… There are several requirements that a debt must meet before it becomes governed by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act:

The debt must be a consumer debt that was incurred for personal, household or family reasons. For example: Medical debt incurred because of a spouse’s illness would meet this criterion; however, medical debt incurred because of an employee’s accident would not meet this criteria.

Debts that are being handled by a debt collector and not …

Tags: Debt Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Know Your Rights Threatening Collector

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… ability to dispute information directly with the debtor, in addition to the consumer reporting agency.  After bankruptcy, you should not have any further debt collection issues.  If you do, however, and have requested that a debtor cease communication with you, the new guidelines do allow them to respond to a dispute and communicated with you solely for the purpose of resolving the dispute.

The other FTC announcement this week involved a law enforcement crackdown on scammers.  The …

Tags: Collection agency Federal Trade Commission FTC Law Money Management Personal Finance

… to debt collector tall tales.  Here are a couple myths and facts you need to know about debt collection:

Myth :  The debt collector is always right.  If a debt collector says I owe something then I don’t have a right to question them.

Fact :  The truth is that debt collectors are often wrong.  Many times debts have been sold and resold so often that they can “develop” errors.  Every debtor has the right to accurate information and has the legal right to request that a …

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According to an article in the Star-Telegram, American Corrective Counseling Services, a debt collection company has agreed to a $2.55 million judgment to settle a lawsuit brought by thousands of debtors who claimed they were wrongly led to believe they had to pay costly fees to avoid criminal charges for bouncing checks.

The article said:

“The company sent out letters as recently as last winter purporting to be from various Pennsylvania district attorneys’ offices to people who …

Permalink: /lawsuits/debt-collection-company-accepts-2-55-million-judgment/

… talking a few days at the most. Once this 3 page petition is filed, it will stop aggressive collection action against a debtor immediately. The bankruptcy law allows the debtor to file the remaining forms and schedules within 15 days after filing the bankruptcy petition. In some cases the bankruptcy court may even extend the 15 day deadline if it deems it reasonable and necessary.

Do not try to file the bankruptcy petition yourself, because if it is done incorrectly your …

Permalink: /filing_bankruptcy/an-emergency-bankruptcy-filing-can-stop-aggressive-collection-actions-today/

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) successfully sued three debt collection companies who scammed consumers into paying money they did not really owe.   A total of $1.6 million was recovered from the debt collection scammers and will be distributed to 24,916 consumers.

In 2003, the FTC sued three companies, operating under the name National Check Control, charging them with harassing and abusing consumers, falsely threaten­ing criminal prosecution, …

Tags: consumers debt collection

Most credit card companies will send a delinquent credit card account to a collection agency after 180 days of no payment.  These delinquent credit card accounts are usually sold for pennies on the dollar.

Debt collectors who hold your credit card account are regulated by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and can be liable for violating the rules of this law.  Calling you before 8am or after 9pm, verbally/physically abusing a debtor …

… cannot threaten to have you arrested or thrown in jail.  Even though the state and federal debt collection practices acts contain laundry lists of what a debt collector cannot do, keep in mind that this is a persistent industry that frequently and creatively invents new tactics to get people to pay.  When you are being targeted by a collector, you do not have to deal with them alone.  Options and resources are available.  If you think the collector is using abusive tactics, file a …

… said:

“…the Obama administration’s proposal to create a Consumer Financial Protection Agency includes giving the agency broad authority to restrict or eliminate consumer arbitrations…J.P. Morgan Chase will no longer submit credit card disputes to arbitration and is re-evaluating the inclusion of arbitration provisions in its consumer contracts. Bank of America also has dropped a requirement that consumers settle disputes through arbitration. In addition, the American Arbitration …

The Consumer Law & Policy blog has a very revealing article about a judge in Indiana that took it upon herself to give indigent debtors a choice–”pay up” or “go to jail.”

The blog writer provided the transcript of an exchange between the debtor and the judge:

The Court: “So we’re here today for you to explain what you’re going to do to pay this off.”

Mr. Button: …

Comment by StuckNSecond: … more that a collection agency with teeth?

… not to pay your bill, the company that offered you the service will turn your bill over to a collection agency.  An example of this type of account would be your cable or internet service bills.

Anyway, they have some great tips to help you get your credit score up higher.  If you follow them you will be well on your way to avoiding the same old mistakes.

… not you succeed, though, keep in mind that the mere act of filing for bankruptcy protects you from collection on all your debts until the case is resolved or the judge grants your collectors permission to start collecting again. If you do meet all the requirements of the Brunner test, consulting with an experienced bankruptcy attorney would be a good idea. They can give you a rundown on the pros and cons of filing a bankruptcy petition, assist you with filing the actual petition, and guide …

Comment by Linnie Buckley: … the student loan agency. It stated that my loans should …