Debts Covered By The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act There are several requirements that a debt must meet before it becomes governed by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act: The debt must be a consumer debt that was incurred for personal, household or family reasons. For example: Medical debt incurred because of a spouse's illness [...]
According to an article in the Star-Telegram, American Corrective Counseling Services, a debt collection company has agreed to a $2.55 million judgment to settle a lawsuit brought by thousands of debtors who claimed they were wrongly led to believe they had to pay costly fees to avoid criminal charges for bouncing checks. The article said: [...]
When a debtor files bankruptcy, creditors are required to file a proof of claim if they want to have a chance at payment during the bankruptcy. If a debtor does not object to the proof of claim after it is filed, then the bankruptcy court will basically deem it "allowed." But what does that mean? [...]
In the bankruptcy case of Phillips, James T. and Shelly M.; In re (Whitney National Bank v. Phillips), the bankruptcy court ruled that the debtors could not pursue their claim against the lender because the claim arose before they filed for bankruptcy and had not been abandoned by the bankruptcy trustee. The details of the [...]
There be sharks out there...and they're called debt collectors! As the economy gets tougher and more people default on their credit cards, mortgage loans and other debt obligations, more debt collectors are crossing the line and engaging in illegal debt collection practices. If you are considering bankruptcy and have faced illegal collection actions by creditors, [...]
Lie Number One - Bankruptcy will ruin your credit forever! Let's face it, the majority of people considering bankruptcy already have bad credit. They have defaulted on personal debt such as credit cards and are delinquent on essentials such as their mortgage. For many, filing bankruptcy will actually improve their credit score by bringing their [...]
According to an article in the Star-Telegram, a widow is claiming that debt collectors hounded her husband to death with as many as nine harassing and illegal calls per day, causing stress that contributed to his fatal heart attack. She's suing Green Tree Servicing for damages, claiming that their illegal collection practices that led to [...]
No one likes to owe money. Most people don't plan on falling behind on their bills. Then... to add insult to the financial injury, a debt collector with an attitude calls you. Their job is plain and simple...to get you to pay. Some collector's though have the belief that their job is to get you [...]
Let's get this straight; you are not personally responsible for the credit card bills (or other debts) of your deceased relatives. As more debtors default on their credit card loans some "creative" bill collectors are seeking out the relatives of deceased debtors and asking that they pay on their dearly departed's credit card debt . [...]
There's a very interesting advice column in the Dallas Morning News, where a financial advisors advises a couple to hold on to their cash as opposed to using it to pay off debt. The couple seeking advice said that they would receive $100,000 in December and wanted to know if it would be wise to [...]