However, It Is Important To Know Your Rights When It Comes To Debt

Category: Finance, Credit.

If you have trouble maintaining good credit, you may find yourself bothered by phone calls from collection agencies.

However, it is important to know your rights when it comes to debt. If your debt has been handed over to one such agency to handle, you have already put a black mark on your credit report. Phone calls from collection agencies can be unethical and by understanding the laws regarding good credit, you can protect yourself from illegal practices. This law will give you all the information you need to understand if the company with which you are dealing is participating in illegal practices. The most important law to review if you think you are being treated unethically is the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act, or the FDCPA. If they are not, contact your government officials or the police to file a complaint. Every once in awhile, so this 30, people make mistakes day grace period gives you enough time to make sure everything is reported accurately.

First and foremost, understand that you have 30 days to review the debt they say you owe. Before this, debt collectors should not be harassing you by phone or by other means. However, be aware of what they may legally say and what is not only unethical, but also against the law. After the initial 30 days, your phone may start ringing off the hook with collectors urging you to pay your bills. A debt collector may not threaten you with anything he or she does not have the power to do. In almost every single case, the collector may only share information about your debt with you, and the lender, your spouse. For example, bill collectors cannot threaten to use your lack of good credit to ruin your reputation by telling your friends, boss, employer, or anyone else about your debt.

Anything else is a violation, and you can sue a collection agency if they disclose your information to anyone else. This is an empty threat- the damage has already been done to your credit report. Your collector also cannot threaten to ruin your credit history. Debts are only allowed to be reported for 7 to 10 years, depending on the reporting agency, and so federal law does not allow a collection agency to further ruin your credit in any way. A collector also cannot threaten to have you arrested or garnish your wages. By threatening this, as with threatening to tell others about your debt, the collection company is in violation of the FDCPA, and it is your duty to report the agency to the authorities.

Basically, a collection agency must take you to court to do anything. Your good credit is on the line- if a collection agency is misusing their authority, they could be mis- reporting your debt as well. If they threaten anything other than this, you should not only hang up the phone, but you should also call the police, who can assist you in filing an official complaint. Know your rights to protect yourself.

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