Are You Being Called By Pressler & Pressler?*

Being chased by debt collectors is time-consuming, stressful, and embarrassing. Sometimes you are harassed by demeaning calls and letters for months before a vindictive lawsuit comes out of the blue.

No matter how it’s happened to you, acting quickly and contacting a consumer lawyer are your best methods of defense.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

The FDCPA is a consumer protection law that tells debt collection agencies what they can and cannot do to collect a debt. If a debt collector violates your rights under the FDCPA by using actions like those below, you can turn the tables on them by suing them in federal court.

• Using profane or obscene language
• Repeatedly calling you with the intent to harass, abuse or annoy
• Misrepresenting their identity during collection efforts
• Misrepresenting the character, amount, or legal status of the debt
• Telling third parties such as friends and family that you owe a debt
• Stating that you are guilty of committing a crime

Company Profile: Pressler & Pressler

If you are being called by Pressler & Pressler, the firm’s history and particulars are listed below.

Pressler & Pressler, which now does business as Pressler, Felt & Warshaw, is a debt collection law office located in Parsippany, New Jersey. It was founded in 2003, has approximately 250 employees on staff, and is managed by owner Sheldon Pressler.

The Better Business Bureau has given it a B- rating and also noted that on April 25, 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau ordered the firm to stop filing lawsuits without determining if debts in question are valid.

The order also required the firm to pay $1 million to the Bureau’s Civil Penalty Fund.

Digitized litigation records maintained at the PACER website indicate consumers who felt harassed by Pressler & Pressler did not hesitate to exercise their right to sue for compensation.

Alleged Violations against Pressler & Pressler

According to PACER, in or around early 2011 Pressler & Pressler began contacting a New Jersey consumer to collect a consumer debt. She later alleged that the firm called her cell phone two to four times a day and disclosed details of the debt to her mother and brother.

On one occasion a collector allegedly told her that she had committed a crime.

When she asked the firm about the debt, she was allegedly told that the original creditor was GE Money but when a lawsuit was later filed against her, the creditor was listed as Midland Funding.

Feeling harassed by Pressler & Pressler, she hired a consumer lawyer and sued the firm for the followed alleged FDCPA abuses:

• Using false, deceptive and misleading means to collect a debt
• Using unfair and unconscionable means to collect a debt
• Discussing the debt with third parties
• Harassing her by phone

The matter was later dismissed.

Hire a Consumer Lawyer

The phone numbers for Pressler & Pressler are:

• 1-973-753-5100
• 1-888-312-8600

If either number appears on your caller ID, Pressler & Pressler is trying to contact you. If they discuss your debt with members of your family and harass you by phone to compel payment, hire a consumer lawyer and file a claim against Pressler & Pressler.

According to the FDCPA, if you win your case the debt collector must pay you up to $1,000 in statutory damages along with your court costs and attorneys’ fees. You might even be awarded compensation for emotional distress, so when a collection attorney tries to intimidate you, it could cost them a lot.

Additional Resources

• Has a Debt Collector Been Calling Your Phone Repeatedly?
• Did a Debt Collector Notify a Third Party Regarding Your Debt?

Case taken from PACER (pacer.gov). File number is Case 2:11-cv-04253-KSH-PS from the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey.

*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 Pressler & Pressler or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.