive created Axiant in tandem with employees of Mann Bracken, a debt collector that represented credit-card companies in NAF arbitrations, the complaint alleged. At the same time, Accretive funds and NAF Inc. jointly own the back-office entity for NAF, called Forthright.
For more than a decade, most credit-card companies have required customers to use arbitration, rather than the courts, to resolve disputes over unpaid bills. Minneapolis-based NAF has mediated the vast majority of these claims. But both NAF and another arbitrator have stopped hearing arbitrations of consumer-debt cases, and major banks are dropping arbitration requirements.
Read the full story here.
1. Stop the Collection Calls: Instruct the debt collector to stop calling you at home or at work. Write them a letter if you can with those instructions and save a copy. If the calls continue, they have violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by harassment. Stopping the calls requires the collector to resort to letters that state the nature of the debt and what is sought. You can take the time to research all the facts to determine if you in fact owe the money or not, and whether you need to consult with others before responding. You are not put on the spot by unexpected calls from rude debt collectors who may make you upset, aggravated or otherwise uncomfortable in your own home or at work.
2. Know the Statute of Limitations: Each state has a term of years, referred to as a statute of limitations, within which the debt collector must file suit or lose the right to do so. Once expired, you may be sued but you not forced to pay if you raise the statute of limitations as a defense. Debt collectors routinely sue on old debt in hopes that the consumer will not know how to respond, however a law suit that seeks payment for a stale debt violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
3. Keep Records of All Contacts With All Debt Collectors: Save “throw away” letters seeking payment or communications from a debt collector. Keep a log of calls, date, time, originating phone number and caller. If you have an agreement or sent a letter, retain copies. Keep these in a safe place. Often what is resolved or dealt with on one day, can reappear later without any acknowledgment by the collector of the prior events. And debts are routinely rotated between several debt collection agencies, usually without any communication between them regarding your account. Perhaps most importantly, debt collectors benefit by the absence of keeping records, calling and writing over and over again if it will lead to more money being paid. Track your accounts, know your history with debt collectors and don’t trust your memory alone.
Debt Collectors May Not:
About CreditLaw.com:
What is CreditLaw.com? We are lawyers who stop abuse by debt collectors in their tracks. A service of Kimmel & Silverman, PC, helping over 50,000 consumers since 1991.
Just the title of today’s blog entry seems a bit unfeasible. How can you deal with a debt collector, especially if they are threatening you, and/or using obscene language? Here are three primary rules of thumb you should take into account if you are being continuously called by a collector.
First, figure out why you are being called. Chances are someone is calling to collect on a debt and they have not received payment for several months. Or it could be an older debt that was sold to a third-party debt collector and they are trying to get as much money from you as possible. You need to make sure you understand the specifics of the debt. How much are they trying to collect? What for? How old is the debt? Do you remember the debt?
Get as much info as possible the name of the collector calling, the name of the collection agency, the creditor, the address and fax number for sending correspondence
Also, make sure that if you have never received written correspondence pertaining to the debt that you tell the collector you expect to receive a written follow-up following this call.
Unfortunately, identity theft is still running rampant so you may be getting calls after an impostor used your identity to seek credit. You would not be responsible for this debt, but you may experience a tremendous amount of resistance convincing the collector that you were a victim.
Second, do not disregard or ignore the calls. This debt may create a negative effect on your credit report so you want to research the matter and write everything down for your file.
Third, fight for your right to privacy. If you are first hearing of this debt through a collection call, tell the collector that from this point forward, you want all further correspondence in writing. You can also tell a collector that you do not want them calling you at work. From the moment you start speaking to a collector, you want to make notes of each and every conversation for your file. It is also important that you send written requests as well to follow up on what’s discussed on the phone. Send any correspondence, including disputes to both the collection agency and creditor, via certified mail, return receipt requested.
Also, make sure the collector knows that you are the only person who should be contacted regarding the debt. If this is not your debt, and it is an employer’s, friend’s or relative’s, you can write to the collection agency and request that they cease communication immediately.
More tips to come… keep your head up and if the calls are not ceasing, please contact us for further advice and assistance.