Statutory Damages in FDCPA Cases
If you don’t already know, the FDCPA is the “Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.” According to the FDCPA’s strict liability law, you do not need to prove “actual damages” to be awarded up to $1,000 in a FDCPA claim. In addition, attorney fees that are considered “reasonable” may be included in your award if a debt collector has violated the FDCPA law.
So what are statutory damages? Statutory damages include damages that include pre-established damages connected with legal cases calculated to the amount of money that is considered to be difficult.
Prohibitions of the FDCPA laws
Under the FDCPA law lays out what a collection agency is permitted to do and what they are forbidden to do. A collections agency can get in trouble if they have committed or are committing the following acts:
Contacts you by phone before 8:00 am or after 9:00 pm
Constantly calling you to communicate with you
Contact you while at work when your employer disapproves Deceives you or misrepresent themselves when calling you
Uses abusive language to collect a debt
Publishes your name or address to a “bad debt” listing
Reports invalid information to a credit reporting agency about you
Threatens to press charges against you or have you arrested
Whether the collections agency is acting on behalf of a bank, car lender, Buy Here Pay Here car dealer, or any other such creditor, you have quite comprehensive rights under the FDCPA. Collections agencies have a tendency to be overly aggressive, crossing the legal line into harassment, so know your rights and don’t let yourself be victimized.
