My neighbor was left a message by my creditor and he is not on my accounts or has been used as reference at all.
Is this considered harassment?
2007-08-20 15:56:26 · 6 answers · asked by keekee 4 in Business & Finance ➔ Credit
yes
2007-08-20 19:22:16 · answer #1 · answered by skcs11 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
Actually it depends on what the collection agency said to your neighbor. Creditors are allowed to make reasonable attempts to contact you, they key word there is reasonable. This can include contacting neighbors by phone or mail. If the creditor did not discuss the details of your account with them, then they did not break the law. They are allowed to leave a message that you need to call the company, such as "Please have mr smith contact us about a business matter". But they are not allowed to say something like, "Your neighbor has not made a payment for 6 months and needs to pay us $10,000 or we will sue him".
However, if they continue to contact the neighbor then it could be considered harassment and the agency might be able to be sued for a violation of the FDCPA(Fair Debt Collectors Practices Act).
2007-08-20 23:27:45 · answer #2 · answered by OC1999 7 · 3⤊ 0⤋
I don't think this has to do with legal right or wrong but the only way the creditor can get contact information is it had to be provided. but there is so much information on the world wide web so if you neighbor has information on-line then the creditor is doing creative investigation to get in touch with you.
It is probably a form of harassment under the privacy act, look into that if they have violated your right to privacy then you may have a case.
2007-08-20 23:05:57 · answer #3 · answered by Deon R 1 · 0⤊ 2⤋
Yes, it is harassment, they absolutely broke the law.
You can sue the collection agency... doing things like this is what makes the industry scum. You should pay your bills and repay the money you owe... but it is absolutely illegal for them to call anyone but you, or harass you.
Contact your state banking commissioner (or whoever handles this for your state) and even a lawyer if you wish to sue the collection agency.
I hope the neighbor saved the message, as it can be used against the collection agency in legal action.
2007-08-20 23:01:25 · answer #4 · answered by Mike 6 · 4⤊ 1⤋
Obviously you are not taking their calls. So they are putting some pressure on you by contacting your neighbors.
It's kinda a dirty trick but as long as the collector didn't discuss your debt but just left a message for you to call him. it's perfectly legal.
2007-08-21 00:04:04 · answer #5 · answered by bdancer222 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
check out the Fair Credit Reporting Act guidelines. if they said anything that indicate what the call was about that is illegal.
2007-08-21 00:00:57 · answer #6 · answered by macy 3 · 0⤊ 0⤋