YOUR RIGHTS - by learning them, you empower yourself.

1. Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA)
2. NJ Consumer Fraud Act (NJ CFA)
3. Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA)
4. Fair Credit Billing Act (FCBA)
5. Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA)

I. FAIR DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES ACT

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is a federal law aimed at curbing abusive practices in debt collection. Call the Law Office of Glen H. Chulsky today for a free initial consultation regarding your rights under the FDCPA.

What debts are covered?

Personal, family, and household debts are covered under the Act. This includes money owed for the purchase of a home, an automobile, for medical care or for credit card accounts.

Who is a debt collector?

A debt collector is any person, other than the creditor, who regularly collects debts owed to others. This includes collection agencies, lawyers who regularly collect debts and companies that acquire debts after they have gone into default.

How may a debt collector contact you?

A collector may contact you in person, by mail, telephone, telegram, or fax. However, a debt collector may not contact you at unreasonable times or places, such as before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. (your time). A debt collector may not contact you at work if the collector knows that your employer disapproves, and the debt collector also may not contact you if the collector knows that you are represented by an attorney.

Can you stop a debt collector from contacting you?

You can stop a collector from contacting you by writing a letter to the collection agency/debt collector telling them to stop. Once the agency/collector receives your letter, it may not contact you again except to say there will be no further contact or to inform you that the collector or the creditor intends to take some specific action. You may want to consult with an attorney before exercising this right under the Act. If you do send such a letter, you should send it by certified mail and keep a copy of the letter for your records.

What must the debt collector tell you about the debt?

Within five days after you are first contacted, the collector must send you a written notice telling you the amount of money you owe; the name of the creditor to whom you owe the money; and what action you can take if you would like to dispute the debt.

If, within 30 days after you are first contacted, you send the collection agency/debt collector a letter stating that you dispute the debt, the collector may not continue collection efforts until you are sent verification of the debt. If you do send a “dispute” letter, you should send it by certified mail and keep a copy of the letter for your records.

If, after its receipt of your "dispute" letter, the debt collector continues its collection efforts against you without first providing you written verification of the debt, you may be entitled to damages. Call the Law Office of Glen H. Chulsky today for a free initial consultation regarding your rights under the FDCPA.

What types of debt collection practices are prohibited?

Harassment. Debt collectors may not harass, oppress, or abuse anyone when collecting a debt.

Examples of harassing, oppressive or abusive conduct include, but are not limited to:

A. The use or threat of use of violence or other criminal means to harm the physical person, reputation, or property of any person.

B. The use of obscene or profane language or language the natural consequence of which is to abuse the hearer or reader.

C. Calling on the telephone repeatedly or continuously with the intent to annoy, abuse or harass any person at the called number.

D. Telling anyone other than a credit bureau or your spouse that you owe a debt.

False Statements and Unfair Practices. Debt collectors may not use any false statements or unfair practices when collecting a debt.

Examples of false statements and unfair practices include, but are not limited to:

A. Misrepresenting the amount of your debt.

B. Adding unauthorized charges to the debt, such as unauthorized attorney’s fees, collection costs and interest.

C. Falsely implying that you have committed a crime.

D. Threatening to take any action that cannot legally be taken, like threatening to sue when the statute of limitations has passed or threatening to take action that is not intended/authorized to be taken.

E. Depositing or threatening to deposit any postdated check or other postdated payment instrument prior to the date on such check or instrument.

F. Instituting suit when the statute of limitations has passed. (This can be a complete defense to the underlying claim, as well as a FDCPA violation on the part of the lawyer who filed the suit.)

What can you do if a debt collector violates the Act?

You have the right to sue the debt collector for damages. The suit must be brought within 1 year of the violation. You can recover up to $1,000.00 in statutory damages, any actual damages you may have suffered, plus attorney’s fees and costs. If you believe that your rights have been violated under the FDCPA, call the Law Office of Glen H. Chulsky today for a free initial consultation.

