FDCPA (Fair Debt Collection Practices Act)

Best Websites to Learn About Consumer Law Issues — Our DuPage, Lake, and Cook County, and Chicago Illinois Consumer Lawyers Can Assist You in Illinois Debt Collector Abuse Lawsuits

June 21, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

As Illinois consumer attorneys we were pleased to see that the Illinois Attorney General has a very informative website highlighting the protections provided by Illinois and Federal Law against abusive debt collection practices. You can link to the website here.

The Attorney General’s website describes how the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Illinois Collection Agency Act and the Illinois Consumer and Deceptive Business Practices Act can protect Illinois residents from debt collector abuse:

If you use credit cards, owe money on a loan or are paying off a home mortgage, you are a “debtor.” If you fall behind on your payments to these creditors, you may be contacted by a debt collector. You should know that the Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the Illinois Collection Agency Act and the Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Practices Act all provide protections guaranteeing that debt collectors treat you fairly. These laws do not, however, forgive any legitimate debt you owe. Personal, family and household debts are covered under the Federal Fair Debt Collection Act. This includes money owed for medical care, charge accounts or car purchases.

New FTC Question and Answer Brochure on the Federal Debt Collector Abuse Law — Know Your Rights — Our Chicago, Naperville, Wheaton and Waukegan Attorneys Can File Suit to Stop Abusive Debt Collectors

June 18, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

A very informative brochure just published by the Federal Trade Commission contains the following very useful questions and answers regarding 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.

FTC Website Explains Consumers Right to Be Free From Fraudulent and Harrassing Debt Collectors — Our Chicago Consumer Lawyers and Attorneys Can File Private Lawsuits if You are a Victim of Unfair Debt Collection Practices

May 12, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

The Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”) website provides useful information regarding recognizing telephone and telemarketing frauds. A full copy of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is also linked to the site and you can view it here. The FTC website states:

Debt Collection FAQs: A Guide for Consumers

If you’re behind in paying your bills, or a creditor’s records mistakenly make it appear that you are, a debt collector may be contacting you.

Summary Judgment Stands for Consumer Class Alleging Unfair Debt Collection Practices, Seventh Circuit Rules

March 15, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

In a consumer protection and debt collection case, the Seventh Circuit has decided that a Wisconsin trial court was correct to grant summary judgment to a class of Cingular Wireless customers. Seeger v. AFNI, Inc., No. 07-4083 (7th Cir. December 8, 2008). The Cingular (now AT&T) customers had sued AFNI, Inc., a debt collector for Cingular, alleging it was charging a collection fee that consumers hadn’t agreed to and that was not permissible under Wisconsin law. Responding to a summary judgment motion by a certified class of consumers, the trial court found that AFNI violated both the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and the Wisconsin Consumer Act.

The plaintiffs were Cingular customers in Wisconsin. Each had signed a contract agreeing to pay the fees of a collection agency. They fell behind in their payments and eventually received letters from debt collector AFNI, which had bought their debt from Cingular, saying they owed a collection fee of 15% of the original debt. A second letter included the 15% fee in its total balance due. The plaintiffs sued, saying neither the contracts nor Wisconsin law allowed a separate collection fee for the owner of the debt (as opposed to a third-party debt collector). The trial court granted summary judgment to AFNI on one state claim and to the plaintiffs on another state claim, as well as the FDCPA. AFNI appealed.

The appeals court first rejected AFNI’s argument that its debt collection practices fall under Wisconsin laws allowing wronged parties to collect damages for breach of contract. If it could prove this, the court wrote, it would also need to prove that the 15% fee reflected its actual costs. However, the court pointed out that AFNI presented no evidence that would prove this, and general debt collection industry practices don’t support any such assumption.

FTC “Consumer Sentinel” Database Relies on Individual Consumer Complaints to Monitor and Stop Consumer Fraud

February 22, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

If you believe you are the victim of a consumer fraud or scam that is harming many other individuals you should file a report with the Federal Trade Commission. The FTC maintains a Consumer Sentinel database which can be used by law enforcement authorities all over the world to fight consumer fraud. Click here if you want to learn more about that database or want to make a complaint with the FTC.

The FTC has this to say about its Consumer Sentinel database:

Your complaints can help us detect patterns of wrong-doing, and lead to investigations and prosecutions. The FTC enters all complaints it receives into Consumer Sentinel, a secure online database that is used by thousands of civil and criminal law enforcement authorities worldwide. The FTC does not resolve individual consumer complaints.

Best Websites to Learn About Consumer Law Issues — Our DuPage and Cook County, and Chicago Consumer Lawyers Can Assist You in Your Lemon Law, Auto and RV Fraud, Unfair Debt Collection, Unfair Wage Practices Claims and Other Consumer Rights Lawsuits

February 1, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

One of the best websites to learn about consumer law issues and to find lawyers who focus on consumer rights issues is the website of the National Association of Consumer Advocates.

The website contains numerous links to sections on Auto Fraud, Lemon Law, Predatory Lending Practices, Credit Reporting Problems and Debt Collection Abuse.

