i need help getting out of debt!

Here is some information to get you started!

http://www.pueblo.gsa.gov/cic_text/money/fair-debt/fair-dbt.htm

Fair Debt Collection

Federal Trade Commission
March 1999

If you use credit cards, owe money on a personal loan, or are paying on a home mortgage, you are a "debtor." If you fall behind in repaying your creditors, or an error is made on your accounts, you may be contacted by a "debt collector."

You should know that in either situation, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requires that debt collectors treat you fairly by prohibiting certain methods of debt collection. Of course, the law does not forgive any legitimate debt you owe.

This brochure answers commonly asked questions about your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

What debts are covered?
Personal, family, and household debts are covered under the Act. This includes money owed for the purchase of an automobile, for medical care, or for charge accounts.

Who is a debt collector?
A debt collector is any person who regularly collects debts owed to others. This includes attorneys who collect debts on a regular basis.

How may a debt collector contact you?
A collector may contact you in person, by mail, telephone, telegram, or fax. However, a debt collector may not contact you at inconvenient times or places, such as before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m., unless you agree. A debt collector also may not contact you at work if the collector knows that your employer disapproves.

Can you stop a debt collector from contacting you?
You can stop a debt collector from contacting you by writing a letter to the collection agency telling them to stop. Once the agency receives your letter, they may not contact you again except to say there will be no further contact or to notify you that the debt collector or creditor intends to take some specific action. Please note, however, that sending such a letter to a collector does not make the debt go away if you actually owe it. You could still be sued by the debt collector or your original creditor.

May a debt collector contact anyone else about your debt?
If you have an attorney, the debt collector must contact the attorney, rather than you. If you do not have an attorney, a collector may contact other people, but only to find out where you live, what your phone number is, and where you work. Collectors usually are prohibited from contacting such third parties more than once. In most cases, the collector may not tell anyone other than you and your attorney that you owe money.

What must the debt collector tell you about the debt?
Within five days after you are first contacted, the collector must send you a written notice telling you the amount of money you owe; the name of the creditor to whom you owe the money; and what action to take if you believe you do not owe the money.

May a debt collector continue to contact you if you believe you do not owe money?
A collector may not contact you if, within 30 days after you receive the written notice, you send the collection agency a letter stating you do not owe money. However, a collector can renew collection activities if you are sent proof of the debt, such as a copy of a bill for the amount owed.

What types of debt collection practices are prohibited?
Harassment.
Debt collectors may not harass, oppress, or abuse anyone or any third parties they contact. For example, debt collectors may not:

use threats of violence or harm;
publish a list of consumers who refuse to pay their debts (except to a credit bureau);
use obscene or profane language; or
repeatedly use the telephone to annoy someone;
False statements.
Debt collectors may not use any false statements when collecting a debt. For example, debt collectors may not:

falsely imply that they are attorneys or government representatives;
falsely imply that you have committed a crime;
falsely represent that they operate or work for a credit bureau;
misrepresent the amount of your debt;
indicate that papers being sent to you are legal forms when they are not; or
indicate that papers being sent to you are not legal forms when they are.
Debt collectors also may not state that:

you will be arrested if you do not pay your debt;
they will seize, garnish, attach, or sell your property or wages, unless the collection agency or creditor intends to do so, and it is legal to do so; or
actions, such as a lawsuit, will be taken against you, which legally may not be taken, or which they do not intend to take.
Debt collectors may not:

give false credit information about you to anyone, including a credit bureau;
send you anything that looks like an official document from a court or government agency when it is not; or
use a false name.
Unfair practices.
Debt collectors may not engage in unfair practices when they try to collect a debt. For example, collectors may not:

collect any amount greater than your debt, unless your state law permits such a charge;
deposit a post-dated check prematurely;
use deception to make you accept collect calls or pay for telegrams;
take or threaten to take your property unless this can be done legally; or
contact you by postcard.
What control do you have over payment of debts?
If you owe more than one debt, any payment you make must be applied to the debt you indicate. A debt collector may not apply a payment to any debt you believe you do not owe.

What can you do if you believe a debt collector violated the law?
You have the right to sue a collector in a state or federal court within one year from the date from the date the law was violated. If you win, you may recover money for the damages you suffered plus an additional amount up to $1000. Court costs and attorneys fees also can be recovered. A group of people also may sue a debt collector and recover money for damages up to $500,000, or one percent of the collectors net worth, whichever is less.

Where can you report a debt collector for an alleged violation?
Report any problems you have with a debt collector to your state Attorney Generals office and the Federal Trade Commission. Many states have their own debt collection laws, and your Attorney Generals office can help you determine your rights.

