Tag: collections

Should Debt Collectors Call YOU if You Don’t Owe Them Money?

Posted on by Dawn Kennedy

I hope everyone is having an amazing summer! Can you believe July 4th has passed us already? Since we are now into July, I suspect that back to school ads and sales are coming soon. I need to let you know about a proposed rule that the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) released regarding debt collection.

Under the rule, even if you don’t owe any money to any collection agency, the CFPB is proposing that the collection agencies can contact friends and family to leave limited contact messages. Yup. One of the proposed rule changes will allow the collectors to contact you if anyone you know owes a collection account. This not only violates the privacy of the person with a debt in collections, but how about your privacy and peace?

The proposed rule has other issues, but that one is going to affect people who do not owe any debt. Here are some rule provisions for people who do have a debt in collection.
The Proposed Rule would allow debt collectors to:

1. Call seven times per week, per debt, and allow one contact per week, per debt. Have five student loans? 35 calls allowed. Three medical debts? 21 more calls. And on and on.

2. Allow unlimited text messages and emails to consumers.

3. Allow legally required notices to be embedded in emails as links, which consumers have been warned NOT to “click” because of the virus and malware dangers.

4. Require the consumer “opt Out” of electronic communications, with no clear procedure to do so, may be required by snail mail. We have to wait and see.

5. Allow collectors to “DM” consumer social media accounts.

6. Allow the collector to violate privacy by leaving “limited contact messages” with friends, family, and neighbors.

7. Not prohibit debt collectors from “tricking” consumers into restarting the statute of limitations on time-barred debts by making any small payment.

8. Has other impacts that may not directly affect local consumers, but may, for example, by allowing collection attorneys to violate the FDCPA with “safe harbor” protections against liability.

As someone who had an account in collection in the past, I personally find this intrusive and stressful. You want to DM my social media accounts? My SOCIAL MEDIA ACCOUNTS? And there doesn’t appear to be a limit- so Facebook, Instagram, and Twitter all a few times a day? Seems like that’s okay under this rule. Sure, they cannot post anything to your page, but “accidents” happen, right? You want to text me however many times a day you want to? What if I am at work? Do I want to open my phone at lunch to a blast of ten texts? Really? Where would it end?

The good news, however, is that we can submit a comment to the CFPB regarding this rule, how it would affect us, and perhaps how we don’t want debt collectors to call us personally if a friend or family member is having a financial issue. If we all submit comments, respectfully and with a discussion of the impact on us, the CFPB must take these comments under advisement before the final rule goes into effect. Here are the links for the rule text (it’s over 500 pages!), the page to submit your comment, and the original release of the rule into the Federal Register. I’m a nerd, and I like to provide sources for everyone. And if you have insomnia, the proposed rule will knock you out in no time.

To submit your written comment:
regulations.gov/comment?D=CFPB-2019-0022-0001

More Information about this Proposed Rule can be found using the following links:
Open Notices Debt Collection Practices Regulation F
Federal Register Publication”

Please submit a comment and help me spread the word to others who may not be aware of this proposed rule. We all have the opportunity to make a public comment before August 19th. After that time, the “public comment period” is scheduled to close. We have over a month to get after this. We can positively influence this rule if we all raise our voices to the CFPB.

Enjoy your vacations and the rest of your summer!

Medical Debt and Payment Plans- The Medical Debt Relief Act

Posted on by Dawn Kennedy

“The hospital is saying that if we need a lower payment, we have to take out a loan.” I wouldn’t have believed it myself, but that statement came from my client. I actually was at a loss for words. “So, if you do not make the minimum payment the hospital has set you up with on the “plan” they won’t accept any payment at all?”  Apparently, that is what the hospital told them. So, what to do if you are faced with this issue? Let’s talk about it.

First of all, the hospital is not required to carry your debt balances. They can decide that they will make payment plans with patients, provided the debt is paid in 12 months, or 6 months, or whatever. To be honest, medial providers of all types, private doctors, hospitals, labs, etc, are often very quick to turn an outstanding medical debt to collections. It is that fear of collections that can cause consumers to make mistakes in handling these debts.

About 18 months ago, on September 15, 2017, the three credit reporting agencies, Equifax, Experian, and Transunion changed the way they report medical collections on the consumer’s credit report. These changes were designed to help consumers who are paying medical bills on a payment plan or are waiting for insurance to pay some or all of the outstanding debt. I wrote about this briefly in an earlier article, it is not unusual for insurance claims to be filed with errors, and payment is delayed.

