Being in debt is bad enough. When you have aggressive debt collectors calling and making demands, it’s a daunting situation for anyone. Reports from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reveal that more than one in four consumers felt threatened when contacted by debt collectors.
No one should live in fear, and thanks to the FDCPA, you don’t have to.
Your Rights Under the FDCPA
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)prohibits collectors from using abusive, deceptive or unfair collection practices. The FDCPA also gives consumers the right to request verification of the debt and to dispute debts they don’t believe they owe. Below is a sample of activities that are illegal under the FDCPA.
- Using an autodialer to leave a series of pre-recorded messages
- Threatening to ruin your credit if you don’t pay
- Using profane or obscene language
- Refusing or failing to validate the debt and prove that they are authorized to collect it
- Calling you before 8:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m. in your time zone
- Ignoring a written request to cease contact
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Company Profile: Second Look, Inc.
If you are being called by Second Look, Inc., information about the company is below.
Second Look, Inc. is a debt collection agency located in Hauppauge, New York. It was established in 1990, has 27 employees, and is managed by its President, Edward Jordan. On its website, the company brands itself as “the industry’s premier full-service subrogation firm.”
Lawsuit records viewable at the PACER website reveals that consumers who felt they were being harassed by Second Look, Inc. stood firm and refused to pay.
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Alleged Violations against Second Look, Inc.
According to PACER, on or about February 13, 2011, a New York consumer received a letter from Second Look, Inc., which was seeking to collect on an insurance claim. He contacted an attorney, who sent the agency a notice of representation and a debt validation demand, but he still received another demand letter on May 20.
On June 11 Second Look, Inc. finally sent his attorney a demand letter with a new, higher amount being demanded, a different date of loss, and reference to subrogation, although no insurance claims appeared to have been made.
Feeling harassed by Second Look, Inc., the consumer sued the company for the following alleged FDCPA violations:
- Using false, deceptive and misleading means to collect a debt
- Falsely representing the character, amount or legal status of an alleged debt;
- Attempting to collect an amount not expressly authorized by an agreement with the consumer and not permitted by law
- Contacting a consumer directly even though they had legal representation
- Failing to validate the debt
The matter was later settled.
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Hire a Consumer Lawyer
The phone numbers for Second Look, Inc. are:
Seeing any of them on your caller ID means that you are being called by Second Look, Inc. If they try to collect from you directly even after you have retained an attorney and demand inconsistent amounts, hire a consumer lawyer to guide you in filing a claim against Second Look, Inc.
Winning your case could mean a statutory award of $1,000 per FDCPA violation, so be proactive when you know you are in the right.
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Additional Resources
Case taken from PACER (pacer.gov). File number is Case 7:12-cv-03092-VB from the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York.
*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 Second Look, Inc. or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.