Is Outsourcing Solutions Inc Calling You?*

Is Outsourcing Solutions Inc calling you? Here’s what you need to know.

In the United States household debt is rapidly exceeding income growth. The average indebted home owes $15,000 in credit card bills, and over time the interest payments alone consume 9% of a family’s income.

It’s a financial situation that can easily spiral out of control if you lose your job or anything else happens to substantially reduce your cash flow. Once a certain number of payments are missed, third-party debt collectors will start calling.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

Debt collectors have a negative reputation for harassing consumers over outstanding debts. In 1977 Congress passed the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), which outlawed deceptive and abusive conduct on the part of third-party collection agencies. This consumer protection law made it illegal to use collection tactics like the following:

• Using profane or obscene language
• Calling before 8:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m. in your time zone
• Pretending to be police officers or government agents with power to arrest you
• Discussing the debt with anyone except you, your spouse, or your attorney
• Ignoring a written request to cease contact
• Contacting you at work when they know that your employer does not allow such calls to be taken

Too many debt collectors, however, ignore the law in favor of using whatever pressure tactics they think will achieve their goal of getting your money.

Alleged FDCPA Violations

Outsourcing Solutions Inc is a debt collection agency located in Richmond, Virginia. It is a smaller agency that collects different categories of consumer debt all over the country: medical, retail, student loans, etc. A review of files retained at the PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) website confirm that Outsourcing Solutions Inc has been accused of violating the FDCPA during some debt collection attempts.

Gwen Morse vs. Outsourcing Solutions Inc

According to PACER, in December 2006 through until January 2007, a Washington resident allegedly received a series of calls from Outsourcing Solutions Inc at the parochial school where she worked. Although she advised the collectors that personal calls were not permitted at her workplace, they allegedly continued to contact her: she later complained that one agent accessed her extension by posing as the parent of a student, and on other occasions collectors told the school
receptionist that the plaintiff owed a debt. She also alleged that Outsourcing Solutions Inc called her “worthless” and “not a Christian” because she couldn’t pay her bills.

The plaintiff hired a consumer attorney and filed a lawsuit accusing Outsourcing Solutions Inc of violating the FDCPA in the following ways:

• Disclosing to an uninvolved third party that she owed a debt
• Calling her at work after being informed that the employer did not allow such calls
• Using abusive language
• Using unfair and unconscionable means to collect a debt
• Employing deception to collect a debt

The matter was later settled.

The phone number for Outsourcing Solutions Inc is 1-804-752-5020. If it appears on your caller ID, a debt collector is trying to reach you. If agency representatives belittle you, call you at work after being asked to stop, and tell third parties about the alleged debt, see a consumer attorney.

These collections tactics are illegal under the FDCPA, and your attorney can help you protect your rights in court. You could potentially be awarded $1,000 per FDCPA violation plus attorney’s fees, court costs, and any actual damages. When debt collectors go too far, the law gives you the foundation you need to fight back.

*Case taken from PACER (www.pacer.gov). File number is Case 3:07-cv-05562-RJB from United States District Court, Western District of Washington, Tacoma Division

Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be constructed as legal advice. If you file a claim against Outsourcing Solutions Inc, or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.