According to the article entitled “Creditors Play an Unrecognized and Powerful Role in the Debt Collection Process”, the smaller third party debt collectors are under tremendous pressure to collect from consumers in order to get their “small cut” or percentage of what is collected. This pressure is in part what causes them to misbehave or harass, call repeatedly, call family and friends and divulge personal information and more.

Since the debt collection industry is extremely lucrative for collection agencies both large and small, the old adage “if you can’t stand the heat, get out of the kitchen” would certainly apply here. The debt collection industry is huge and continues to grow each year as do the complaints from consumers regarding bad collectors.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was enacted to protect consumers from violations by third party debt collectors. Don’t expect a consumer wallowing in debt and on the receiving end of debt collector harassment to feel sorry for the collection agency because they aren’t making enough profit from their creditor due to a mutually agreed upon, low ball contingency agreement or percentage. Debt collectors, both large and small, need to obey these laws and stop complaining about the pressure to be profitable. That issue is certainly not unique to the debt collection industry.

The Telephone Consumer Protection Act has regulated cell phone calls from auto dialers and  robo calls from debt collectors, but if the President has his way, debt collectors collecting federal debts from consumers would be allowed to call a cell phone even in those instances.

National consumer groups are critical of this move and claim it is counter productive to fair debt collection and will not result in a windfall of  greater collections.  It may serve to provide an even greater  channel for debt collector harassment and annoying practices, already the number one complaint received by the FTC and if approved, that number could grow exponentially.

The debt collection industry has been pushing for legislation to allow cell phone robo call contact for all debt, whether its federal or non federal. That has been on the debt collection industries wish list now for a few years.  The  President’s plan is just one piece of into the huge $3 trillion deficit-reduction plan the president submitted to Congress.

The jury is still out as to how much potential revenue federal debt collectors could bring in if cell phone calls become a reality as in a cash strapped economy squeezing “blood from a stone” may be more difficult than anticipated.

In an effort to crack down on these judgments based on flimsy evidence, several states, including Maryland, are requiring better proof that debt buyers are suing the correct consumers. They are now not allowed to sue without in-depth knowledge of the case, including whether or not the debt is even still valid. Debt buyers are supposed to sign affidavits swearing they have personal knowledge of a case, but employees are signing hundreds of these per day without even looking at the files. In fact, several debt buyers buy the debt without the supporting documents from the original creditors. How can they swear they have seen the files when they do not even buy it?

Default judgments are highly common, because many consumers do not know they are being sued. Many times, people are not aware of these judgments because flimsy attempts were made to contact them before the lawsuits went to court. The FTC wants to make it tougher on collection agencies before submitting a judgment to the courts, including making it more likely litigants will be able to defend themselves in court. Fairness to consumers is the new name of the regulation game, and in the future, debt collectors will have a harder time suing consumers over their debts. How might consumers view debts after becoming fully protected? Time will tell.

Contact a fair debt lawyer for a free case review.

The firm tried to file for a collections license in July, but was rejected because some of the amounts owed were in question. “It’s a misrepresentation of the amount owed,” said Anne Balcer Norton, the state’s deputy commissioner of financial regulation.

This decision is great news for those who are going through collections proceedings because the cases will all be dropped. Anyone who has spent any money on attorneys or has paid their judgment amount will be repaid with interest.

As alarming as the case may be, it is not simply an aberration. Collection agencies have been trying for years now to collect debts without first verifying whether or not the debts are actually valid. Consider the methods that Bank of America has been using with computer generated calls and other shady tactics. Most people have judgments entered against them simply because they don’t show up to court because they think it is a lost cause.

Fortunately, Maryland is not stopping with Sunshine Financial and is aggressively pursuing other cases against collection agencies that do no follow proper methods of collection. Yes, these debt collectors have a right to pursue money owed to them, but consumers have rights and deserve to know that the balances against them are correct and valid.

While many consumers may find it disturbing news to learn that debt collectors are scouring social networking profiles online, Vytas Kisielius, the CEO for Collections Marketing Center Inc., insists that these sites can be used as a tool to track debtors down without violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). However, he argues, it would be an actionable violation of the FDCPA for collectors to masquerade as another user or post public notices on debtor’s accounts regarding their debts.