CLICK HERE TO READ THE FULL VERSION OF THE FDCPA

II. THE NEW JERSEY CONSUMER FRAUD ACT

Under the New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act, “the act, use or employment by any person of any unconscionable commercial practice, deception or fraud, false pretense, false promise or misrepresentation, or the knowing concealment, suppression or omission of any material fact with the intent that others rely upon such concealment, suppression or omission, in connection with the sale or advertisement of any merchandise or real estate…is declared to be an unlawful practice…”

The Consumer Fraud Act covers many areas, including but not limited to:

1. The sale or lease of a new or used motor vehicle.

2. Repair of automobiles.

3. Repair of watercraft.

4. Servicing and repair of home appliances.

5. Ordering and delivery of household furniture.

6. Home improvements.

7. Health clubs/gyms.

8. Mail and catalog orders.

9. Refund policies at retail stores.

10. Funeral home practices.

If your rights are violated under the Consumer Fraud Act, you may be entitled to an award of treble damages, attorney’s fees and costs.

III. THE TELEPHONE CONSUMER PROTECTION ACT

If you've received unsolicited advertising faxes ("junk faxes"), save them, with a record of when you received them (if the date is not on the fax). Junk faxes are illegal and are worth $500 to $1,500 each. We will need a copy of the fax.

If you want to stop telemarketing calls, you can add your telephone number(s) to the National Do Not Call Registry by clicking www.donotcall.gov.

IV. FAIR CREDIT BILLING ACT

Which Credit Transactions are Covered?

The FCBA generally applies only to "open end" credit accounts. Open end accounts include credit cards, revolving charge accounts (such as department store accounts), and overdraft checking. The periodic bills, or billing statements, you receive (usually monthly) for such accounts are covered by the FCBA. The Act does not apply to loans or credit sales which are paid according to a fixed schedule until the entire amount is paid back.

What Types of Disputes are Covered?

The FCBA settlement procedure applies only to disputes over "billing errors" on periodic statements, such as the following:

How to Use the Settlement Procedure?

When many consumers find a mistake on their bill, they pick up the phone and call the company to correct the problem. You can do this if you wish, but phoning does not trigger the legal safeguards under the FCBA.

To be protected under the law, you must send a separate written billing error notice to the creditor. Your notice must reach the creditor within 60 days after the first bill containing the error was mailed to you. Send the notice to the address provided on the bill for billing error notices (and not, for example, directly to the store, unless the bill says that's where it should be sent). In your letter, you must include the following information:

You should send it by certified mail, with a return receipt requested. That way you'll have proof of the dates of mailing and receipt. If you wish, send photocopies of sales slips or other documents, but keep the originals for your records.

What Must the Creditor Do?

Your letter claiming a billing error must be acknowledged by the creditor in writing within 30 days after it is received, unless the problem is resolved within that period. In any case, within two billing cycles (but not more than 90 days), the creditor must conduct a reasonable investigation and either correct the mistake or explain why the bill is believed to be correct.

What Happens While a Bill is Being Disputed?

You may withhold payment of the amount in dispute including the affected portions of minimum payments and finance charges until the dispute is resolved. You are still required to pay any part of the bill which is not disputed, including finance and other charges on undisputed amounts.

While the FCBA dispute settlement procedure is going on, the creditor may not take any legal or other action to collect the amount in dispute. Your account may not be closed or restricted in any way, except that the disputed amount may be applied against your credit limit.

What About Your Credit Rating?

While a bill is being disputed, the creditor may not threaten to damage your credit rating or report you as delinquent to anyone. However, the creditor is permitted to report that you are disputing your bill.

Another federal law, the Equal Credit Opportunity Act, prohibits creditors from discriminating against credit applicants who, in good faith, exercise their rights under the FCBA. You cannot be denied credit merely because you have disputed a bill.

If the Creditor Makes a Mistake

If your bill is found to contain a billing error, the creditor must write you explaining the corrections to be made on your account. In addition to crediting your account with the amount not owed, the creditor must remove all finance charges, late fees, or other charges relating to that amount. If the creditor concludes that you owe part of the disputed amount, this must be explained in writing. You also have the right to request copies of documents proving you owe the money.

