"Collecting Information on the FDCPA"Introduction
Students have read of the major federal laws regulating consumer
credit. In this lesson, students will get a closer look at
the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act from the perspective
of the American Collectors Association. Lesson
Description
Students will use information from the American Collectors
Association Debt Collection Web site to learn about the Fair
Debt Collection Practices Act. They can browse the site to
collect information from the "Your Rights Under the FDCPA"
category. Students will answer four questions and then use
what they have learned to write a paragraph summarizing the
presentation of the material. Previous
Knowledge Expected debtor: an individual who owes money to a creditor
Applied
Content Standards (from the National Council on Economic Education)
Standard 16: There is an economic role for government
to play in a market economy whenever the benefits of a government
policy outweigh its costs. Governments often provide for national
defense, address environmental concerns, define and protect
property rights, and attempt to make markets more competitive.
Most government policies also redistribute income. Instructional
Objectives - Students will understand the protections afforded the debtor
under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
- Students will be able to use their research to write a
paragraph about their conclusions regarding the presentation
of the information.
Student
Web Activity Answers - Within five working days after first contacting the debtor,
the collection agency must send a written notification of
the amount of the debt, the name of creditor, and the debtor's
right to dispute.
- The FDCPA regulates professional, third-party collection
businesses, agents, and attorneys, but not "in-house" collectors
or employees of creditors who collect their own debts.
- The collector may: contact the debtor only between 8 a.m.
and 9 p.m. debtor's time; call at the debtor's work unless
otherwise instructed; contact debtor by mail so long as there
is no reference to debt on the envelope; contact people who
aren't directly involved in the debt to get address and work
information; contact the debtor directly unless the collector
has been informed to contact the debtor's attorney.
- Collectors may not: harass the debtor; misrepresent their
identities; misrepresent the legal status of debts; threaten
to take any action that is illegal or that the collectors
do not intend to actually take.
- Students' paragraphs will vary. Students may note that
the Web site recommends that complaints about a collector
be referred to the collector's manager or the American Collectors
Association. In fact, a consumer may want to contact an attorney
and file a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission or
the Office of the Attorney General if the consumer believes
the FDCPA has been violated. The Web site lightly touches
on the fact that the consumer must respond in writing within
30 days if he or she disagrees that the debt is owed or with
the amount of debt owed. In fact, the collection agency must
stop collection of the debt until the collection agency has
established proof and sent it to the consumer. The writer
of the Web site discourages the debtor from sending written
notification requesting all communication with the collection
agency cease. This is a right of the consumer under the FDCPA
whether the debt is rightfully owed or not.
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