Debt Collection FAQ
The attorneys at The Baird Law Group are dedicated to handling the civil litigation of cases involving consumer harassment. Our experienced attorneys assist people who are being harassed by debt and bill collectors that have violated the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act (FCCPA). The FCCPA is a consumer protection law that prohibits any person from engaging in conduct that is abusive or harassing when collecting a consumer debt. The specific conduct that is against the law is listed in Florida Statute 559.72. The Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FFDCPA) also requires that debt collectors treat you fairly and prohibits certain methods of debt collection. Whether money is owed or not, the bottom line in determining if a violation has occurred is whether an individual has been harassed in any manner concerning a consumer debt. Our attorneys work with consumers whose rights have been violated under the FDCPA. Any consumer has the right to file a lawsuit against any debt collector who violates his/her rights under the FDCPA. The FDCPA allows a consumer to recover his/her actual damages, attorney's fees and costs, as well as statutory damages of up to $1,000. Being pursued by a collection agency can be an unpleasant experience even when the collector follows the law. However, when your rights to fair debt collection are violated, you have options. Common claims for such violations include:
- Failure to give you required notice of your rights
- Continuing to collect on claim after receiving notice that you dispute it
- Making false or misleading statements to you about the debt
- Harassing or intimidating you with threats or unlawful conduct
- Making impermissible contacts with your employer or other people about the debt.
You may be able to recover a statutory award for such violations or actual damages and for the emotional distress the violation or harassment has caused you.
Disputing Your Debt
You also have the right to dispute any debt or portion of a debt for which a debt collector is contacting you. Your dispute should be in writing and sent by certified return receipt mail so that you can prove you disputed the debt. It is usually best to dispute the debt within thirty (30) days from the date the debt collector first contacts you either by telephone or in writing. If you send your dispute within this first thirty (30) day period, then the debt collector must verify whether the debt does actually belong to you and provide you with the proof upon which it relied. The debt collector may not take further action to collect the debt until it has provided you with verification of the debt. You also have the right to demand that the debt collector stop calling you or otherwise communicating with you about the debt if you wish. Then they may only contact you to say that they are stopping further communications with you. The debt collector may still take legal action by filing a lawsuit or other lawful means to collect the debt. The debt collector is also legally obligated to inform you of these rights in its initial communication or within five (5) days thereafter in writing.
Whenever you have a legitimate dispute over a claimed debt that a debt collector is contacting you about, you should dispute the debt with the debt collector by asking for verification and you should also check your credit report to see if the disputed debt is showing up there. If you have a disputed debt on your credit report, you should contact the credit reporting agency that is reporting the disputed debt and inform it of your dispute. The credit reporting agency has a legal obligation to stop reporting the disputed debt unless it also verifies the debt and then to report it as a disputed item on future reports.
Some important steps to take to protect your rights include:
- Save copies of all letters and notices from collection agencies. This also means the envelopes (certain logos are prohibited).
- Save all phone messages and voice mails.
- Take notes of names and conversations with these bill collectors
- Call your consumer rights attorney to help you recover your statutory damages of $1,000 even if you owe the debt.
The attorneys at the Baird Law Group are experienced in the litigation of cases involving collection harassment abuse and have the knowledge, experience, and passion to hold collection harassment offenders accountable for the harm they cause consumers and their families. We are dedicated to filing federal civil lawsuits against debt collectors who violate any state or federal law and to teaching collection harassment operators that they cannot afford to take advantage of their consumers. Contact us today to schedule a confidential consultation to inform us about your claim situation.
