I know that there are lots of people that feel the way I do in regards to "debt" Are you tired of all the harassing phone calls from both live & automated systems? Calling all times of the day & night? Wether the debt is a valid one or not doesn't seem to matter to these companies that have bought your information from another company. 8 out of 10 of the so called debts that these people are harassing you to pay back isn't even a valid debt.
Most people are unaware that there is a statue of limitations on debts! Yes you read it correctly, each state has different guidelines in regards to debts. I would suggest that you visit your local library & look them up. Most laws are so old that both creditors, collection agencies, consumers & some judges don't even know they exist. There are also guidelines that collection agencies must abide by, you can view them here: http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpajump.shtm I often check this site to stay up to date on the laws. You can also file complaints against companies that break these guidelines.
A word of advise, when a collector calls you, you have the right to request that they no longer call your home & to contact you via mail only! Let them know that you are recording the phone call. NEVER volunteer your personal information, I've noticed that most of these companies have searched the internet & bought your information. The most the have is your name, address & phone number. It's also up to the collection agency to prove that the debt IS YOURS, not the other way around. It is a wise thing to keep track of all the phone calls, times & letters that you receive from collection agencies.
A lot of them will continuously sell your so-called debt to various companies and they all will report negatively on your credit reports & you've never heard of them before. Even if you've filed bankruptcy & the debt has been discharged, the original company will sell that information to another collection agency, they change the account numbers & adjust the balance to make it reflect a new account when in actuality it's the same debt.
Well I'm beyond sick of being a victim to collection agencies, I'm tired of avoiding answering my phone because of an automated debt collector or a rude cold-hearted judgmental person on the other end of the phone demanding payments for debts that I do not owe!
I was watching School House Rock a couple of weeks ago, the one about "Bill" I used to love that show as a kid, that saturday morning cartoon was just the fuel that I needed to spark a change in the laws that govern debts & debt collectors. We shouldn't live in fear of them, they are only robbing us.
Please stay posted to my blog for more information on my petition that I will be building to do just that as well as the drafting of the Bill that I plan to propose to Congress. If you have any input please feel free to share, all contributors are welcome.
Thank you
