Five Keys To Understanding The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

Most people understand that they have consumer rights

, but not many understand their rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. As a result, the bad players in the debt collection industry run roughshod over consumers. With unemployment still hovering near ten percent, Americans have fewer financial resources with which to pay debts and so are subject to an unprecedented number of debt collection calls. Here are five keys to understanding your rights under the FDCPA.

1. You have recourse if your rights have been violated. If your rights have been violated under the FDCPA, you can sue a debt collector in federal court. Often, if a violation has occurred, a debt collection agency will settle out of court. Otherwise, if you win your case, a judge can award you up to $1,000 in damages, along with attorney fees and court costs. This is why fair debt attorneys won't charge you to take your case; they'll be paid by the wrongdoers.

2. You deserve to be treated with respect, even if you are behind in your bills. Unsavory debt collectors often use belittling language, harass you with multiple phone calls each week, or talk to other people about your debts. All of these behaviors are illegal under the FDCPA. If you feel disrespected or humiliated, chances are good that your rights have been violated.

3. You deserve to have proof that you owe the debt in question. The FDCPA requires that a debt collection agency send out a written notice within five days of contacting you. The notice has certain required information, including the amount of the debt, the name of the original creditor, and any extra charges that have been added in. Most importantly, it must inform you that you have 30 days to dispute the debt. If you do so, it's up to the debt collector to prove that the bill is truly yours. In the meantime, the agency can't continue to call or send you letters.

4. You can stop the calls and letters. The FDCPA says that you can send a debt collection agency a "cease and desist" letter, informing them that you no longer wish for them to call you about the debt in question. They must abide by your request. This doesn't mean that you won't still owe the money, but that you will no longer be hounded by a debt collector.

5. You can't be threatened. A favorite tactic of shady debt collectors is to threaten consumers with wage garnishment, lawsuits, jail, or worse. The FDCPA is clear that debt collectors can't make threats that they don't intend to carry out or that they aren't legally allowed to carry out. For example, an agency can't garnish your wages without a court order. Owing a debt isn't a crime, so the threat of jail is completely without merit. And often, debt collection agencies aren't in a position to file a lawsuit, so they can't threaten you with one.

It's stressful to be on the receiving end of a debt collector's wrath. That's why it's important to understand your rights, and to know that you can sue debt collectors who violate the law.

by: Sergei Lemberg

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