Did you know that a great deal of people fall behind on their bills due to a variety of reasons? Many of these people end up having their accounts go into collections, meaning they haven’t made a payment in a long time and the creditor has given up hope that they will pay the debt back. Many of these people are victims of debt harassment, but we’ll get into that a little later. At this point the creditor will typically write off the debt against their taxes/profits and sell the account to a collection agency for a small percentage of the balance.
The collection agency will attempt to collect the debt from this point. Anything they are paid above and beyond the amount that they purchased the account for is their profit. Typically speaking, a collection agent will purchase accounts from creditors for pennies on the dollar. That means if they end up collecting the full amount or full balance from the consumer they have made a tremendous profit. The vast majority of consumers are unaware of the fact that they can actually make a settlement arrangement with the collection agency for far less than the balance that they owe.
Of course, this is not in the best interests of the collection agency, so they probably won’t inform you of that unless you make a settlement offer. For example, if you owe $1,000 to a credit, the collection agency may purchase your account for $100. If you make a settlement offer at $500, which of course is half of the balance, chances are they will accept it. The thing is, some collection agencies are not so nice about working with consumers. Although they do have a right to attempt to be paid, they must follow a strict set of rules as set forth by the federal government.
If they break these rules it is considered to be debt harassment. An example of debt harassment is when a collection agency calls you multiple times per day, each and every day. Another example is when a debt collector contacts your family, friends, neighbors, or even your employer about your debt. They are simply not allowed to do this. In addition, debt collectors are not allowed to continue to contact you after you ask them not to. The good news is that you do not need to let them get away with debt harassment. You have rights as a consumer that has accounts that have gone into collections or to a collection agency. Do not let them get away with it.
If you feel that you are being treated unfairly by a creditor or collection agency, please contact us immediately. Legal Rights Advocates, Inc. is a consumer advocate law firm that focuses on consumer rights protection services across the Unites States. We have well over twenty-five (25) years of combined experience helping consumers that are experiencing Debt Collector Harassment, Social Security Disability issues, and a whole lot more. LRA is truly your consumer rights advocate. We take great pride in the fact that our job is to protect you from deceptive and or abusive debt collection practices.
LRA is an accredited member of the Better Business Bureau, and we have well over 500 Five Star Rating Reviews online from across the United States. Our goal is to assist you each and every step of the way regarding your rights for consumer protection. Please call us today for more information at 855-254-7841 or click here to visit our website. We look forward to working with you.
