Most people feel very depressed and vulnerable when they are swamped by debts and creditor’s calls to collect on those debts. You feel like you are surrounded by hostile agents who are out to get you, no matter what. You feel you have reached rock bottom. The silver lining here is that when you reach rock bottom, there is no other way to go but up. So, cheer up and learn about your rights when you are indebted – so you know how far is too far for the debt collection agencies/ collectors.
You Have Rights, Too – Exercise Them
You as the indebted person still have rights; rights that protect your privacy, your peace of mind and that give you a fair chance to get out of debt. Here, knowledge is indeed power; so ensure you know all about your rights when the debt collector calls on you:
1.No harassment – a debt collector agency cannot harass you for recovering their money. The definition of harassment included threats and threatening gestures, disclosing information about your debt at your office or place where you reside, publishing your name as a bad debtor, using insulting language, using violence, etc.
2.Misrepresentation of facts – the debt collectors cannot use false identities or misrepresent facts to intimidate you in paying up the debt. Many debt collectors offer you papers saying that they are legal – when they are not; enhance the debt amount; inform you of legal action that is not applicable to the situation at hand; say that they are sent by the Government or that they are attorneys, etc.
3.Threaten you with legal dire consequences – no debt collector should threaten you with arrest, attaching salary to the bank, confiscate your property, etc. unless it is permitted by the law to do so. This amount to intimidation under false representation of facts and is punishable by law.
4.False information – no creditor should send false information to the credit bureaus – these can be disputed once you learn about them – as these hurt your score and it is illegal.
5.Contact abuse – the debt collector should never visit your office unless you have asked them to meet you there. They should call on you only at normally convenient times, i.e. between 8 am and 9 pm. Calling at inconvenient hours is an offence under the law. If they try to contact you through a third party –the debt collector should not disclose that he/she was looking for you to collect a debt.
6.Self Identification – the debt collector should always identify himself/herself as a debt collector when they contact you; they should not assume any other identity to “catch” you.
All these guidelines and more are laid down by the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices) and are meant to protect you when you are struggling with your debts. Ensure you know your rights – it could save you a lot of grief at a time when you need it most.
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