|
|
|
7 Tips for Successful Telecom Contract Negotiation
Time to negotiate a New Telecom Contract? After reading this article you'll be ready to negotiate that next telecom contract like a seasoned pro. The first steps to successful telecom contract negotiation begins by simply understanding the key...
Affordable, Comprehensive Health Insurance: How to Get What You Need
Affordable, Comprehensive Health Insurance: How to Get What
You Need
Your health should be your most important life concern; after
all, your life depends on it. But it's difficult to maintain
good health without adequate insurance...
Buying Houses For Sale By Owner
Houses for sale by owner, also known as "FSBOs," are a unique case in real estate investment. Buying from an uninformed seller who thought he knew enough to handle everything by himself can be frustrating. It can also be very profitable if you are...
Cheap Home Loans are not Available as a Readymade Potion; Need to Work to Make Them Happen
For most people in the UK, home loans necessarily connote cheap
finance. How can they not get cheaper finance when they have
offered lien on home to loan provider? Loan providers however
devise ways to overcharge borrowers who are not much...
Online Loans Made easy
What will it take for you to get a low interest, low payment loan? The answer to that question could be an online loan from one of the many companies that specializes in granting online loans, or e-loans.
Some analysts forecast that as more...
|
|
| |
|
|
|
|
|
|
When Debt Collectors Cross the Line - Bogus Threats & Illegal Collection Tactics
If you are behind on your bills and on the receiving end of
collection phone calls, you will probably hear collectors make
some very threatening statements. While most debt collection
professionals try to stay within the boundaries defined by the
Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), many others
cross the line on a regular basis. Last year, the Federal Trade
Commission (www.ftc.gov) received more than 58,000 complaints
about debt collectors, a figure which represents 17% of the
total number of complaints received by the FTC. Consumers
complain about the collection industry more than most other
industries combined.
Collection professionals would probably respond that the
enormous size of the industry and the sheer volume of collection
activity accounts for the large number of complaints. However,
only a small percentage of violations are actually reported by
consumers, so the data collected by the FTC represents only a
tiny fraction of the true scope of the problem. Even so, a
pattern of abusive and illegal collection activity has been
well-documented by the FTC, and it is getting worse instead of
better.
Here are some common threats made by debt collectors:
"We're going to take your house unless you pay this bill
immediately." This is a bogus threat. Unless the debt being
collected is secured by the house in question (i.e., a mortgage
or home equity loan), the creditor does not have the power to
take your house away from you.
"If you don't pay this bill today, we're going to have a warrant
issued for your arrest." Nonsense. Failure to pay a debt is a
civil matter, not a criminal matter. Threatening a debtor with
jail time or accusing them of committing a crime is totally
against the rules.
"We don't care that you sent a cease communication notice. We're
going to call you anyway." The FDCPA gives you the right to
terminate contact efforts by a debt collector. Failure to
respect a cease communication notice is a clear violation of
Federal law.
"We're going to garnish your wages to recover this debt." A
collector can only threaten action it has the legal authority to
take, and the vast majority of collection agencies have zero
legal authority. Your wages can only be garnished by a creditor
after they have won a judgment against you in a lawsuit.
"We know where you live, so you better pay up." Yes, threats of
violence still happen in this industry. Nearly 300 complaints
against collectors received by the FTC last year cited the
threat of violence as the cause of the complaint. This is
absolutely illegal.
Aside from the usual bogus threats, collectors also use other
tactics that are illegal. For example, discussing your debt with
a third party is a clear violation of the FDCPA. Yet collectors
routinely call neighbors, relatives, and employers to obtain
information on debtors. So long as the collector does not
discuss the actual matter of the debt, they still have their
toes on the right side of the line. But as soon as they mention
or even hint that they are calling about a debt, they have
crossed the line.
Since many debtors have taken to screening their phone calls at
home to cut down on the relentless barrage, debt collectors
frequently call at work when they can obtain an office number.
In theory, a consumer can get the collector to stop calling at
the office simply by stating that they are not allowed to
receive personal phone calls at
work. That puts the collector on
notice that such activity constitutes interference with the
consumer's employment, which is not permitted. In practice,
however, collectors routinely ignore this rule and continue to
call at work.
There are many other techniques of harassment and intimidation
that cross the line from permissible to impermissible collection
activity. Use of obscene or profane language, shouting, constant
and unrelenting telephone calls, failure to respond to written
disputes, and publication of debtor information all constitute
illegal activity as defined by the FDCPA.
So if you are on the receiving end of illegal collection
actions, what can you do to protect yourself? First and
foremost, it's important to know and understand your rights as a
consumer. A description of your rights under The Fair Debt
Collection Practices Act may be obtained directly from the FTC
(http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/fdc.htm).
If you believe that a collector has violated your rights in
their attempt to collect from you, then you should not hesitate
to file formal complaints with the Attorney General for your
state (www.naag.org) as well as the Federal Trade Commission. If
enough complaints are received about a particular collector,
then these authorities are empowered to bring an enforcement
action against them, which may result in expensive fines that
will make the agency or collector think twice about using such
tactics in the future. You also have the right to bring a
lawsuit yourself against a collector that harasses or abuses
you, or otherwise violates your rights under the law.
