Debt Collection questions ? problem with law and strange thing from Florida
A collector just contacted me, saying my creditor is
demanding payment in full, now (remaining debt is ~$9,000).
I've been making regular payments for about six months or
so, ramping up to $300/month from $150/month. Collection
efforts started in June, 1995 by the creditor.
I've also just read "Ten Things Bill Collectors Don't Want
You to Know" by John Barnes, and I have some questions (I'm
presuming the article is still very timely):
If I tell the collector not to contact me under the Fair Debt
Collection Practices Act, does doing so necessarily prompt
legal action? If not, will doing so LIKELY prompt that action?
One rationale is that if making payments is no longer enough,
then there's nothing the collector can do, so there's not much
of a point in maintaining contact. (Can anyone point me to a
boilerplate letter saying cease and desist?).
I also have student loans. What constitutes financial hardship?
(I'll need this to make my own payment arrangements under the
1992 Higher Education Act). Once I indeed claim financial
hardship, what should to make special payment arrangements?
How can I infer where (which state) a lawsuit will be filed?
I do know that the bills (when I was more credit-worthy) came
from Florida. Point #7 in the Barnes article prompted me to
ask.
How can I file a claim of exemption from garnishment for the
other 25% of my wages?
Where can I find out more about negotiating to pay "cents on the
dollar" to resolve my debt to my creditors? I do have some books,
like "Life After Debt", and two others by the same author. I plan
to do some reading.
One good book to read is "Money Troubles"
Once you starting making more $ on your payment, this gave the collector
more commission and that is why they are asking more and contacting you.
Make sure you document as much as possible. Make sure you keep a copy of
your letter to cease and desist. They will try to contact you again in
6-12 months and pretend they didn't receive anything. Some of the
collectors will tell you that they can contact you as often as they wish.
If they know you have money to pay, they will be more likely to sue,
Your letter should simply be like this.
Dear Sir/Madam:
Accordingly, under 15 USC Section 1692 c, this is my formal notice to you
to cease all further communications with me except for the reasons
specifically set forth in the federal law.
Sincerely,
Put everything in writing as much as possible. Also, they will violate the
this ACT as much as possible. Original Creditors and Collection Agencies
generally do violate this ACT because they know most consumers will believe
everything told to them by these businesses. Most consumers will feel
humilated, threatened, and/ harrassed into this.
Ask the collector to verify the debt, most will not. Generally, they
will not identify themselves on the phone. They are required to do this,
but many collectors will not do so.
Telling to cease and desist doesn't necessarily mean Legal action, they
will say it is so. But it is generally not the case. Also, they will tell
you that they will contact your employer directly. It is my
understanding, that they can only do that if they are trying to locate you.
Once they found you, they can't.
You have the right to sue a collector in a state or
federal court within one year from the date you believe the
law was violated. If you win, you may recover money for the
damages you suffered. Court costs and attorney's fees also
can be recovered. A group of people also may sue a debt
collector and recover money for damages up to $500,000, or
one percent of the collector's net worth, whichever is less.
One good book to read is "Money Troubles" I am not sure of the author's
name, but it goes into details about your remaining questions.