Thursday, April 25, 2013

Collection Agency Laws & Rules

Congress passed the Exactly Obligation Crowd Practices Fact in 1978, faced with an overwhelming figure of complaints approximately Obligation assemblage. The event regulates third binge Obligation organization agencies, not autochthonous creditors. Diacritic states may bear further consumer Safeguard laws.


Contact Times


The regulation says third brannigan Obligation collectors may contact you one shot between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. Collectors very violate the rule provided they contact you during times you compass told them are inconvenient. These hours could constitute when you are picking up the children, settling in for supper or getting ready for duty.


Verbal Abuse


The event prohibits Obligation collectors from using any arrangement of verbal abuse. They may not threaten you in any design. This includes threats to publicly broadcast your Obligation, function false dossier on your credit report, tell your employer about your debt or take legal action they have no right to take. Profanity is prohibited, also as any type of verbal insult.


Legal Action


A debt collection agency cannot file legal action in a place that is far from your home. Any legal action taken must be filed in your state, and you are not obligated to travel out of state to seem in court. An exception may be made depending on the status of the account and the delinquent dollar amount, but only if the account was opened in one state and you later moved to another state.


Third Party Contact


If this happens, the agency is not allowed to reveal that it is collecting a debt.

Identification

The agency must identify itself as a debt collector before discussing the matter at hand. Each communication, written or verbal, must include what is sometimes called a mini Miranda warning.The law says agencies cannot contact any third party about your debt without consent. This includes employers, relatives and neighbors. In cases of missing contact information, the agency may be entitled to one phone call in an effort to find you.



This warning states that the communication is from a debt collector and it is attempting To gather a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose only. If agencies do not communicate these two sentences, they are in direct violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.


Debt Verification


Upon your request, the debt collection agency must provide you with information about the debt it is trying To gather. You can request proof of the debt. Agencies also must provide by request the original creditor's name, address and phone number, along with the original debt amount. They are given 30 days to reply to such a request and must cease communications until you receive the information.