Debt collectors who harass, hound, and intimidate those who owe debt are abusers, pure and simple. These collectors may use threats, and other unacceptable behavior to get you to give in to their demands. It can be scary and invasive, but if this is happening to you, you have more rights than you may realize.
The attorneys at Morgan & Morgan are dedicated to stopping banks and other debt collectors in Boston from engaging in unlawful and unacceptable behavior. Our consumer protection department has a successful track record of recovering damages for our clients and is one of the only firms in the country to have collected punitive damages in a debt harassment case.
With the assistance of a debt harassment attorney at our Boston office, you may have an opportunity to return to a harassment-free life and recover the compensation to which you are entitled. To learn more, fill out our free case review form for a no-obligation evaluation.
What Debt Collectors Can’t Do
Many debt collectors will stop at nothing to get your money. They will intimidate, they will threat, they may even call your job or family to try and get money.
However, what those harassers don’t want you to know is that these tactics and more are violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which aims to curb debt collection harassment and protect the people. Nearly every third-party debt collector in the United States is required to follow these strict guidelines when calling about a debt.
Debt collectors cannot:
- Threaten force, violence, or defamation;
- Use obscene, profane, or abusive language;
- Publish the names of alleged debtors;
- Place phone calls with a frequency that is intended to harass;
- Misrepresent the amount, nature, or origin of an alleged debt;
- Impersonate law enforcement or another authority;
- Misrepresent the potential penalties for non-payment, including telling alleged debtors they will be prosecuted, imprisoned, or have their wages garnished (unless garnishment is actually authorized by a court);
- Add charges or fees not authorized by the original agreement;
- Solicit or demand an excessively postdated check; or
- Threaten to repossess property when the right to do so does not actually exist.
How an Attorney Can Help Victims of Debt Collection Harassment
Debt collectors must cease communication with you once you notify them that an attorney represents you. Further, if you dispute a debt, they must cease communication until they are able to provide sufficient verification of the amount and nature of that debt.
When debt collectors nevertheless choose to ignore these reasonable rules, victims may bring a civil lawsuit for any actual damages they suffered, attorney fees, and up to $1,000 in additional statutory damages.
Morgan & Morgan May Be Able to Help You
Debt collectors will try their best to prey on you. It’s important to have Morgan & Morgan’s debt collection attorneys by your side to utilize their resources to get your life back. In addition, our attorneys work on a contingency-fee basis, which means if we don’t win, you don’t pay anything. Want to know more? Fill out our free case evaluation form.