FDCPA Law: Unfair practices

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA law) prohibits unfair practices and tactics used by creditors when they are attempting to collect a debt.  Some of the more common forms of unfair practices fall under the blanket of harassment.  In the eyes of the law, harassment occurs once you have sent off a letter in writing requesting that a debt collector stop calling you and they continue to call and leave messages.

Understanding FDCPA Law

Often, a debt collector will hound a debtor about an account, but during these collection efforts, there are some basic rules the collector must follow:

• It is illegal for a debt collect to threaten you or repeatedly call you to annoy you.  
• They cannot falsely claim that they are attorneys or misrepresent the amount that you allegedly owe. 
• They are not allowed to say that they will seize or garnish your wages if they are not permitted by law to do so.

Some of the more common unfair practices that some debt collectors regularly engage in may include:

• Depositing a post dated check in advance, 
• Threatening to take your property, 

When this sort of practice occurs, it is important that you take action.  Sometimes debt collectors do not realize that the debtors are familiar with their rights under the FDCPA and you must make it a point to review the FDCPA and understand what is considered an unfair practice.

If you have encountered a debt collector that has employed unfair practices when collecting the debt, then under the FDCPA Law you can sue the debt collector.  Additionally you can also report the debt collector for violating the law.  Many people have taken the bull by the horns and, in the process, begun to take their lives back by reporting the unfair practices that are sneakily employed by debt collectors.

Getting Help

You may want to contact a credit attorney in order to better find out and clarify which of your rights under the FDCPA were violated by the debt collector. A lawyer can help you to deal with any violations by filing a suit or otherwise taking action against a creditor who is employing illegal tactics against you.