Harassing Creditors and the Way to Defend Yourself

Guest post by Kevin Craig

As a bad debt grows, debt collection agencies seem to exert more and more pressure on the debtors in the form of creditor harassment. Although debt collection is legal, harassment by collection agencies is not! The FDCPA laws are like the cool shades that shelter the consumers’ rights and offers protection to illegal debt collection tactics. There are various types of harassment that the creditors impose on the debtors:

• Debt collectors threaten to hurt.
• They come to damage any personal property.
• They use obscene language over the phone.
• They threat to put the consumer behind the bars.
• They make disturbing calls at your workplace.

It is even possible for the consumer to get a counseling from the attorneys in their state regarding their rights like-

Creditor harassment and consumer rights – (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act)
There are two different types of creditor harassment laws, the federal laws and the state laws; the federal laws are for the entire citizen, while the state laws are only for the citizen of that particular state. If both the laws are taken into account it’s the state law that is more effective. The FDCPA is designed in such a way that it can fight back the abusive creditors and if required can also put a penalty on them which might even count up to $1000.
Utilizing unfair practices in collection of debt
There are situations where the debt collectors may charge more than the original amount.
The debt collectors may ask the consumers to incur certain extra financial charges.
The debt collectors may threaten to damage personal property.
Unfair or outrageous collection activities are practiced by the debt collectors.

Notice Violation
The creditor sends a letter to the debtor addressing him as a “dead beat” which means someone who has no money to pay for his credit cards.
The creditor sends out a collection letter which signifies a court order.
Limitations of FDCPA
Firstly, the debt must be a consumer debt and not a business debt.
FDCPA does not apply to third party collection agency.
It is only the debt attorney who can suggest which law applies and when, so that he can give him the required protection as and where required.
FDCPA to save the consumers from creditor harassment
The FDCPA has been designed in such a way that it can protect human rights against creditor harassment .If the harassment is illegal, the consumers can even sue the debt collectors for any kind of damages done either to their personal property or to them. A local consumer attorney can guide the consumers as to whether the case of violation of FDCPA laws against the debt collectors is legal or not!
You can try out the following to deal with creditors

1. Police assistance
2. Complain to the trading standards
3. Doing full and final settlement to clear debts with a help of a debt settlement law firm.
4. Take creditor to Small Claims Court.

How did Jennifer get rid of her debt?

Guest post by Jennifer Lohan

Getting out of debt requires great effort and when you have dependent family members, nothing can be worse than that. Jennifer faced a similar situation. Her husband passed away long ago. She is the sole breadwinner of the family and her in-laws are also living with her. She has four credit cards that she used on and off whenever she was short of cash. Since her income wasn’t sufficient to keep up with her monthly payments, she soon fell into debt. She did whatever she could to find the best debt consolidation company for her needs and at last found one. She has signed up for their debt consolidation program. For finding the best debt consolidation company, she took help of her friends, family members and useful online resources. She wanted to eliminate her debt burden once and for all. So, how did she get into the debt trap?

Falling into the debt trap

There are mainly two particular reasons that can push you into a vicious debt trap and make your finances go out of control. The first is an unexpected job loss and the second is a health condition. Hence, what would you do in this type of circumstances? Jennifer was regular with her payments till her husband suffered a job loss. The situation became worse when he died of cancer. This was truly a defining moment in her life. She finished up all her savings and also took money from friends and family members in her futile attempt to save her husband.

Jennifer’s monthly income was not sufficient to manage her debts. So she went to some creditors for credit. Furthermore, she began to use her credit cards oftentimes. For the first one or two months, there was no problem and Jennifer was regular with her payments. When the subprime mortgage meltdown took place, a number of credit card companies lowered their credit limits and modified credit card payment plans. Jennifer didn’t have any idea about this. As a result, she lagged behind her payments since she didn’t have the ability to make the minimum monthly payments.

How did Jennifer get rid of debt?

As soon as she started facing credit problems, she acted intelligently and talked to a credit counselor. Jennifer was cautious about the ill effects of filing bankruptcy since a number of her friends had gone for the same option. She didn’t let her balances pile up to a huge amount. Jennifer’s financial condition was thoroughly evaluated and the credit counselor advised that she should go for a debt consolidation program.

As Jennifer was already restructuring her finances, she didn’t wish to spend an excessive amount for a consolidation program. She selected a non profit debt consolidation company. Before signing up, she also confirmed that whether the company is affiliated with the BBB. As soon as she was confident about their trustworthiness, she signed up for the program.

The consolidation agency asked for nominal fees against their services. They carried out negotiations with her creditors and persuaded them to lower her interest rates and monthly payments. All her debts were combined into a single affordable monthly payment. A repayment plan was set up that helped Jennifer keep tabs on her monthly payments. She followed the plan sincerely and became debt free in the end.

Thank you Jennifer for this post.

The site Jennifer links to Debt Consolidation Care, Internet's first get-out-of-debt community is a fine resource of both information and people. People trained in debt law, professionals with experience in the field, people who have gone through getting out of debt and people in the process of getting out of debt. It is a place where you can ask questions and get help.

I do have a few words of caution though. When seeking help getting out of debt please beware.

1. Avoid actual debt consolidation loan programs.
2. Avoid programs that require a substantial payment up front. The program should actually cost you very little or nominal fees as stated in the post.
   
3. Avoid companies listed with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) that have substantial complaints against them. Being listed with the Better Business Bureau is not a seal of approval or measure of trustworthiness, but mounting complaints against a company listed with the BBB should be a dis-qualifier. From the BBB site.
   

   BBB accreditation does not mean that the business’ products or services have been evaluated or endorsed by BBB, or that BBB has made a determination as to the business’ product quality or competency in performing services.

4. Use Common Sense. If something a company is telling you seems wrong trust your instincts. Go elsewhere, ask questions, walk away from what seems wrong and get more information. Just because your in debt doesn't mean your stupid. Take a deep breath, take charge of your situation, ask more questions. You may need help, need guidance but you don't need someone trying to profit from your pain.