Tuesday, 9 October 2012

California Debt Collection: On Par with Federal Practices

By Michele Moncrieffe


California debt collection practices mirror New York collection practices, which fall in line with federally mandated debt collection practices. However, the general public is still uneasy when it comes to trusting a debt collection company. Debtors read and hear so many nightmarish debt collection experiences that they presume that all collection agencies are despicable, and they have no intention of working with these companies.

There is state and federal legislation that dictates how debt collection agents must conduct themselves while attempting to recover a client's debt. Those who owe money to a creditor can easily access these regulations online. Even if you do not owe a debt, it is still beneficial for you to acquire some knowledge on fair and unjust debt collection practices. The United States Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is readily available on the government's website. Legal and illegal California debt collection behaviors, as well as most other states, are available online, too.

When people owe debt to a corporation, and they have continually defaulted, then the corporation might turn the account over to an in-house collections agency. Because these companies are owned by the original creditor they do not have to follow the state and federal mandates that third-party agencies are obligated to follow. Debtor interaction with first-party agents is professional and courteous. These agents represent the creditor and do not want to tarnish the creditor name by harassing the indebted and risk having a bad review posted or any circumstance like that.

There are two types of third-party collections agencies. The first are companies that are contacted by the original creditor, the first-party, to try and collect a debt. Agencies that are sought out by businesses are generally honest and trustworthy. These companies represent the creditor, and they do not want to have a misstep and not receive repeat business. Also, these agencies don't get paid unless they are successful in recovering the creditor's debt. Debt-buyers are the second kind of third-party collections companies. These agencies buy your debt from the initial creditor, and then contact you to recover the debt. Because these companies have no tries to the original creditor, they have little incentive to be respectful or professional. These are the companies that you hear horror stories about.

Debtors need to educate themselves on their rights in regards to debt collection practices. The majority of collection companies aren't preying upon unsuspecting debtors. There's no need to be afraid of them. If the collection company you're dealing with happens to be a bad egg, then you have the law on your side. Use it.




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