Who are the debt collectors by law?
A debt collector is any agency or person, who regularly
collects debt owed to others. It is anybody other than the
lender or creditor himself. Attorneys who collects debt on a
regular basis are also included under a 1986 amendment to the
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
You can call a person a debtor when:
- He owes money on a personal loan.
- He uses a credit card.
- He is paying on a home mortgage.
The definition may vary from one expression to the other
but the concept will remain the same. A Debt collector
collects the debt from the debtor.
What does law say about the procedure?
It is the responsibility of a debt collector to collect the
debt from the debtor but through fair and rightful means. Any
forceful means to collect debt is not allowed under the Fair
Debt Collection Practices Act. You must be aware that
under any situation or circumstances, the Fair Debt Collection
Practices Act requires the debt collectors to treat you fairly
by prohibiting certain methods of debt collection.
If I am not able to pay the loan, can they harass me?
The law doesn't permit the debt collectors to harass
debtors under any situation. Debt collectors are restricted
from using threats of violence or causing harm against the
person, property, or reputation. They can't use abusive
language with the debtors. Also they can't publish the debtors
name in public. They can't harass you by calling again and
again. The law gives you all types of protection.
Debt collectors are not allowed to engage in unfair
practices when they try to collect a debt.
They are not allowed to:
- Collect any amount greater than your debt, unless
allowed by law;
- Deposit a post-dated check prematurely;
- Make you accept collect calls or pay for telegrams;
- Take or threaten to take away your property unless this
can be done legally
- Contact you by postcard.
- They are not allowed to make false statements on
government policies.
- They are not allowed to introduce themselves as
government representatives or some responsible chair holder.
If any debt collector tries to break the law, the outcome
can be severe. You have the right to sue them in a state or
federal court within 1 year from the date you think the law
was violated. If you win, you will recover the money for all
the damages you have suffered. You can also recover the court
costs and attorney fees. A group of people also have the right
to sue a debt collector and recover money for damages up to
500,000 dollars, or 1 % of the collector's net worth,
whichever is less. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
might protect you from all the probable harassments of a debt
collector. The law however cannot protect you from debts or
forgive your debt amounts.