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Portland Bankruptcy Attorney

Portland Bankruptcy Attorney

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12909 SW 68th Parkway, Suite 160 Portland, OR 97223 | Map | Email

45 NW Park Place Bend, OR 97703 | Map

Knowing Your Rights: The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

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The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)

What is the FDCPA?

  • FDCPA stands for the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act – 15 U.S.C. § 1692
  • The FDCPA is a Federal Regulatory Scheme designed to limit abusive collection practices passed in the late 70s
  • The FDCPA is a per se liability statute, meaning there is no requirement to prove willfulness;
  • An FDCPA violation is like a speeding ticket, if you speed, you pay the fine – but only if you’re caught.

The Parties

Who does the FDCPA apply to?
A) Consumers

  • A Consumer is someone who is not a business and had incurred a debt for a personal, family or household reason (This can be a house, car, credit card for normal living expenses, ect.)

B) Debt Collectors

  • A Debt Collector is someone who seeks to collect a debt originated by someone else (Suttel & Hammer, Zwicker & Associates, RCO Legal, ect.) – This law does not cover the original creditor/lender (Bank of America, Wells Fargo, Sears, ect.)

Actionable Behavior

  • What types of behavior violate the FDCPA?
  • Are collection companies leaving voicemail messages for collection? (Voicemail can be revealed to third parties inadvertently)
  • Does the collector call often (more than once a day?) (Collection contacts must be conducted in a reasonable manor, between 8 am and 9pm)
  • Any collection calls received at work? (A big no no)
  • Did the collector begin mailing notices and was any written response sent? If so what did the response say? (If the debtor wrote a dispute letter to the creditor and it was ignored, this is actionable)
  • Did a collector call and fail to identify themselves or the company they work for or otherwise not indicate they were calling to collect a debt? (The collector must always identify the company they work for and advise regarding their purpose)
  • Has the collector contacted any person other than the Debtor? If so what did they tell that other person? (It is illegal for a collector to inform any other party besides the debtor that the debtor owes a debt and may only request location information)

Foreclosure Cases – Actionable under the FDCPA

  • Did a new servicer on a mortgage take over after missed payments?
  • Did the new servicer fail to review or otherwise ignore letters regarding Loan Modification( This is a RESPA case)
  • Did the New Servicer send letters or documents when the old servicer knew of attorney representation?

Proving the Case

  • FDCPA violations are all about proof.
  • The best way to prove improper collection contacts is to keep a phone log listing time, date and phone number that called – This will help later if we need to pull a phone bill and will assist later in testimony before a judge or jury.
  • If you sent the collection company a letter, we need a copy and better yet a certified mailing notice to prove it was delivered to the creditor.
  • Keep all voicemails

What happens next?

  • The attorney will help put together a cause of action and get the calls to stop
  • A lawsuit will need to be filed to bring the collectors behavior to the attention of the court.
  • We can recover some damages through the lawsuit.
  • The attorney works on a contingent basis.
  • Don’t let collectors walk all over you, call us today to take back your phone and your rights!
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