Debt collectors seem to be getting more harsh in attempts to collect money from those who aren’t paying up. According to consumers, debt collectors are making harassing phone calls, using abusive language, and even threatening physical violence with hopes of squeezing money out of struggling people. “The American consumer is really hurting and collectors are having to fight harder to get money,” Robert Andrews, a senior analyst specializing in the debt industry at research firm IBISWorld, told CNN Money.
More people are filing complaints against debt collectors. Harassment complaints jumped by 50% to 67,550 in 2009, according to Federal Trade Commission statistics. Estimates show complaints are on track to increase another 13% this year. So what are the top complaints? People say debt collectors are calling, and calling, and calling. Repeated calls is the biggest form of harassment and according to reports it’s not uncommon for collectors to call back-to-back, day-after-day for weeks, months and, in some cases, years.
Debt collectors seem to be using more offensive language. Complains of obscene or abusive language jumped 35% last year. According to CNN Money, a New York woman wishing to remain anonymous told reporters that when she stopped answering her phone debt collectors called her sister, ex-boyfriend and even her husband’s ex-wife’s mother. “This guy was out of his mind and he kept calling and calling, telling me ‘you better talk to me, you deadbeat,’” she told CNN Money. “He was very threatening and the whole thing was just really unsettling — it made you wonder who was going to show up at your door.”
But are debt collectors actually using physical violence? According to the FTC they are. Complaints of collectors threatening and using violence doubled to more than 2500 cases. Collectors are also using illegal tactics to try to get money. These include calling before 8am or after 9pm and telling a third party about a consumer’s debt. Under the FTC’s Fair Debt Collection Practices Act these tactics are illegal and have been since 1977. “Certainly if debt collectors are being more aggressive, they shouldn’t be, but it’s not fair to characterize the actions of debt collectors as the only reason why there is an increase in complaints — they’re not fully to blame,” Mark Schiffman, a spokesman for The Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, told CNN Money. “There’s a growing industry of consumer attorneys and savvy consumers who have learned that they can sue a debt collector fairly easily and collect very easily.”
Consumers have several courses of action, including taking a debt collector to court for harassment. They could win settlement money for damages like lost income and medical bills. Even if there are no damages, according to CNN Money the victims may be eligible to receive up to $1000 and reimbursement for court and attorney fees.
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