Debt Collection Solution:
We know you have debt, and also plan on paying the debt. But when "Life Happens" and you can not pay all of what is owed you have choices to make. More often than not, those decisions are not always comfortable. During your process with any debt settlement company your going to get calls from creditors for unsecured debt collection accounts. This is not fun, but it is fact. If you don't go with debt settlement your going to get calls from them any way, only to plan on paying all of what was owed, and still ruining your credit.
Debt collection is an industry filled with people that do not care about you or your rights. A good debt settlement company that has your best interest in mind will take you through what is known as full disclosure, and share with you where to learn your consumer rights. If they do not take you through "FULL DISCLOSURE" RUN AND STOP TAKING THEIR CALLS.
Here is a complete list on debt collection laws. If you have been abused by a collector for any of these, call us now. We will either get you in touch with the correct people to bring resolve or attempt debt settlement for you.
Federal Fair Debt Collection
Practices Act
Collectors Could Care less about your situation:
The Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”) is the primary statute protecting consumers from abusive debt collection practices. Congress passed the statute because it found:
"There is abundant evidence of the use of abusive, deceptive, and unfair debt collection practices by many debt collectors. Abusive debt collection practices contribute to the number of personal bankruptcies, to marital instability, to the loss of jobs, and to invasions of individual privacy."
The FDPCA applies primarily to third-party debt collectors (collection agencies and attorneys). However, it can apply to original creditors in certain circumstances and does apply to those who purchase debt which is already in default. The FDCPA covers only collection of actual or alleged consumer debts, or those debts arising from a transaction in which the money, property, insurance, or services that are the subject of the transaction are primarily for personal, family, or household purposes. However, because the FDCPA applies to any person, a person other than the consumer who allegedly owes the debt can assert a claim. Some common FDCPA violations are:
· Communicating with improper third parties regarding a purported consumer debt without the consumer’s consent
· Communicating with the consumer at the consumer’s place of employment when the debt collector knows or has reason to know that the consumer’s employer prohibits such communications
· Harassing, oppressing, or abusing a consumer by, including but not limited to:
· Using language the natural consequence of which is to abuse the consumer
· Causing a telephone to ring or engaging a person in conversation continuously or repeatedly with the intent to annoy, abuse, or harass a consumer
· The placement of telephone calls without meaningful disclosure of the caller’s identity
· False, deceptive, or misleading representations, including but not limited to:
· Falsely representing that the debt collector is affiliated with the government
· Misrepresenting the character, amount, or legal status of a debt
· Falsely representing that the debt collector is an attorney
· Falsely representing that a consumer will be arrested for failure to pay a debt
· Falsely representing that a person’s wages will be garnished
· Threatening to take action which the debt collector cannot legally or does not intend to take
· Falsely representing that a person committed a crime in order to disgrace the person
· Failing to properly disclose that a debt collector is attempting to collect a debt and that any information will be used for that purpose
· Unfair practices including but not limited to:
· Collection of a charge not authorized by law or the agreement creating the debt
· Threatening to take nonjudicial action to dispossess property when there is no legal right to do so or such action is not intended
· Failing to send the consumer a validation of debt notice within the
requisite time
· Continuing to attempt to collect a debt after a consumer requests
validation but before a debt collector takes action required by law
If an individual files suit against a debt collector, the individual can recover money damages for actual damages suffered, statutory damages of up to $1,000.00, attorneys’ fees, and costs. A class action can be appropriate when a debt collector has used essentially the same unlawful conduct against numerous people.
Unlike the FDCPA, which applies to creditors only under certain circumstances, most of the Texas Debt Collection Act (“TDCA”) applies to creditors and third-party collectors (collection agencies and attorneys). Most of the common violations of the FDCPA listed above would also be violations of the TDCA. Further, a violation of the TDCA is a per se violation of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices - Consumer Protection Act (“DTPA”). Improper collection tactics can also violate the DTPA because they are unconscionable.
There are two primary requirements imposed by the TDCA which are not imposed by the FDCPA. First, a third-party debt collector must secure a $10,000.00 bond to secure payment to a claimant for violation of the TDCA. A third-party debt collector is generally a collection agency or attorney, an attorney who employs non-attorneys in the collection of consumer debts, and a person or company that purchases debts which are in default. If a third-party debt collector fails to secure a bond, that failure is itself a violation of the TDCA.
Second, creditors and third-party debt collectors have certain affirmative duties when a consumer disputes a debt. The duty imposed depends upon the manner in which the debt has been treated and when the dispute occurred.
A person can recover for a violation of the TDCA monetary damages for actual damages suffered (a minimum of $100.00 for some claims), attorneys’ fees, and costs. A court can also grant an injunction to stop a debt collector from engaging in conduct prohibited by the statute.
Common-Law Causes of Action
There are also common law causes of action in Texas available to those harmed by abusive and harassing collection efforts. An injured party can sue for unreasonable collection efforts, invasion of privacy (intrusion on seclusion), and intentional infliction of emotional distress. If the debt collector’s conduct is egregious, a jury can award exemplary (a/k/a “punitive”) damages.
Disclosure: The above is not to be taken as legal advice as neither ABsolute its officers or employees are not attorneys. They are experts in debt settlement that have a full working knowledge of debt collection laws.
