Dirty Deeds Done by Debt Collectors
Portfolio Recovery Associates faces $24 million fine for illegal practices
If you’ve ever been contacted by a debt collector, you know it is an unpleasant experience.
If you owe the debt can can’t pay, there’s nothing a person on the phone can do to make money show up.
What’s worse, though, is being contacted by a debt collector for a debt you don’t owe or for one that has been settled.
In some cases, debt is time barred — meaning even if you did owe the debt at one point, it’s no longer collectible.
Unfortunately, that doesn’t stop third-party debt buyers from trying to squeeze some money out of you.
Sometimes, these collectors use illegal tactics to convince customers who don’t owe that they should pay at least something.
I wrote recently about a debt collector for Citibank and Discover filing nearly 100,000 “junk lawsuits” — suits for debts that either weren’t owed or were time-barred.
Fortunately, that debt collection outfit was penalized by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB).
Now, another major debt collector, Portfolio Recovery Associates, is facing a $24 million fine for a range of unlawful collection practices.
