FAQs on FDCPA rules and the debt collection violations

Fair Debt Collections Practices Act or FDCPA consists of the rules that govern the activities of a debt collection agency. If you have missed some payments on your credit cards, the creditor can hand over the account to a collection agency. Thus, debt collectors are the people who collect the dues from the debtors. However, as most of the consumers have been getting harassed by the debt collectors FDCPA had introduced some rules to keep a check on the collection agencies.

FAQs on collection rules

Quest 1: What is Fair Debt Collections Practices Act?

Answ: The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act is the federal law which governs the way debt collectors collect debt from consumers. FDCPA governs only collection agency activities and not the creditors. FDCPA acts for the elimination of the abuse and harassment of the consumers.

Quest 2: What is considered to be a collection violation?

Answer: Some of the violations are the collection agency threatening to sue when they actually don’t intend to file any lawsuit. Threats to take some action those collectors cannot take legally like threatening to garnish debtor’s wages while state laws do not allow wage garnishment. FDCPA also does not allow the debt collectors to disclose financial facts of the debtor to any third party. The people to whom a debt collector may disclose the fact that the debtor owes money is only the debtor himself and his or her spouse, or the debtor’s attorney. The collection agency cannot even call and harass the debtor when the debtor is in the office. In addition the collection agency is not supposed to call the debtor before 8am in the morning and after 9pm in the night. The collection agency cannot as well use abusive or threatening language over the phone, or call the debtor names, or even call the debtor a liar, or even harass the debtor. If the collection agency fails to comply with any of these requirements, the debtor can file a complaint with the FDCPA.

Quest 3: What kind of recovery can you expect?

Answ: Typically you may be able to get money in the amount ranging from $1000 to $5000 depending on the violation. However, in case the debtor has any other kind of damages, then this amount can increase. You should also know that there is a one year Statute of Limitations or SOL on such cases. This means that, if you have a complaint against any collection agency, you will have to file the lawsuit within a year from the date of the violation by the collection agency.

However, consumer advocates and the attorneys are urging that the FDCPA be amended so as to provide more protections to the consumers or the debtors against the collection agency and the related scams.

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