WTVM.com and WTVM News Leader 9, Columbus, GA | Say Goodbye to Debt Collectors

Say Goodbye to Debt Collectors

November 7, 2008

COLUMBUS, Ga-(WTVM)-If you're having problems paying your credit card bills, you're not alone.

Research shows late payments on consumer loans are at a 16 year high. Also on the rise are consumer complaints about harrassment from bill collectors.

25-year-old Amelia McGriff has a story of her own.

"It was very rude," says McGriff about about what she says became a nasty phone call between her credit card company and her mother.

McGriff says the company contacted her parent's house, which is listed as an alternate phone number, after being about a month behind on a payment.

"They were like well, then you must not know where your daughter is, your daughter must be out on the street somewhere or she must be homeless or something," says McGriff.

These are comments that may not be uncommon.  More than 70,000 consumers filed complaints of harrassment with the Federal Trade Commission last year.

Thousands more went to the Better Business Bureau and state and local officials.

It's a statistic that Attorney Paul Kauffmann is not surprised to hear.

"I think these debt collectors are having a lot harder time getting their money, so they're ratcheting up their tactics," says Kauffmann.

Tactics Kauffmann says consumers don't have to take.  He says if it's a company you owe money directly to, there's not much you can do.

"If however, they have sold the debt to a debt collection company, then there are some very specific regulations that they have to abide by. They can't curse at you, they can't use profane language, they have to call you during regular hours, like between 9:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m. maybe," says Kauffmann.

He also says debt collectors shouldn't be making idle threats.

"They can't threaten a person they know gets social security that they're going to take their social security for a debt, they can't threaten to put somebody in jail for owing money," Kauffmann adds.

Consumers also have a right to tell the debt collector to stop calling. Kauffmann says that should be done in writing, and the company has to comply.

If that doesn't work, he says consumers can seek legal help. 

"As long as it's something that relatively, that they can prove they they've kep logs of, the things the person's said, things that like, then they can sue for the debt collection agency and get actual damages."