The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit the www.ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters Internet, telemarketing, identity theft and other fraud-related complaints in to Consumer Sentinel, a secure, online database available to hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad.


Return to Federal Citizen Information Center Home Page

Or, if that fails, they may just take your car. I almost had that happen to me, too. I had to bite the bullet and ask my family for a loan, then went and just paid off the car. My parents won't throw me in jail if I get a little behind on paying them back, so it worked out well.
Of course, this may not be an option for you . . . ?

Re: i need help getting out of debt!


First of all, you are not alone.

Second of all you need to do your homework on this. They can't just call you one day and say you have 5 days to pay up or else. Make a $10 payment. Anything. I don't think that they can't sue you if you are making a reasonable attempt to pay them back. Then start on another course of action.

Read up on the Fair Debt Collections Act here.

Did they:
1- Notify you in writing of your debt and all pertinant information pertaining to this debt? - They must under the FDC Act.
2- Send you written notice of their intent to further persue this debt (sue you) or have a lawyer contact you regarding this? - They must under the FDC Act or they are stating action that they do not intend on taking or are not legally able to do.

If they have not done either of these, they may have broken the law. You might want to contact a lawyer for a free consult to see if your rights have been abused.

Here is my advice. Call them and tell them that you are aware of this debt and that this is not a refusal to pay but iin order to protect your rights, you are sending them a letter stating that they can no longer contact you by phone and that all corrospondance must be made by written letter. This will protect you should the need arise that you must go to court. They tape all phone conversations with you so they have their defense. Now, you need yours.

Also, state that you want verification of this debt. Basically, a written detailed statment of all the monies that they say you owe them. There is a good letter format here. that you can send to them.

Make them work for this. You know you owe them but they can't harrass you about it. This is a good site with information that might help you out. Debt Validation This will stall the process and also give you some documentation in case they decide to sue you.

And remember that you cannot be bullied legally. It sounds to me like they are making idle threats about garnishing your wages. However, I don't know the law in your state or the stipulations made when you agreed to pay this collection agency. Did you make a deal with them (pay 75% of the total debt within 6 months and we'll take the other 25% of you owe and eat it)?

Also, you might want to include in your letter that you will be willing to negotiate a payment plan, minus the fees and other late charges that have been incurred during the validation period.

Good luck with this. It's a real bitch.

The thing is, I told them in the begining that i would send $75 a month until the amount is paid up, which I did until I got laid off. they never made me sign anything stating that, that was a set amount, all they have been sending me was reciepts for the money I sent (and the funny thing is I had to keep on them about sending me a reciept!) They sent me a 72 hr notice saying that I have to come up with the full amount with 3 days or something like that. that was last month when they sent that letter. I don't know, should I wait until I get my money next week and send a payment?

Honestly, it's your word against theirs at this point since no documentation was sent out. They have you on tape I am sure, stating all this. You have broken the agreement with them and that means sometimes that they are in the right. What you should have done is called or written them telling them you were laid off and would be unable to make the full payment but could make $5 or $10 payments per month. But that didn't happen so here we are dealing with the present.

I hope you kept the notice. I assume you didn't respond to them? Now would be a good time to send a letter stating your current situation and that you would like to pay them but cannot at this time due to being laid off. You will have to pay something. They won't just forget about it. But send a letter, registered mail so you have a receipt, and say you are willing to pay $10 a month on the debt until further notice. If they say no, then you will need to pursue another course of action but I don't know if they can sue you if you are making payments, no matter how small. You may be incurring late fees and whatnot so you have to be wary of that as well.

You entered into a verbal agreement though and if they have proof, in court, you would lose.

thank you so much for your replys, i will try to send a letter to them and see what happens. thanks again!

Remember that I am not a lawyer nor do I know much about your situation.

I still think you're best bet is a free consult with a lawyer who knows the law and specializes in this type of thing.

thanks, i will try that too

Time to check with a lawyer. Nobody is financing autos without requiring insurance that would cover the balance of the loan. You may have been paying for some kind of single interest insurance in favor of the lender, but they would have require insurance before making the loan. If it's a single interest insurance, it would have probably been a part of your loan payment. If that's the case, they just may have been collecting when they shouldn't have.

It is lawyer time.

I thought that gap insurance was up to the buyer if they wanted it or not.....but then agian I have only had one new car.

Get our your contract and find out what you've been paying for and what insurance you were required to obtain.

Maybe you should try reposting the question in the Legal forum.