Rumor has it that the FTC is considering new regulation regarding how debt collectors can use emerging media like social networking sites to search for and contact debtors. Betsy Lordan, an FTC spokeswoman, denies the credibility of these rumors. She states that at this time the FTC is still reviewing transcripts and comments from a workshop the agency held earlier this year. It is unclear at this time if the agency may proceed with new regulation once that review is complete or if stricter enforcement of the FDCPA may result. Many experts in the field of debt collection, including Kisielius, argue that the existing regulation would be sufficient to protect consumers if the agency were more dedicated to enforcement.

Contact a fair debt lawyer for a free consultation. Robo or auto dialer calls from debt collectors to your cell phone can be stopped.

Generally speaking, unless someone is a cosigner on a financial commitment, family and friends are not obligated for the deceased person’s debt. Laws do vary by state, however, and certain payments may be required.

If an estate goes through probate, debt collectors have the right to seek payment from those assets, and the person handling the estate will likely have to deal with paying credit card debt and other bills. To help avoid probate, many people now set up living trusts, which allow better control over a person’s assets. Additionally, jointly held property and assets specifically left to someone are often excluded from probate proceedings.

Under the new rules, collectors may not misrepresent circumstances when attempting to recover funds. They must state that they seek repayment from the estate alone. Still, loved ones contacted by debt collectors should use caution in providing information, and they should not claim responsibility for the estate or accept obligation for debts.

Some consumer advocates want stronger regulations. They want to prevent collectors from contacting anyone not verified as the authorized representative for an estate. If someone receives a collection letter or phone call, advocates advise seeking help from an fair debt attorney or credit counselor. They also suggest thoroughly reading the FTC regulations.

Under the present laws, an expired debt can be sold by a creditor to a collector for a lesser amount. The debt collector can then proceed with collection efforts. If the debtor makes any payment towards this old expired debt, it then reactivates the clock on the statute of limitations and the collector can take the debtor to court to sue and garnish wages in certain circumstances.

Under the proposed bill, a debt collector would need to inform the debtor of the expired statute of limitations and advise that any payment, if state law applies, would restart the clock on a time-barred debt. In addition, they could not sue if the debt did fall outside of the statute of limitations.

If you are harassed by debt collectors contact our office today at 888-595-9111 for a free attorney evaluation. Or visit Debt Collector Problems on the web.

With the official launch next month of the new consumer protection arm of the FTC, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, debt collectors and their practices will come under additional, well needed scrutiny. Prior to the CFPB, the FTC was responsible for regulating debt collectors and the debt collection industry and though some crackdowns were enforced, the FTC could not write rules and regulations and their plate was always full of debt collector complaints, in fact collector harassment was the largest amount of complaints received by the FTC in 2010.* Its difficult to believe that the debt collectors are the ones deserving better treatment with the enormous amount of complaints coming from consumers.

New communication tools, specifically e-mail, cell phones, text messaging, the internet and social media, have made the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, enacted in 1977, outdated and the collection indsutry has their wish list of proposed changes ready for review. With so many consumers today still struggling to recover from hard times, providing the collection industry with additional ways to badger those who are already suffering doesn’t seem to be in the consumer’s best interest though admittedly, the laws need updating and the potential changes may make it better for the both collector and debtor.

If you think your fair debt rights have been violated by a debt collector, call 888-595-9111 or visit Debt Collector Problems.

Source FTC.GOV

If you have received a letter or call from Pinnacle regarding a Pascack Valley Hospital debt that you allegedly owe, you must contact them in writing within 30 days of receipt of the letter or it will be assumed the debt is valid. Any communication to a debt collector should be sent certified mail so you can confirm that you did indeed send the response and that it was received by Pinnacle. If the debt is over 6 years old, it could be outside of the New Jersey Debt Collection Statute of Limitations, that information should be included in your letter as well. If the bill has been paid, include a copy of the canceled check with your account numbers blacked out.

Don’t let Pinnacle Financial services bully you into paying a hospital bill you already paid or paying a bill that is outside of the statute of limitations. Contact fair debt lawyers to find out if your fair debt collection rights have been violated or to research debt help options.