As a follow up to yesterday’s post about the weird phone call from a debt collector, I’ve got another article about agencies and debt collection from CNN Money writer Blake Ellis. This article, though, really shows an example of why you need to know your rights.
The Federal Trade Commission has noticed an increase in the number of complaints from people who claim harassment from debt collectors. In fact, the FTC reports an increase in 50% over the course of 2009, and based on the first half of this year, it looks like the number will increase another 13%.
According to the FTC, repeated calls are the biggest complaint, followed by obscene language, inconvenient calls and violence. As an example, the article mentions a woman who said that a debt collector repeatedly called her house, verbally abusing her and her husband. When they stopped answering the agency’s call, the debt collector resorted “to calling her estranged sister, an ex-boyfriend and her husband’s ex-wife’s mother.”
Remember, as the article points out, you do not have to tolerate underhanded tactics, like threatening phone calls or calls at odd hours of the day (before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m.). If a debt collector tries any of these techniques on you, point out the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to the person on the other end of the line.
Be sure to read the article, including a response from the spokesman from The Association of Credit and Collection Professionals.
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