What constitutes misleading information?
The FDCPA contains certain guidelines regarding what violates fair and legal debt collection activities and practices by either collection agencies or collection attorneys. A portion of what violates the act relates to any misleading information provided and/or misleading tactics employed when attempting to collect a debt from a consumer. So what actually constitutes “misleading information?”
According to
the FDCPA [15 USC 1692e] § 807, no debt collector may attempt to collect a consumer’s debt by employing misleading collection tactics and/or by using any misleading information. False or misleading information can apply to numerous aspects such as:
- the amount that you owe
- a debt which is not legally yours (e.g. a debt resulting from identity theft)
- incorrect personal information
- the character or legal aspects of the debt
- ways in which the debt collector can attempt to collect that debt
- claiming to represent the federal government by using badges or uniforms
- illegal fees or interest
- using deceptive tactics in order to collect the debt
- contacting any 3rd party whether (legally or not) with false information about you and your debts
- reporting any of the above or other false information to any of the many credit reporting agencies
Although there are other instances relative to what constitutes misleading information, these are some of the primary ways in which the FDCPA is oftentimes violated. Furthermore, this applies to any attempts at collecting the debt by letter, phone, or other means such as recorded messages.
There are other legal considerations where misleading information about a consumer is concerned. One of those is the defamation of your character (indirectly) by either informing other parties with false information about you or publishing it. Fortunately for the consumer today, the FDCPA has provided protection against abusive or illegal debt collection practices as well as giving the consumer an avenue for defending ourselves against these practices.
If you feel that your FDCPA rights have been violated by any of the above, your best opportunity for stopping these collection practices is to enlist the services of an experienced FDCPA attorney so that they can file a claim against the debt collector and present your case in a court of law, should things eventually proceed in that direction. Your FDCPA attorney is well-versed in this legislation and can help you put and end to any more abusive or threatening debt collection practices. By filling out the Free Claim Review form on this site, you will be put in touch with a qualified FDCPA Attorney who can help you decide what steps should be taken in pursuing your FDCPA claim.