Class action lawsuits our firm has been involved in or spear-headed have led to substantial awards totalling over a million dollars to organizations including the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the National Consumer Law Center, and local law school consumer programs. Lubin Austermuehle is proud of our achievements in assisting national and local consumer rights organizations obtain the funds needed to ensure that consumers are protected and informed of their rights. By standing up to consumer fraud and consumer rip-offs, and in the right case filing consumer protection lawsuits and class-actions you too can help ensure that other consumers’ rights are protected from corporate misdeeds.

Best Websites to Learn About Consumer Law Issues — Our Chicago Consumer Attorneys Can Assist You in Your Internet Fraud, Lemon Law, Auto and RV Fraud, Unfair Debt Collection, Unfair Wage Practices Claims and Other Consumer Rights Lawsuits

January 5, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

The National Consumers League’s Fraud Center is one of the best informational websites on the internet to learn about consumer rights and protection issues. Informed consumers are best armed to protect themselves from consumer scams and consumer frauds. The website contains sections for Telemarketing Fraud, Internet Fraud, Scams Against Businesses, Scams Against Elderly, Counterfeit Drugs, and a Fraud News section.

Lubin Austermuehle is a private consumer rights law firm who associates with other law firms around the country that can help you recover funds lost due to fraud against brick and mortar companies in the United States with assets. All too often with many internet and telemarketing frauds this may not be possible as the scam artists may be overseas, hard to locate or without assets.

Class action lawsuits our firm has been involved in or spear-headed have led to substantial awards totalling over a million dollars to organizations including the National Association of Consumer Advocates, the National Consumer Law Center, and local law school consumer programs. Lubin Austermuehle is proud of our achievements in assisting national and local consumer rights organizations obtain the funds needed to ensure that consumers are protected and informed of their rights. By standing up to consumer fraud and consumer rip-offs, and in the right case filing consumer protection lawsuits and class-actions you too can help ensure that other consumers’ rights are protected from corporate misdeeds.

Best Websites to Learn About Consumer Law Issues — Our Chicago Consumer Attorneys Can Assist You in Your Lemon Law, Predatory Lending, Auto and RV Fraud, Unfair Debt Collection, Unfair Wage Practices Claims and Other Consumer Rights Lawsuits

January 4, 2009 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

One of the best websites to obtain information about consumer law topics and purchase consumer and lawyer oriented publications and books about consumer rights issues is the website of the National Consumer Law Center.

A particularly well done book offered by the National Consumer Law Center is called Surviving Debt. It is a “how to” book that consumers can use to learn about their rights regarding matters such as unfair debt collection practices. The National Consumer Law Center provides a detailed description of the book.

The National Consumer Law Center describes Surviving Debt as follows:

Protect Yourself from Abusive Bill Collectors With the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

October 14, 2008 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

We have watched with dismay as report after report rolls in with bad financial news. Just like other Americans, many individuals and families here in the Chicago area are having more trouble making ends meet right now and may be at risk of losing their homes. Because our consumer rights and debt collection abuse prevention lawyers handle consumer litigation in Chicago, Oak Brook, Naperville and other parts of Illinois, we are particularly concerned about unfair and abusive practices by bill collectors, who many people may be hearing from more and more these days. Many consumers don’t realize it, but we are actually protected under federal law from some of the worst excesses of collection agencies by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

The FDCPA prohibits abusive and deceptive conduct by companies that collect debts. This covers a wide variety of practices, including misleading statements and outright lies, threats, abusive or foul language, attempts to embarrass the consumer publicly, bypassing the consumer’s lawyer and tacking on fees or interest the consumer never agreed to. Under the law, debt collectors may not harass you with repeated unnecessary phone calls, call you names, use a raised voice or curse words, or call you at work after you’ve explained in writing that your employer does not allow it. If they threaten lawsuits, wage garnishments or other legal actions, those actions must be possible and they must follow through.

In addition, the law requires debt collectors to follow certain rules, including:

Fallen Investment Bank Socked With Fair Debt Collection Practices Lawsuit

October 13, 2008 | Peter S. Lubin and Patrick Austermuehle

Given all of the more recent high-profile financial failures, it might be easy to forget the fall of Bear Stearns, the first investment bank to go down in our current economic downturn. But we were interested to read recently that the firm recently settled charges that it violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, a federal law our Chicago, Naperville and Oak Brook debt collection abuse prevention lawyers work with often in our Chicago consumer rights litigation practice. According to the Chicago Tribune, Bear Stearns and its mortgage debt collection subsidiary, EMC Mortgage, settled multiple FDCPA charges with the Federal Trade Commission for $28 million in September, and also agreed to change its loan servicing policies.

As with so much other economic news in 2008, the problem started with subprime and other non-standard mortgages. Bear Stearns was heavily invested in these (by buying them from the original lenders), a choice that is largely blamed for its failure. EMC serviced those mortgages, and according to the FTC, committed multiple violations of the FDCPA in its dealings with mortgage holders. The FTC complaint charged EMC with failing to check into the information provided by the original lenders on the mortgages, which led to incorrect charges and incorrect reports to credit bureaus that hurt the homeowners’ credit. EMC was also charged with:

• Charging fees homeowners never authorized, including a $500 fee for “loan modification”