The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ensures that people suffering from debt do not also have to suffer through debt collector harassment. Unfortunately, that does not stop debt collectors from trying.
It is important to recognize the type of harassment debt collectors may engage in. This allows a person to fight to preserve their rights.
Use of misdirection
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau discusses debt collector harassment. In order to get around the laws prohibiting harassment, debt collectors sometimes come up with creative means of handling people in debt.
For example, some will use misdirection or misinformation to make it seem like the person in debt is in much more trouble than they are. They could impersonate police or lawyers in an attempt to make the victim think they are in immediate danger of going to jail or getting evicted.
They can also harass victims in other ways, such as calling repeatedly at odd hours and refusing to identify themselves or their purpose for calling.
Stake-outs and threats
Some even hold stake-outs, parking by a victim’s house without actually doing anything other than watching. This often leaves the victim and anyone living with them feeling unsettled and lacking in protection, worried that they might end up harmed at any moment.
However, in some cases, a debt collector will resort to simple threats. This can include threat of eviction, threat to a debtor’s family, or even bodily threat to the person in question.
Of course, any and all of these actions are illegal under the FDCPA. This means that victims suffering through it may take action against these debt collectors.