Collection agency calling family members

[LostOne0069]

I'm REALLY pissed at the moment.

One of the collection agencies that my creditors sent after me has started calling my extended family members... my mom, aunts, uncles, brothers etc. They even called a cousin that I haven't seen in 20+ years!

None of which knew anything about my financial problems up until now.

The stupid thing is that I have talked to this company... RECENTLY. I talked to them about a week and a half ago and told them that I was filing bankruptcy. I verified my address and phone number etc.

ARAHGH! I wanna KILL somebody! As if I didn't have enough stress!

I'm glad I'm only about 3 weeks from filing now... at least THAT should stop the calls.

[tradewiz50]

Until you file, they can contact them everyday if they want.

[SinkingFast]

Just to be on the safe side that they don't call anyone else until you file, send them a Cease and Desist letter. Detail when they can call and what phone numbers they can call. Asking or telling them on the phone may not stop them from contacting others. Once their notified in writing, they have to abide by what you say.

[InLimbo]

Lostone, this has already happen to me also several weeks ago. Amercian Express sent mine to collections and even though I have been at the same address and phone number for over 11 years, they also called my dad then my brother, just after calling and leaving a message on our voice mail. They didn't give us any time to call them back (we were at work) and they just preceded down their list of my relatives that they got from the internet.
I called the guy and gave him our attorneys name and number and I haven't heard from him again. My dad already knew about us filing, but my sister-in-law didn't. I didn't say anything to her about what it was about but Im sure she not stupid

[anonymuse]

There are still laws the collection agencies must follow.

http://www.bkforum.com/showthread.php?t=946

[razorguns]

This is how collection agencies operate. This is their weapon of choice.

People are angry and pissed and want them to stop. So they pay them.

And this validates their action and thus, will continue with that action.

Too bad if a peson did that - they'd be charged with harassment. But a company? - completely legal.

r

[sisterfunkhaus]

How do they get phone numbers of relatives other than the ones left as references on the app? Seems like if you have a common last name it would be pretty hard for them to look anyone up. I've told my family and friends to give them my current name and address if called and tell them not to call again.

[JusticeForAll]

For us, they just looked up people with the same last name in our area. We have a pretty uncommon name, so there was only one other, my husband's ex-wife and they did call her. But she already knew about our problems and said sure, I'll tell him to call you and they never called her back.

[edwards2]

Unfortunately our personal information is out there in cyberspace for anyone to see so if a company wants to find out about your family members they can and collection agencies will be relentless. IN a bankruptcy most of them will continue their pursuit until you have a file number.

[IOIOIO]

Too bad if a peson did that - they'd be charged with harassment. But a company? - completely legal.

Until you file, they can contact them everyday if they want.

It's not legal, as anonymuse points out. The federal law is listed at:

http://www4.law.cornell.edu/uscode/html/uscode15/usc_sec_15_00001692---c000-.html

My question is: since contacting third parties is illegal what techniques can we use to constrain them to only act legally?

[anonymuse]

My question is: since contacting third parties is illegal what techniques can we use to constrain them to only act legally?

After the first contact, then its tell them and following up by certified letter that the only way to contact you is via your home number and no one else may be contacted. If you are a long ways from filing BK, it's not a good idea to tell them yet. However, if you have a lawyer and you're filing soon, your lawyer will let you give the creditor his number and to verify that he has been retained and you will be filing soon.

Chase called my parents several times--even after I said never to call there again. (They don't have to follow the rules since the laws apply to 3rd party collection agencies--not the cc agencies.) And then Chase brought in a 3rd party collection agency. Their first call was to my home and their second one (only minutes later) was to work. Needlesstosay, they got the lawyer's number and a request to only contact me via my home number.

[IOIOIO]

After the first contact, then its tell them and following up by certified letter that the only way to contact you is via your home number and no one else may be contacted. If you are a long ways from filing BK, it's not a good idea to tell them yet.

Crap. After I read the law I linked to above, I wondered about this very point. The law I linked to only specifies "debt collector," and I see from the FDCPA that an entity collecting on its own behalf and in its own name isn't subject to the restrictions in 15 USC sec 1692.

I found this statement in a discussion of the FDCPA: "However, this is not to say that creditors can just do whatever they want. They can be held accountable under other federal and state creditor and banking laws." Where can I find a list of the laws constraining a creditor collecting in his own name? Is it possible to limit them to communicating only in writing, and only to my home address?

[razorguns]

This is collection agencies on the warpath and in the industry known as 'declaring war' on the debtor.

This is also how they get most of their money. People are so pissed and so desperate to stop, they start returning phone calls and offer to settle.

Sad, but hey - it works for them. Don't like it, lobby your congressmen to implement new harassment laws.

r