When you owe money to someone and can’t pay, they will often hire a debt collection agency to try and get their money back. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a federal law that protects consumers from abusive or unfair debt collection practices. In this article, we’ll go over some of the most common debt collection techniques used by creditors and collectors to help you avoid getting into trouble with them.
Are Debt Collection Techniques Effective?
Debt collectors have many different ways they can collect money from people who owe them. They may call you at work or at home, send you mail, email, text messages or even show up uninvited at your home.
They might threaten to garnish your wages and take away possessions like cars and jewelry if you don’t pay back the money that’s owed.
What is FDCPA?
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a federal law that protects consumers from abusive or unfair debt collection practices.
The FDCPA applies to debt collectors and creditors, but not original creditors or government entities. It also does not apply to collection agencies that collect their own debts.
A debt collector may report your account to the credit reporting agencies and cause an adverse entry on your credit report if you’re behind on payments for any type of debt, including loans and credit cards, or if you’ve filed for bankruptcy.
In addition to being reported by the original creditor (the company that originally sold the product), it’s possible that a debt collector could also report your delinquent account to one or more of the three major credit bureaus: Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.
How Debt Collections are Done?
Once you fall behind on your payments, a debt collector can contact you by phone or mail, send emails, or text messages or even show up at your home uninvited.
When you fall behind on your payments, a debt collector can contact you by phone or mail, send emails, or text messages or even show up at your home uninvited. There has been a new debt collection service in the US market name “TheCreditApp.org” which allows businesses to report credit bureaus for not paying.
Don’t answer calls from debt collectors. Don’t engage in conversations with them either–it’s illegal for them to harass you over the phone while trying to collect money that’s owed. And don’t send emails back and forth if they start contacting you this way; just ignore all communication until they stop (which may be never!)
If possible, block their number so that no one will be able to reach out directly through any form of digital communication such as emailing or texting each other back and forth about payment plans or anything else related specifically to resolve this issue once and for all!
No matter how much time has passed since your last payment, a debt collector can continue to try and get paid as long as it’s still within the statute of limitations period (usually 3-10 years depending on the type of debt).
The statute of limitations varies by state and type of debt, so make sure you know what yours is before ignoring calls from collectors or letting them take out judgments against you.
Dealing with Debt Collector
When dealing with a debt collector, keep in mind that they are working for the creditor and must abide by their policies while collecting what you owe them
They are not your friend, so don’t talk about personal issues or family matters with them
Neither is a bank employee nor an attorney representing the creditor; they only represent the creditor’s interests when collecting debts from consumers like yourself.
Not judges or police officers who have been granted special powers to collect on consumer debts. Therefore, there is no reason why they should be able to force entry into your home without first obtaining a warrant signed by someone with authority over such matters (i.e., a judge). Nor do these people have any more rights than anyone else walking down Main Street USA does!
Not all debt collection techniques legal
Debt collection techniques are many but they are all often illegal so be careful when dealing with them. Debt collectors are not allowed to harass or threaten you. They can only contact you during business hours and they can only contact you at your home if you have given them permission to do so. Debt collectors cannot contact debtors on holidays or weekends unless there is an emergency situation that requires immediate attention.
Debt collectors may try several different strategies in order to collect their money including:
- Calling the debtor multiple times per day (even after being told not to)
- Reaching out to friends or family members of the debtor without their consent
Conclusion
A debt collector is someone who collects debts on behalf of a creditor. They have many different ways they can collect money from people who owe them and some of these are illegal. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a federal law that protects consumers from abusive or unfair debt collection practices. The best way to deal with a debt collector is by being prepared and knowing your rights as well as theirs