What to advise my client? Well, if you cannot afford the payment, and it was a very large payment, the bill will probably be sent to collections, but until it is, make your lower payment amounts to the hospital. Do not stop paying because you cannot afford the amount they are asking. And I gave them the same option I am going to share here. These are the things to consider if your hospital is threatening to send you to collections because you cannot afford their plan.

First, DO NOT take out a loan or put the balance of a medical debt on a credit card. It changes the “character of debt” from medical to “personal loan” or “credit card debt.”  The reporting agencies will not report a medical collection on the consumer’s report for 180 days, that’s six months, after the account is sent to collections. This gives consumers six months to pay the debt in full. If you change medical debt to anything else, you are adding interest, and any late payment can be reported.

Second, many medical collection accounts can be removed, once they are paid. In certain scoring models used by creditors, paid medical collection accounts do not factor in at all, even if the paid debt is not removed.

Third, there will be more flexibility to lower your payment each month with a collection agency. Collectors want a payment. Period. If it takes longer than six months, see above.

Fourth, do not make the medical debt payment at the expense of any of the family’s “four walls.” Food, utilities, rent or mortgage, and transportation are the priorities with your income. PLEASE do not put your “FICO” in front of the electric bill or pay the debt before you get food in the pantry.

The last little tidbit of news here is that the credit reporting agencies must remove any medical collection account within 45 days after it is paid in full by insurance. As I said earlier, mistakes in claim filing, not by the consumer, but by the provider, can delay payment beyond the six months.

 

The Consumer Lawsuit Part II- When a Consumer Should Sue

Posted on by Dawn Kennedy

In the first article of this series, I discussed the consumer lawsuit from the perspective of the consumer as defendant, meaning the consumer received a lawsuit from a creditor, debt collector, or debt buyer. In this article, Part II, I want to discuss when a consumer might consider suing a creditor, debt collector, or even credit reporting agency (Equifax, Experian, or Trans Union).  I want to say what I said last article, very few people like lawsuits, they can be time consuming and emotionally draining.  Consumers file suit against collectors at a far lower rate than collectors sue consumers. Unfortunately, there are times where a lawsuit may need to be filed by a consumer to stop abusive practices against them or to correct inaccurate information causing serious consequences. Here are two instances when a lawsuit may be the consumer’s only real option.

1. If after the consumer has tried all of the self-help strategies available and the collector or credit agency is refusing to comply with the law, a lawsuit may be necessary to protect the consumer’s legal rights. There are many, many steps a consumer can take to try and work with a collector or credit reporting agency, whether the debt is owed. Here are some resources for different types of consumer problems that outline what the consumer can do on their own, without legal assistance:

A. Identity Theft. If the consumer is a victim of identity theft there are steps to dispute debts and credit reporting items that do not belong to the victim. If the consumer follows these steps, and the collector or credit reporting agency refuses to comply with the law, a lawsuit may be necessary.

B. Collector Harassment. Even when a consumer owes the money, there are federal laws that protect consumers from misrepresentation and abuse by collectors. A great resource describing the limitations on debt collectors, what they are allowed to say or do, and not allowed to say or do is available on the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Website. If the collector continues to violate the law, a lawsuit may be necessary.

C. Credit Reporting Errors. If the consumer has already disputed mistakes on their credit reports with Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion. The steps for consumers to order a free report from each of the bureaus and dispute any items on the report is found on this Federal Trade Commission Link. It is important to note that the credit reporting agencies are just that, reporting information provided by the “furnishers” of information- creditors, collectors, debt buyers, the IRS, bankruptcy courts, etc. If there is an issue with the organization that granted credit, the consumer must make sure to address the dispute with the furnisher as well.

2. If the Consumer is sued by a collector, creditor, or debt buyer, violations by these organizations may be grounds for a counter-suit (cross-complaint) at the time the consumer is sued. When the consumer has suffered frustrating months leading up to a lawsuit by a collector who does not follow the law, the consumer may bring a counter claim against the collector. In the last article, I talked about when a consumer receives a lawsuit, but if the consumer has been a victim of abuse, harassment, misrepresentation, etc, these claims can often be brought in court even when the consumer has been served.

 A collector or creditor does not get a pass on following the law just because the consumer is sued to collect a debt.  If a consumer receives a lawsuit, they should speak with an attorney. Look to local legal aid societies or find a “debt defense” or “consumer law” attorney for help. The consumer must respond to any lawsuit quickly, and if counter-claims are available, they must be filed with the answer.  If the consumer is represented by an attorney, the collector can only talk to the attorney, and no longer contact the consumer directly.

