The federal government passed the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) in 1978 primarily to curb abusive debt collection practices.

The FDCPA provides consumers with several protections such as the ability to sue a debt collector who violates the FDCPA in order to recover for actual and punitive damages as a result of violating the law. Additionally, the law provides that the consumer’s attorney’s fees will be paid by the debt collector. Under the FDCPA, the following actions are punishable, either over the phone or through the mail:

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• Harass, oppress, or abuse you or any third parties they contact

• Continue collection efforts after you write them to stop

• Telephone calls made from an auto-dialer

• Continue collecting after you write to tell them you are represented by an attorney

• Use any false or misleading statements when attempting to collect on a debt

• Represent that they operate or work for a credit bureau

• Misrepresent or inflate the amount of your debt

• Use profane language when attempting to collect

• Indicate that papers sent to you are legal forms when they are not

• Threaten to garnish your wages (in Pennsylvania, Texas, or Florida)

• Threaten to take an action they cannot take legally or do not intend to take

• Fail to disclose that they are a debt collector

• Give false credit information about you to anyone, including a credit bureau

• Collect any amount greater than your debt, unless permitted by law

• Attempt to sue you on a time-barred debt;

• Call you after 9:00 p.m. or before 8:00 a.m., without your consent

• Engage in any other false, deceptive, or abusive conduct

• Miscalculate interest, penalties, or other charges

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There is no such thing as having two cases that are alike. Privacy violations vary and the legal road can often be filled with twists and turns. That is why so many people, not only from Florida but from all across the United States, rely upon the legal acumen of the Ramsaran Law Group when dealing with abusive debt collectors and unscrupulous telemarketers. If you believe your rights have been violated by a debt collector who has engaged in any of the behaviors listed above, please send us your debt collection letters and any other documentation (such photographs taken off your cell phone during the incoming debt collector call, any phone bills reflecting these calls, call logs you may have written down including details about the conversation you had with the collector, saved voicemail messages, etc.) all which relate to your alleged debt in order for us to investigate these actions on your behalf.