The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) protects the rights of people by establishing the legal boundaries that debt collection agencies can operate in. Collection agencies must adhere to the following guidelines in order to legally collect a debt.
What collection agents are REQUIRED to do:
- Communicate before collecting. Debt collectors must contact you through a permissible method such as writing before collecting the debt.
- Reveal necessary information. The collector must identify themselves and provide information about the original creditor and the debt amount.
What collection agents CANNOT do:
- Harass you or people around you. A debt collector cannot harass you by threatening your safety, making unreasonable amounts of calls a day, or using obscene language when communicating with you. This also pertains to employers, family, and neighbors.
- Charge excessive fees. Collection agents cannot charge you additional fees such as interest or anything not allowed by the law.
- Provide a false identity. The collector must identify themselves and in no way attempt to deceive you by providing a false identity or withholding information about the original creditor as well as the debt amount.
- Mislead you with inaccurate information. Collection agencies cannot send you false documentation or attempt to deceive you in any way that is not permissible by the law.
- Ask your employer, family and neighbors for unnecessary information about you. Collection agencies can only ask other people for direct contact information around you.
If you or someone you know has experienced illegal treatment from a debt collection agency, contact an attorney. If you have questions or would like a consultation in regards to the content of this publication, please contact us by calling (888) 827-8880 or email us at [email protected]. For more information about the firm and the services please visit www.thewangiplaw.com.
Wang IP Law Group, P.C. is a Los Angeles based full service legal firm that specializes in intellectual property law (patent, trademark, copyright, and licensing agreement), business and commercial litigation, and a wide range of other legal matters including immigration, real estate, and landlord/tenant cases. Our multilingual attorneys represent clients from all over California and internationally from China, Taiwan, Hong Kong, Japan, and Israel.
If you have questions or would like a consultation in regards to the content of this publication, please contact us by calling (888) 827-8880 or email us at [email protected]. For more information about the firm and the services please visit www.TheWangIPLaw.com.
Credit: Legal News Issue 4 Vol. 2. Legal Shield, Feb 2013. Web. 22, May 2013.