What is the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act? This is a federal law that protects consumers from certain debt collection tactics. It can be a very effective way to fight debt collectors and to erase underlying debts. There was a recent case out of Colorado that provides a great example of how to properly use the FDCPA to fight debt collectors. In this case, a medical debt collection company was calling a consumer to collect and alleged debt. The consumer wrote the medical debt collection company a letter disputing the debt and asking them not to call her anymore, but instead to communicate in writing only. Of course, the medical debt collector continued to call so the lady hired a lawyer (like Florida Consumer Lawyers) who brought a lawsuit in federal court against the debt collector. The medical debt collector tried fighting the case but could not point to even one policy or procedure in place to make sure that the company would stop calling people who disputed the debt and requested no contact. As a result, the court found the medical debt collector to be in violation of the FDCPA and issued a ruling in favor of the consumer. The FDCPA provides a powerful tool to enforce the rights of consumers against debt collectors. Currently, 1 in 5 Americans have medical debt in collections right now. One in four Americans, or more than 70 million consumers, have some kind of bill in debt collection at any given time. More than 18 million American consumers have multiple bills in debt collection at any given time. These debt collectors make it a practice to bully, harass, and intimidate consumers. Now, with the trend moving towards larger debt collection companies muscling smaller debt collectors out of the market, with these larger debt collectors being publicly traded companies on Wall Street, the high pressure tactic will continue so their Boards can show revenue and inflate stock prices. Thus, the FDCPA is a powerful tool to level the playing field. If you have a debt collector contacting you, call us for a free consultation today.