Credit card debt collection agencies can be very difficult to work with.
Despite tough government regulations to protect people from abusive credit card debt collection practices, poor collection practices persist.
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"Rather go to bed supperless than rise in debt."
- Benjamin Franklin |
Many unscrupulous collectors continue to routinely ignore the law and make calls in the middle of the night, use abusive language and even threaten to have people fired from work or thrown into jail.
All of these tactics are illegal and if you understand credit card laws and your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), and learn a few tricks to deal with such collectors, you can gain control of the situation quickly.
Credit card debt collection representives keep looking for ways to force you to pay up. It is their job to get you to write that check and they know that being 'mean' and playing on your emotions works well to prompt debtors to pay.
Also, many collectors take advantage of the consumer ignorance of the FDCPA debt collection laws.
Debt collection is a huge industry, totaling over $15 billion dollars a year and growing fast. Thousands of companies buy debts for pennies on the dollar and then try to recover what is owed.
These credit card collection agencies contact the consumer owing the debt and attempt to negotiate payment. These collectors are good at finding out where borrowers live and work. They will not hesitate to contact you by phone, mail or fax and sometimes even by telegram.
Researching to understand your rights under the FDCPA should be your mission so that you can stop illegal collector harassment and have peace of mind.
Unless you are aware of the law and fully understand your consumer rights, you are at the mercy of unethical credit card debt collection agencies, who use underhanded and illegal tactics to intimidate you into paying expired or invalid debts that you just can't afford.
You must know your rights under the FDCPA. For example, you can request that the debt collector does not contact you at your place of employment or after 9pm, or only contact you by mail. Credit card Collectors cannot threaten you or pretend to be an employee of a major credit bureau. Neither can they tell you that you owe more than you actually do, or use obscenities, or claim that you are guilty of a crime.
It's hard to believe this happens in our society today, but it does occur regularly so protect yourself by becoming knowledgeable about your rights as a consumer.
Ideally, the collector will contact you via a letter. Typically, you have 30 days to dispute any facts. If there are errors, you should notify the debt collection agencyr and the related creditors immediately. Keep notes about all your communication with collection representatives and retain copies of all correspondence.
Carefully review the information posted by the collection agency on your credit history report. It is an all-to-common practice for collectors to report incorrect facts to the bureaus in order to speed up negotiations.
After verifying that the debt amount is accurate, consider your options. It is better in most cases to negotiate a deal and pay off the collector so you can move forward and begin to rebuild your credit score rating.
Remember, you are not a victim here unless you allow yourself to be one. More than likely you do owe the company some money and it is your obligation to repay what you owe, so take full ownership of that fact and get on with the business of cleaning up the mess that ultimately you created.
Never, never, NEVER give anyone your checking account number! Even if the collection agency says they won't charge your account until a certain due date, don't believe them. Once you give out your account information they will bleed you dry anytime there is any money at all in the account. Be smart and protect your financial information.
Always make sure the credit card debt collection agent sends you the terms of any settlement in writing and refuse to pay until he does. You may need the letter if the debt resurfaces later on.
Above all else, try to remain calm, take things one step at time and do your best to do the right thing. As a result, you will eventually work through your financial issues. Learn from your mistakes so that you will never again have to deal with any credit card debt collection agencies.
"Debt is like any other trap, easy enough to get into,
but hard enough to get out of."
- Henry Wheeler Shaw |
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Debt is NOT your friend. It's not a wonderful "tool" for building wealth. That's a myth.
