Fair Debt Collection Practices Act – Know Your Rights
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Know Your Rights
In recent years, an alarming new trend has developed in the world of debt collection. Things have gotten nasty, and bill collectors aren't nearly as professional and courteous as they once were. It's become enough of a problem that Congress has even gotten involved. The FDCPA, or Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, was passed to set guidelines and limits on the power of debt collection agencies to recover debts from consumers. Due to the increasingly hostile and in some cases illegal practices of debt collection firms and their agents, the FDCPA was needed to protect the public from abuse.
Reports of widespread abuses in the debt collection industry have been on the rise, with many victims being unduly harassed with threats against their family, job and reputation that in some instances break the law. The most common method is to leave threatening voice messages with the debtor they're targeting which imply that they can seize assets that aren't in any way connected with the debt. Another approach is to shame individuals into settling immediately with them by threatening to come to their home or place of work, damaging their reputation with coworkers or family and even endangering their jobs and livelihood.
Such threats and actions are often unlawful and in some cases downright criminal. In some extreme and highly publicized cases, rogue collection agents will resort to physical intimidation or violence to get the borrower to forfeit cash or assets on the spot. Cases of stalking, fraud and even assault are rampant within the debt collection industry, which is why legislation aimed at curbing such behavior was eventually enacted. Thanks to laws like the FDCPA, lawyers have the legal muscle and backing they need to go after debt collection agencies that use excessive threats, intimidation and harassment to unfairly shake down citizens that are behind on payments or in debt.
Debt collection agencies often violate the law when engaging in debt collection because they count on the ignorance of consumers as to the illegality of their methods. Any losses they incur due to lawsuits and legal action is considered a cost of doing business. If more people were aware of their rights and fought back against such debt collectors, the incidences of abuse and undue harassment would fall dramatically. If you're being hounded and harassed by overaggressive debt collectors, the best thing to do is contact an attorney immediately to discuss your options. In many cases, victims of harassment can win substantial settlements against such firms.
Debt collection harassment often goes to far in rectifying debts and in some cases may even be illegal depending on how bill collectors go about it. But as you've seen, there are ways to fight back against extreme debt collection tactics. If you want to stop debt harassment but don't know how, you need to contact legal professionals who are experienced in debt collection matters to get the representation you need to fight back. There's a right way and a wrong way to go about settling debts, and you shouldn't have to suffer when debt collection agencies go too far.
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