Falling behind on your bills can cause considerable fear and anxiety. The fear stems from worrying about your family finding out about your financial predicament. Anxiety derives from the many sleepless nights when you try to figure out how to get back on your feet again.
As the bills mount, so does the physical and emotional toll triggered by acute fear and anxiety.
To make matters worse, a debt collection agency is hounding you about what you thought was a long forgotten personal loan balance. The agency calls you throughout the day, including when you think you enjoy the privacy of the workplace.
You do not have to endure aggressive third party third party debt collector practices. A landmark consumer protection law enacted nearly 50 years ago ensures you never have to deal with illegal bill collector tactics.
How Montana Crafted FDCPA Laws
In response to growing consumer complaints concerning the harassment doled out by debt collection agencies, the United States Congress wrote into federal law the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).
The FDCPA presents an extensive list of outlawed third party debt collector tactics that include using abusive language and issuing threats in attempts to coerce consumers into paying off outstanding credit card and personal loan balances.
Although the FDCPA covers virtually every illegal bill collector practice, every state has also written language into law that protects consumers against unscrupulous debt collection agencies. For example, Montana has established a statute of limitations on debt collection efforts of eight years.
The state’s statute of limitations includes written contracts, obligations, and liabilities.
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Unlawful Tactics Listed by the FDCPA and Montana Collection Laws
Under the FDCPA, consumers have the right to send third party debt collectors a formal notice requesting the end of all forms of communication. If you send a cease and desist letter to a bill collector and your request is not granted, you should contact a Montana licensed FDCPA attorney to determine the best course of legal action.
The FDCPA prohibits debt collection agencies from trying to collect money for debts that have already been settled. Third party debt collectors are also forbidden to take money out of consumer bank accounts, without first gaining the approval from a wage garnishment order.
Montana does not have as many FDCPA laws on the book as the number of FDCPA laws passed by many other states. Moreover, Montana is an all party consent state, which means every party involved in a phone call must grant permission for the phone call to be tape recorded.
All party consent makes it difficult in Montana for consumers to prove bill collectors have violated the FDCPA provision of limiting debt collection agency phone calls to between 8 am and 9 pm.
Having a bill collector harass you can be a life shattering series of events. Make sure that never happens by speaking with a Montana licensed FDCPA lawyer.
If you believe that a debt collector is violating Montana’s FDCPA laws, you should seek the help of an FDCPA attorney. You may be able to seek up to $1,000 in damages for each violation of the FDCPA. An attorney will be able to help navigate you through the entire process.
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