Unlike most lenders, Capital One handles most of it’s debt collection internally, rather than outsourcing to collection firms. This may be part of their problem as collection firms are usually well versed in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

Out of the 15,500 bogus claims made by Capital One only about 800 of those borrowers filed lawsuits against the creditor. 130 of these cases were settled without Capital One admitting fault. Not all attorneys will file suit against a creditor for attempting to collect a discharged debt, but it’s important that debtors know that they can. Without the remedy of suing the creditor, there would be little to no use of the bankruptcy court at all.

The automatic stay will remain in effect until one of the following things occurs:

1. A creditor petitions the court for relief from automatic stay and the court enters an order granting it;

The down side to this bill would obviously be that creditors would be able to start robo-calling your cellphone. This does not sit well with many consumers. But some creditors say that the current regulations have not kept up with the technology of today, and that a lot of people do not have home phone lines anymore. Creditors are wanting robo-calling access to cell phones.

The upside to the bill, however, is that an airline company could robo-call passengers if a flight was cancelled or is running late. Or your credit card company could set up a system to automatically call you if they think someone is fraudulently using your card. Or your bank could robo-call with a message that someone changed the address or PIN number on your account.

The Fourteenth Amendment states that “[n]o state shall make or enforce any law which shall abridge the privileges or immunities of citizens of the United States; nor shall any state deprive any person of life, liberty, or property, without due process of law”. Despite the protections of this amendment, collectors are satisfying the requirements of due process by filing suit, unilaterally scheduling hearings, and when the debtors fail to appear for court, they have they ask the judge sign an order for them to appear. If they don’t show up for the second hearing, the judge will issue a warrant for the debtor’s “willful” non-appearance before the court. The next time the debtor is pulled over for a route traffic stop, they can be arrested.

The problem with this satisfaction of the due process requirement is two-fold. First is the fact that most collection agencies have bad or outdated addresses for debtors. People move all the time, especially those with financial troubles. If the address is incorrect, then the debtor never gets notice of the hearing. This makes the “willful non-compliance with a court order” no longer willful. If the debtor didn’t know, how could they willingly not comply?

Summers was convicted for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and sentenced to 8 years in federal prison. Miller was ordered to serve 6 years and 9 months for conspiracy to commit mail fraud and money laundering. The two have also been ordered to repay $1,311,700 in restitution to the victims of their fraudulent scheme.

If you feel that you have been defrauded in any financial situation, you should speak with a Jacksonville Consumer Law Attorney to see if a remedy this available for you.

1. There are many calculations that must be done correctly. To file for bankruptcy, you must first know which Chapter you qualify for, a Chapter 7, 13, 11 or 12. One step to figuring it out is by completing a Means Test. This is complex thing to do. You must know things which deductions you can use for food, clothing, personal care, health care, housing, and many more. You’ll need to how the allowances for vehicles work and what involuntary deductions you can take. You must know how to list future debt payments correctly. And the list goes on and on. Without the proper knowledge and skill, this can be very difficult to do right the first time. If you do not do this correctly, the court could dismiss your case without a discharge, penalize you with fines or in rare cases, even send you to jail. Hiring a Jacksonville Bankruptcy Attorney would be beneficial because someone with knowledge and experience would be handling these issues, taking the stress off of you.

2. Another daunting task is drafting a Chapter 13 Plan. This Plan is very important, as it outlines your responsibilities over a three to five year period. You must know which creditors get paid, how much is required to go to unsecured creditors, and how to allocate the Trustee’s portion. You want to make sure that you get all the benefits you can through your Plan. It is not the job of the Court or Trustee to watch out for your interest, it is there job to be sure that the code is being applied properly.

After a complaint is filed, the CFPB acts as a go-between in order to resolve the issue between you and your credit card company. So far, approximately three quarters of the complaints have been either partially or fully resolved by the credit card company. The rest are either still under review or there was no relief found.

Consumers can submit their complaints either online with Consumer Finance’s Government Site or by calling 855-411-CFPB (855-411-2372). In the near future, CFPB will be fielding complaints for all kinds of consumer financial products, including mortgages and other loans.

Paige Marta Skiba and Jeremy Tobacman both have doctorates from esteemed establishments (UC Berkeley and Harvard respectively) and a 57 page collaborative work titled, “Do Payday Loans Cause Bankruptcy?” attempts to prove that these loans, despite only being for amounts around $300, do in fact cause an increased probability of filing bankruptcy.

The statistics they give are quite telling, for instance, the interest rates given on payday loans are often quoted as being small because they’re based on a few days or weeks, however when you amortize a 18% loan over two weeks out to a per annum (yearly) basis, the total interest percentage is actually 468%. It’s these high interest loans that Skiba and Tobacman say force some people to file for bankruptcy.

Does this sound impossible? Well it isn’t. In fact, someone seeking help with creditor harassment described a very similar situation to me just yesterday. This behavior comes out of left field for creditors as it requires more time and resources than we’d expect from a creditor. It also appears to violate the Fair Debt Collect Practices Act (FDCPA) as creditors cannot use deceptive means in an attempt to collect or enforce a debt.

If you think that a creditor is doing something unethical in an attempt to collect a debt, it may be illegal. Contact a Jacksonville Bankruptcy Lawyer for a free consultation.

A Zombie debt is one that shouldn’t be collectible. It’s been paid, discharged in bankruptcy or was never valid to begin with. The debtor thinks the debt has been disposed of but some day, often years later, a collector sends a notice. Then it begins again.

Sometimes creditors sell the rights to collect on a note that has already been paid, other times creditors simply make mistakes. Either way, average people shouldn’t have to deal with it. If a creditor starts calling about a debt that you don’t think you owe, contact a Creditor Harassment Attorney or call us at (904) 685-1200 for a free consultation.