State Laws for Consumers and Other Protections for the Military
It is also important to note that most states have consumer protection statutes, many that are similar to the federal statutes. For Example, In California there is a body of law under the Unfair and Deceptive Acts ad Practices (UDAP) that protect consumers.  This means that the collector may have violated state law, and there may be a lawsuit in state court available to the consumer to protect their legal rights.   If the consumer is a military member (or dependent in some cases) there are specific laws such as the Servicemen’s Civil Relief Act (SCRA) and the Military Lending Act (MLA) that may be available to a military consumer. The military consumer can contact the local Judge Advocate General’s (JAG) office for assistance.

The Consumer Must Preserve Their Rights by Keeping all Letters and Starting a Call Log.   First, the consumer should save EVERY piece of correspondence received from a debt collector or creditor. If a law firm sends a letter trying to collect, save it. Start a folder and save everything. Second, start a call log. Texts, calls, and email messages. There are rules about identifying themselves as a collector, and a requirement to let the consumer know they are calling to collect a debt.

Note when a phone call is received or when the consumer makes one, who they talked to, any promises made, and what the outcome of the call was. In this day and age, we have caller ID, and we can note the date and time of calls, voicemail messages, and hang ups. It is critical that the consumer preserve this proof that they are receiving calls in violation of the law. And many collectors call in violation of the law. Either too early in the morning, or too late, or at work, or even after the consumer requests they stop calling.

Also note the outcome of the conversation. Did the collector promise to send something? Promise to remove the consumer form the auto-dialer?  Promise not to call because the consumer made a promise to pay, “next Friday?” Write it down. And as frustrating as it may be, dealing with the collector, the consumer must not BREAK THE LAW themselves. The collector will advise the consumer that the call is being recorded, but depending on state law, the consumer may not record the conversation. Write it down. 

Part III of this series on the Consumer Lawsuit will address what the consumer should expect (in most instances) if they decide to file a lawsuit against a creditor, collector or credit reporting agency.  Unlike the collectors who often have teams of lawyers (or are lawyers), many consumers do not have an advocate, know where to get one, or are afraid of the costs involved. These are all real concerns, particularly if the consumer is already in financial trouble.   

 

 

The Consumer Lawsuit Part I: Consumer as Defendant

Posted on by Dawn Kennedy

Creditors and debt collectors sue consumers on all types of delinquent debt, including credit cards, medical bills and auto loans. Honestly, very few people like to be involved with a lawsuit. Bringing an action in court is time-consuming and can be both frustrating and emotionally exhausting.  If a collector escalates a delinquent debt into a lawsuit many times it is because the consumer fails to respond to attempts to collect or cuts off any collection action with a cease and desist letter. Unfortunately, it is not always possible to avoid a lawsuit. When the consumer is properly served (with notice of) the lawsuit papers, a response to the complaint is the best course of action.

Debt collectors (and creditors) file many more lawsuits each year against the consumer than consumers file against the collector. Statistics compiled by data and analytics firm Web Recon, LLC reveal that consumers filed 15409 lawsuits under three consumer protection statutes nationally for the entire year in 2017. These lawsuits were filed under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (9784 times), the Fair Credit Reporting Act (4346 times), and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (4392 times).

For comparison, during that same timeframe in Texas, and only Texas, creditors and collectors filed over 160,000 lawsuits against consumers. That’s right, in 2017 lawsuits filed against consumers to collect a debt in Texas were ten times the number of lawsuits filed nationally by consumers against collectors. The ugly truth is that a recent Consumer Financial Protection Bureau Debt Collection Survey found about 1 in 15 consumers with a debt in collections was sued in 2017. Scary numbers, but consumers have rights in these suits, and often do not assert them. The purpose of  the rest of this article is to provide the steps a consumer can take to ensure their legal rights are protected. 

First and Foremost Consumers Should NEVER Ignore a Lawsuit

Depending on where a consumer lives, a response to the complaint will be due back to the court quickly, typically within 20-30 days. If the consumer (now the defendant) does not respond, they can lose their right to defend themselves in court. If the debtor ignores the lawsuit the collector can get a “default judgment” against them, meaning the plaintiff collector will get an order from the court saying the consumer owes the money without needing any evidence to prove it. The collector wins automatically because the consumer didn’t show up to the court hearing. With that default judgment in hand, the collector has a legal right to collect the money awarded by the court, often with additional collection and attorney fees. Collectors can take that legal order and attach the consumer’s bank accounts, garnish wages, etc.