If the Bill is Correct

If the creditor investigates and still believes the bill is correct, you must be told promptly in writing how much you owe and why. You may also ask for copies of relevant documents. At this point, you will owe the disputed amount, plus any finance charges that accumulated while it was disputed. You may also have to pay the minimum payment amount missed because of the dispute.

If You Still Disagree

Even after the FCBA dispute settlement procedure has ended, you may still feel the bill is wrong. If this happens, write the creditor within 10 days after receiving the explanation and say you still refuse to pay the disputed amount. At this point, the creditor may begin collection procedures. However, if the creditor reports you to a credit bureau as delinquent, he must also state that you don't think you owe the money. Also, you must be told who receives such reports.

If the Creditor Doesn't Follow the Procedures

Any creditor who fails to follow the FCBA dispute settlement procedure may not collect the amount in dispute, or any finance charges on it, up to $50, even if the bill turns out to be correct. For example, this penalty would apply if a creditor acknowledges your complaint in 45 days (15 days too late) or takes more than two billing cycles to resolve a dispute. It also applies if a creditor threatens to report -- or goes ahead and improperly reports -- your nonpayment(s) to anyone. You also have the right, as more fully described below, to sue a creditor for any violation of the FCBA.

You Can Also Sue

You can sue a creditor who violates any FCBA provisions. If you win, you may be awarded damages resulting from the violation, plus twice the amount of any finance charge (not less than $100 or more than $1,000) plus attorney's fees and costs.

V. FAIR CREDIT REPORTING ACT

The three major national Consumer Reporting Agencies are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Their telephone numbers and websites are as follows:

Equifax Information Services, LLC
800-685-1111
www.equifax.com

TransUnion
800-888-4213
www.transunion.com

Experian
888-397-3742
www.experian.com

You may be entitled to free copies of your credit reports.
Find out by going to www.annualcreditreport.com

What can I do if the information is inaccurate or incomplete?

Notify the Consumer Reporting Agency in writing. Include your name, address, date of birth and social security number. Send the letter by a means that generates a receipt (certified mail, Federal Express, etc.). Keep a copy of the letter and the receipt.

Be as specific as possible. Explain what is wrong with each item. Ask that the Consumer Reporting Agency delete or correct the item, notify all persons that obtained the erroneous credit report, and send you a corrected report. The agency is required to delete or reinvestigate the items in question. If the new investigation reveals an error, a corrected consumer report will be sent to you, and upon your request, to anyone who received your report in the past six months (Job applicants can have corrected reports sent to anyone who received a copy during the past two years.). If you dispute the accuracy of the information in your file and the Consumer Reporting Agency deletes it, the agency cannot put the disputed information back into your file without notifying you in writing.

If you contact a Consumer Reporting Agency to dispute the accuracy or completeness of information in your file, the agency may forward your dispute to the creditor, debt collector, or other person who furnished the information to the agency. If the creditor or debt collector furnishes false information to the Consumer Reporting Agency in response to its inquiry, you have the right to sue the creditor.

You should also contact the creditor or other source of information directly. Many creditors have a special address for this purpose, and have a duty to avoid reporting inaccurate information. Also, if you tell anyone that you dispute the accuracy of information, then that person must note that the information is disputed whenever it is provided to a Consumer Reporting Agency.

How long can Consumer Reporting Agencies report unfavorable information?

Generally seven years. Adverse information can't be reported after that, with certain exceptions:

* Bankruptcy information can be reported for 10 years;

* Information reported because of an application for a job with a salary of more than $75,000 has no time limitations;

* Information reported because of an application for more than $150,000 worth of credit or life insurance has no time limitation;

* Information concerning a lawsuit or judgment against you can be reported for seven years or until the statute of limitations runs out, whichever is longer.

Can anyone get a copy of my report?

No, it's given only to those with certain specified permissible purposes. There are severe penalties for obtaining a credit report for improper purposes.

What if I think a Consumer Reporting Agency has violated my rights under the law?

You should seek the advice of an attorney. In some cases, but not always, a Consumer Reporting Agency or other person or entity that has violated the Fair Credit Reporting Act must pay damages and your attorney's fee.