Studying for Small Claims Court
Small Claims Court is NOT the Spanish Inquisition. You should NOT expect the unexpected. Study your debt so you know what to expect. On a spelling test, you know every word that will be on the test, and you are given all the answers ahead of time so you can study. In Small Claims Court, you should be asked to pay the amount owed—NOT a higher amount. And you should be asked to pay the party you owe—NOT a debt buyer who lacks proper documentation to show that he has the authority to collect the debt. Do your homework to know how much you owe and who you owe it to. Overpayment to an unauthorized collector is not going to reduce your debt or repair your credit…and you could be in double trouble if the legitimate creditor comes along asking for the correct amount you owe. Furthermore, you could be eligible for an exemption from debt judgment. If you are head of household at a certain low level, living off Social Security benefits, or a pension or disability, you may have an exemption to collection judgments. The key to an exemption is that you have to claim it. Just because [...] Read More
Nickels & Dimes of Small Claims Court
If the debt amount is under $5,000, the case goes to Small Claims Court, land of Debt Buyers who pay a nickel to get two dimes back. It may seem like small change, but it really adds up, especially if you are on a fixed income. Sometimes it pays to ask questions. For the Debt Buyers, collection is a numbers game. They pay four or five cents on the dollar to purchase delinquent accounts, and they hope to get back twenty cents on the dollar—that is a good return, especially in bulk—but Consumer Rights can get shortchanged. Debt Buyers deal in bulk and often their cases are not well-built, but if their claims go uncontested—nobody verifies the Debt Buyer is the proper party to whom the debt is owed, and nobody verifies the amount owed—then the checks and balances are tipped toward the payment only side. Yes, everyone should pay their debts, and yes, Debt Buyers should have their cases in order. If the Debt Buyer does not have all their documentation, then the Judge can dismiss the case. If the case is dismissed without prejudice, that does not mean the matter is gone. Dismissal Without Prejudice means the Debt [...] Read More
Consumer Debt Triangle
No one wants to be tri-folded into consumer debt, but you may be getting a lot of mail and phone calls about what you owe. Beware of the Bermuda Triangle of fraudulent debt collection practices. Just because you borrowed money from Party A does not mean you owe money to Party B. It should be impossible for Party B to collect on a debt it does not own, but that does not stop some bad actors from trying. Debt buyers purchase debt in bulk for pennies on the dollar in hopes of collecting the full amount. They play a numbers game, knowing not all claims are going to pay off, but filing enough claims to make money on the ones that do. In filing mass claims, some debt collectors fail to support their claims properly with evidence. They are counting on enough people just to pay the money without asking them to prove their case. That is where unfair debt collection practices can slip in. By defending your consumer rights, you help protect the rights of all consumers in this country. Companies need to play by the rules, and the more companies have to pay out for unfair collection practices, [...] Read More