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Dec 20, 2008 3:59 pm US/Central
Assert Your Rights Against Debt Collectors
SAN FRANCISCO (CBS) ―
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There is no law that says you have to talk to a debt collector who harassing you; just hang up the phone.
CBS 2
Given the poor economy it is no surprise that more people are racking up debt and triggering debt collection services. Many may end up in the hands of a collection agency. But that does not mean you have to tolerate threats, insults, and harassment.
Kai Wong received many calls from a collection agency. The message he heard over and over warned him that if he remained on the line the agency would assume the debt was valid.
"I was hanging up cursing at the phone. Basically, right? Like, you know, hang up the phone, like you wanted to tell them to stop and say don't call me," Wong said.
Those calls were especially annoying because Wong does not owe a penny. His phone number ended up in a collection agency's auto-dialer and prompted a case of mistaken identity. The collector go the wrong guy.
"My name is Kai Wong and the person's name is Ka Ning, kind of close," Wong explained.
ConsumerWatch called the debt collector Capital Management to clear up the situation. The company said it used directory assistance such as 411 and that's how they may have gotten the wrong person. The company suggested Kai write a letter asking to be removed from the call list.
Wong said, "I find it kind of a nuisance and burdensome that you have to go through all this hassle to stop this type of what I think is probably a fishy collection agency letters."
Another woman who prefers to remain anonymous about her experience with debt collections calls admitted she got behind on a loan and expected some uncomfortable reminders to pay. But even when she made regular payments to the original creditor, she said a different debt collector took harassing calls too far.
"They were going to damage my credit report, they were going to sue me, called me a liar, he was going to start contacting my family members," she said.
Jeffrey Suher, a consumer protection attorney who represents people in debt collection cases, pointed out that there are laws protecting consumers from overly aggressive debt collectors. Under federal and state fair debt collection laws, collection agencies are not allowed to threaten to sue if they don't really mean it - tell a third party such as a parent or friend about your debt - use obscene or abusive language- and call more than twice in a seven day period or at odd hours of the day.
"Debt collectors know they are breaking the law. They do it because they know that in most instances they're going to get away with it," Suher said.
There is no law that says you have to talk to a debt collector who harassing you; just hang up the phone. Check out the following resources for more information on the laws protecting against overly aggressive debt collection agencies and what you can do:
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Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
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Sample Cease and Desist Letter
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General Information about Debt Collection
(© MMIX, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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