The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) was enacted in order to protect debtors from unfair, abusive, or deceptive practices by debt collectors. This law clearly details the rules debt collectors must follow when attempting to recover the money to which they are owed.
Unfortunately, many debt collectors regularly violate the terms of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act when seeking to collect money from debtors. Debt collectors engage in abusive, harassing behavior because they are aware that many consumers do not know their rights and will rarely take legal action after being harassed.
If you have been the victim of abusive, harassing, or deceptive practices by a debt collector, you may be entitled to receive up to $1,000 in addition to any other financial damages you have suffered. The Chicago fair debt collections attorneys at Harvey L. Walner & Associates will fight aggressively to ensure your rights are protected and the debt collector is held accountable for its actions.
Actions Prohibited by the FDCPA
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits debt collectors from engaging in the following actions:
- Make false, misleading, or deceptive statements
- Contact you without identifying him- or herself
- Engage in harassing, abusive, or threatening conduct
- Make repetitive, harassing phone calls, particularly at inconvenient times such as before 8 am or after 9 pm
- Use foul or abusive language
- Contact the debtor after being made aware that he or she is represented by an attorney
- Contact the debtor at work after being informed that this is an inappropriate time and place to receive these calls
- Contact relatives, friends, employers, or any third party about information associated with the debt
- Threaten to report or actually reporting false information on the debtor’s credit report
- Send false documents or letters which appear to be generated by a government agency or court
- Pursue a debt once it has been properly disputed without first providing verification to the debtor
- Levy interest charges, collection fees, or taxes that exceed the amount permitted by contract or state law
- Use false claims to collect information
- Misrepresent their identity in order to collect a debt
- Falsely threaten imprisonment if the debt is not paid
- Inflate the amount of money owed
- Threaten to take action that violates the law and or is never intended to be taken
- Contact the debtor after being notified in writing to cease communication
Class Action Representation
Often, debt collectors will engage in the same fraudulent, misleading, or abusive behavior with multiple debtors. In these situations, the debt collector may face a class action lawsuit filed on behalf of all debtors who have suffered damages due to these illegal actions.
There are several important benefits of filing a fair debt collections claim as a class action lawsuit. It streamlines the process by consolidating all claims into one lawsuit. A class action claim also allows average citizens with relatively small amounts of financial damage to impact the behavior of a large company engaging in these illegal actions. While a $1,000 damage award for one victim may not change the actions of the debt collection agency, facing a $1,000 penalty for every member of the plaintiff class can add up to a sizeable amount of money to be paid out by the unscrupulous debt collector.
Please contact Harvey L. Walner & Associates today to schedule your free fair debt collections consultation. We serve class action clients nationwide from our offices in Chicago, Illinois.