Consumers Should Seek Legal Assistance Pronto

Contact an attorney or local legal aid program. It can be a result of a consumer’s shame or fear that will stop them from contacting a lawyer. Most legal aid programs offer legal help either free or for a reduced cost. There may be debt defense options available to the consumer, such as having the creditor prove the amount of the debt owed and even that they have a legal right to collect the debt. With the recent proliferation of “debt buyers” which are debt collectors who buy debt accounts from other companies, often the original creditor, who has already written off the debt. Many times the creditor who sells the account databases with the list of debts does not guarantee the accuracy of the accounts they sell to debt buyers!

Some of the accounts that debt buyers receive are inaccurate, or too old to sue on, or may be already paid off, but weren’t cleared from collections before they were sold. Yet, these debt buyers will aggressively attempt to collect on these mistakes, or file suit. It doesn’t really hurt the collector to file a suit with the anticipation that the consumer won’t show, and they will get a default judgment. If the consumer responds and appears in court, they may even drop the suit right then. If the consumer ignores the suit because they were scared, or believed the suit was a mistake, when they don’t respond the collector wins. Every consumer who receives notice of a lawsuit should at least speak with legal counsel.

If You Find a Judgment by Checking Your Credit Report

Sometimes a consumer will only learn about a lawsuit from their credit report. A default judgment was entered under “public records” and the consumer never even received notice of the lawsuit! This tactic is affectionately known as “sewer service” and is used by some unscrupulous organizations to secretly file suits to get default judgments on debts. And this tactic is illegal. Consumers must be personally served the with the lawsuit. In our system of justice, the party being sued has the absolute right to notice and must have a chance to respond to a lawsuit.

In Part II of this series, I will discuss the steps consumers can take as plaintiffs under a number of consumer protection laws. These statutes cover areas such as debt collection and consumer credit reports. There are instances where the consumer may have to bring a lawsuit under one of these federal statutes to stop illegal and unlawful actions taken against them.

 

Consumer Debt Collection Laws to Change in 2019

Posted on by Dawn Kennedy

The National Consumer Law Center (NCLC) recently published a report on debt collections and complaints surrounding those collection actions for 2018. This report includes an online interactive map, which can be searched by state, showing the statistics on the percentage of the state residents in collections, along with the top complaint types against debt collectors. Honestly, it’s an ugly state of affairs. And if you, my reader, are currently in collections, you may want to take a look at the information for your state. I promise, you are NOT alone in the frustration and fear surrounding collections, particularly when bad actors break the law. The top three complaints reported by the NCLC?

> “Calls After Getting ‘Stop Calling’ Notice” (227,917 complaints),
> “Calls Repeatedly” (210,238 complaints),
> “Makes False Representation about Debt” (192,704 complaints),

I also promise you, dear reader, these numbers are way underreported. A vast number of consumers won’t complain. Won’t assert their rights. And collectors know this, which is why they continue to violate federal law. The Urban Institute reported in July 2018 that 71 million American adults had at least one account in collections. 71 million Americans in collections, yet under one million complaints against collection agencies who violate the law.

There is a very honorable, yet misguided reason, many people won’t report harassment from collectors. Because they owe the money. But do they really? One of the biggest complaints is that consumers are harassed about debts that don’t owe, or that are time-barred form a lawsuit when the statute of limitations runs out. That’s right. The debt can become too old for a lawsuit. Still on the consumer’s report? Sure. Consumer still technically owes the money? Sure. But the consumer cannot be sued in court.

This is a huge distinction under the law and there is one mistake many consumers make. The statute of limitations will be restated if any payment is made on the account, no matter how small. Let me reiterate that very important point: Collectors will harass, call, and threaten a consumer for just, “any payment at all” because if the consumer gives them even a dollar on a debt that is too old to sue on, THE CONSUMER WILL RESTART THE STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS.

And they won’t warn the consumer that the debt they are calling on is too old, sometimes called a “zombie” debt. Why? Because it is part of their business model. They aren’t obligated by the law to tell the debtor. They will call and ask the consumer to settle. If the consumer makes ANY payment or promise, and revives they statute of limitations, the consumer is again are at risk for a lawsuit. Even if the debt was only days from being time-barred. So they do it. Call on very, very old debt. And they will harass the consumer to try to get them to settle again, or start to threaten with a lawsuit. And make no mistake, threatening a lawsuit when they do not intend to follow through is a violation of the law. Credit.com has an interactive map with the statute of limitations for each state. It’s possible that the collector may, however, still report a time-barred debt to the credit bureaus. Unless the debt is too old for the collector to do that either. And they won’t tell the consumer that tidbit either when they call.

