About Creditor Harassment
While creditors do have a right to approach and contact their debtors – especially those failing to follow through on payments – they are prevented by state and federal law from harassing or abusing their customers in any way. Unfortunately, however, creditor harassment is quite common and most victims of this abuse don’t take action against the broker at fault. If you are experiencing what you believe may be creditor harassment, it is important that you contact a qualified bankruptcy attorney as soon as possible to learn about your legal options.
Types of Creditor Harassment
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act passed in 1972 in an effort to protect debtors from unreasonable collection attempts made by lending agencies. Under the piece of legislation, the following restrictions are in place:
- Contacting an unrelated third party (known to the debtor) about the money owed
- Dealing empty threats, such as enlisting the help of a lawyer or hurting your credit rating
- Calling repeatedly at unreasonable times of the day
- Calling you at inconvenient places
- Outright informing your employer of the purpose of the collection call (when calling your workplace)
- Verbal harassment
- Sending fake letters (from a court, for example)
- Attempting to collect prohibited fees
- Suing in faraway courts
- Asking for post-dated checks in an attempt to find justification for prosecution
- Making false claims
All of these lender actions are prohibited by federal law. If you have experienced any of these, then you have likely been a victim of creditor harassment.
Contact Us
If you believe that you have been a victim of creditor harassment or if you would like to learn more about the laws in place preventing this sort of behavior, contact the Austin bankruptcy lawyers of Slater, Kennon & Jameson, LLP today at 512-338-1100 to speak with an attorney about your questions.