One final point. The FDCPA technically only applies to
third-party debt collectors, which includes collection agencies
and collection attorneys. It does not apply to the original
creditor when collecting their own debt. For example, if you
borrow money from a bank, the bank is not regulated by the
FDCPA. However, numerous other public laws protect consumers
from deceptive or abusive collection practices even by original
creditors, and many states also have laws that parallel the
FDCPA but go further and include original creditors in the
definition of debt collector. So if an original creditor is
harassing you or has crossed the line, you should still file a
complaint with your state's Attorney General as well as the FTC.
If a clear pattern of abuse emerges, the original creditor can
be charged with unfair or deceptive acts or practices, either
under state law or under the FTC Act that governs conduct of
commerce in our country.
To sum up, if you are on the receiving end of collection
harassment, don't just take it. Educate yourself on your rights
as a consumer, vigorously dispute debts that you don't believe
you owe, and take action yourself in the form of complaints to
your Attorney General and the Federal Trade Commission. By
standing up for your rights, you can put a stop to bogus threats
and illegal collection tactics.
About the author:
Charles J. Phelan has been helping consumers become debt-free
without bankruptcy since 1997. A former sr. executive with one
of the nation's largest debt settlement firms, he is the author
of the Debt Elimination Success Seminar™, a five-hour audio-CD
course that teaches consumers how to choose between debt program
options based on their financial situation. The course focuses
on instruction in do-it-yourself debt negotiation. Visit
www.zipdebt.com
|
|
|
|
|
| Negotiation - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia |
| The first step in negotiation is to determine whether the situation is in fact a negotiation ... The book's approach, referred to as Principled Negotiation, ... |
| en.wikipedia.org |
|
| Negotiation Seminars Negotiation Training Negotiations Consultants ... |
| Negotiation and alternative dispute resolution seminars, negotiation training and video presentations with available keynote speakers. |
| www.negotiation.com |
|
| Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School |
| Negotiation training, research, and publications from the world's foremost authority on negotiation and dispute resolution. |
| www.pon.harvard.edu |
|
| PON: Harvard Negotiations Project |
| Please visit the Harvard Negotiation Project website for complete information and ... The Harvard Negotiation Project's mission is to improve the theory, ... |
| www.pon.harvard.edu |
|
| The Negotiation Skills Company, Inc. |
| www.negotiationskills.com/ - 3k - Cached - Similar pages |
|
|
| Global Trade Negotiations Home Page |
| The Global Trade Negotiations Home Page at the Center for International Development at Harvard University - a centralized information resource on global ... |
| www.cid.harvard.edu |
|
| Principled Negotiation |
| Principled negotiation is the name given to the interest-based approach to negotiation set out in the best-known conflict resolution book, Getting to Yes, ... |
| www.colorado.edu |
|
| Salary Negotiation and Job Offer Tutorial |
| Job-seekers: Learn the basics (and advanced techniques) of the art and strategy of salary negotiation (getting the salary you want) in this tutorial. |
| www.quintcareers.com |
|
| Salary Negotiation and Job Offer Tutorial -- Map of the Tutorial |
| Site map to an expert (and free) tutorial on the art and strategy of salary and job offer negotiation. A guide to assist every job-seeker with salaries. |
| www.quintcareers.com |
|
| Win-Win Negotiation - How to reach a fair compromise - Negotiating ... |
| This article and free worksheet help you negotiate fair compromises with people whose goodwill you need. It highlights the importance of good negotiation ... |
| www.mindtools.com |
|
| negotiation journal |
| www.springerlink.com/link.asp?id=102591 - Similar pages |
|
|
| Apache Content Negotiation |
| Apache's support for content negotiation has been updated to meet the ... Apache 1.2 supports 'server driven' content negotiation, as defined in the ... |
| httpd.apache.org |
|
| JobStar--Salary Negotiation Strategies |
| JobStar is a public library sponsored guide to information for the job search. Sections useful for California are: 1500 job hotlines, calendar of job and ... |
| jobstar.org |
|
| Eric C. Gould's Negotiation Site |
| Subscribe to newsletter with negotiating tips and techniques. |
| www.batna.com |
|
| free negotiation training for sales, debt, contract, salary ... |
| Free negotiation skills training for sales, contracts, debt, salary and contracts, negotiating with creditors, negotiation skills and techniques, ... |
| www.businessballs.com |
|
| Monster.com: The Negotiation Coach |
| Salary Negotiation Advice from HR Managers · Negotiating Your Future Salary Today · Overlooking Their Interests -- A Big Mistake in Salary Negotiations ... |
| midcareer.monster.com |
|
| Negotiation Articles |
| Negotiation articles for the busy entrepreneur written by a diverse group of experts, speakers, professionals, consultants, and marketing companies. |
| www.pertinent.com |
|
| CareerJournal | Negotiating Tips - Salary Negotiation Tips ... |
| Salary Negotiation Tips - When it's time to negotiate salary changes, trust Career Journal to give you the best and most current career salary information. |
| www.careerjournal.com |
|
| PON Clearinghouse |
| Welcome to the Program on Negotiation Clearinghouse, a resource center for people interested in learning and teaching about negotiation and alternative ... |
| www.pon.org |
|
| :: Negotiations Affairs Department :: |
| Information on the issues, history, developments and positions regarding Palestinian-Israeli peace negotiations. |
| www.nad-plo.org |
|
|