But, there is some good news, and some maybe not good news on the horizon for 2019. First, the good news. Many states have debt collection laws that are stronger than the Federal Debt Collection Practices Act. Ans some states are taking aggressive action to force collectors to tell consumers when the debts are too old. California, for example, recently enacted legislation that require collectors to place specific notices on communications to ensure consumers know when the collector is trying to collect a time-barred debt, including an additional notification if the debt is so old it can no longer be reported to the credit bureaus under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Many states have an “Unfair Practices Act” type set of laws as well that have protections for consumers, these vary by state.

Now, for the maybe good news. On the national level, The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau is expected to take steps this March and release some changes to the rules around debt collection practices on the federal level. Consumer advocates are pushing for those changes to include a rule requiring Collectors give written notification to consumers when a debt is too old for a law suit or too old to be reported on the consumer’s credit report. I’ll let you know what comes out. For now, there are a few things to remember to do if you are in this situation:

1. Check your state statute of limitation for consumer debt before making ANY payment, no matter how small, to a collector.

2. If you are being harassed, or a collector is trying to get a payment on a debt you do not owe, contact a consumer advocacy agency or attorney and find out the federal and state laws available to protect you.

Medical Debt Collections and Credit Reporting

Posted on by Dawn Kennedy

 

Around this time last year, the three credit reporting agencies had to change their rules (due to an agreement with several state’s attorney generals in 2015) surrounding reporting of a consumer’s medical debt in collections. Now, they basically have to give consumers a standard 180 day “grace period” before reporting medical collections on the consumer credit report. Another reporting change requires the bureaus to remove a past due medical bill that is later paid by insurance.

For many Americans, the increase in medical debt is due to higher deductibles and out of pocket costs for healthcare, timely payment by insurance to providers, and the decision by insurers that a provider was “out of network” resulting in a lower reimbursement and the outstanding costs passed on to the consumer. A fun little statistic related to the rules change is that up to 80% of bills submitted by providers to insurers are incorrect the first time. So insurance doesn’t pay them, the bills must be corrected and resubmitted for payment. This results in delays in settling medical bills. Sometimes for months.

The 180-day reporting delay is good for consumers with medical debt because these bills are often passed to collections quickly, within 30-60 days after the payment was due. Faster than many creditors will pass off non-medical debt accounts. This allows time for consumers to deal with insurance, pay their medical bills, and work on billing disputes even if the account is with collectors.

It is important to note that, while it is true that it will no longer have as big an impact on the “FICO” and VantageScore credit scoring models for 180 days, other credit scoring models that lenders use have not adopted this approach. So, you still need to watch your credit report if you are facing medical debts in collections.

Here are a few other things to consider if you or someone you know is facing medical debt:

• You are not alone. Around 43 million Americans had medical debt on their credit reports last year. The average amount of medical debt in collections was $579.00 last year. With 78% of Americans living paycheck to paycheck, this is a large enough number to cause financial hardship.

• While medical debt should NOT be ignored, if you are struggling with debt, it should be given a lower priority than other consumer debt, such as credit cards and personal loans. To do this, the medical debt must remain a “medical-debt,” meaning do not borrow or pay these debts with a credit card.

• Collectors will often try to push you to pay the bill, even suggesting you just put the balance on a card. But if you pay the medical debt with a credit card, you can limit your ability to settle the debt, or seek financial assistance from the hospital or other agency. You can stop collectors from calling by making your request in writing. You just need to send a letter.

• There are statutes that protect consumers who owe medical debt from being turned away from the emergency room for medical care. And, according to the National Consumer Law Center:

“If you request financial assistance from a nonprofit hospital, the hospital cannot deny you care in any part of the hospital because of an old bill until it determines whether you are eligible for financial assistance. You usually have about eight months (240 days) from when you first received the old bill to request such financial assistance.”

• Medical debt is a big reason for bankruptcy, but not why you think. When people are too ill to work, income plummets, savings can be exhausted and often medical debt was transferred to credit cards.

Remember, you now have 180 days to get medical bills handled before they hit your Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion credit report. You can dispute anything erroneously reported and have the records of medical bills that were paid by insurance removed.