Posted on 04/26/2010 3:49:38 PM PDT by jerry557
Among debt collectors, Steven Katz is known as a “credit terrorist.” For years, he has run what he calls the Steven Katz School of Bill Collector Education, otherwise known as the “credit terrorist training camp.”
Mr. Katz, a 58-year-old accountant in suburban Tucson, spends his free time schooling debtors on the finer points of consumer protection law to help them turn the tables on debt collectors. On occasion, he thumbs his own nose at them too.
“How many times can I sue you? Let me count the ways,” he wrote under his pseudonym, Dr. Tax, in a March posting on Inside ARM, a debt collectors’ Web site.
A former bill collector himself, Mr. Katz rebelled after a debt buyer damaged his credit score with what he says was a bogus bill. Mr. Katz sued, and in 2003 he collected his first damage award, a $1,000 check that he now keeps framed behind his desk.
“The bill collectors, when they call, make you feel like the only option you have is to lay down and play dead. That’s not true,” said Mr. Katz said, who does not charge for his advice. “Nothing validates this more than getting a check.”
Call this movement revenge of the (alleged) deadbeats. Even as collectors try to recoup debts from millions of Americans struggling to pay their bills, a small but growing number of lawyers and consumers are fighting back against what they describe as harassment, unscrupulous practices — and, most important to their litigiousness, violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
In fact, 8,287 federal lawsuits were filed citing violations of the act in 2009, a 60 percent rise over the previous year, according to WebRecon, a site that tracks collection-related litigation and the most litigious consumers and lawyers on behalf of debt collectors.
(Excerpt) Read more at finance.yahoo.com ...
Why are Yahoo! and the New York Times consistently on the side of the “little guy” who somehow cannot ever pay his or her bills?
I am not saying there aren’t bad bill collectors out there, but frankly, 99% of them are because you owe them money...a novel concept to Liberals, who believe the world is indebted to them.
Collectors are like cops: They will lie to you at the drop of a hat.
I understand not liking debt collectors, but if you truly owe someone money, isn’t paying it back the right thing to do, or are we beyond that now as a society? Too many individuals now think that everybody owes them a living and whatever excuse they have for not paying a bill is justified. Remember when being behind and bankruptcy were, at best, very embarrassing and shameful? I’m only 50, and I sure do!
Indeed. Pay your bills. 100% guaranteed to keep the bill collectors from bothering you.
You simply post this without thinking?
You don’t care about the antisemitic tone of this?
Get with the program man!
You have obviously missed the threads on here with people advocating that government employee contracts be declared null and void for no other reason than they do not want to pay them. Yes, we are well beyond that point in our society.
I wouldn’t go that high. My ex-wife (falsely) used my name as a co-signer on a credit card she promptly ran up to over $20K and then filed for bankruptcy during our divorce. When they tried to come after me and even threatened me because I was “co-signer”, I called them on it.
Correct but why stop there. Don't incur debt in the first place.
It is OK to spend yesterday's money. Spend today's money if you must. But never spend tomorrow's money.
Plus don’t talk to Aliens because it is dangerous, Oh and all aspirin is alike.
“They will lie to you at the drop of a hat.”
yup. I would do that when I was a bill collector.
(35 years ago, so my input is way outta date.)
At the time, the most common reason for not paying bills was divorce, with booze a close second or a combination of the two.
People should not spend more than they have. Then no calls from bill collectors.
Yes there are a very few times when people get unjustly stuck with bills.
With the way people are being layed off, salaries declining, taxes going up, and now eventually everyone being forced to buy health insurance....the last thing in most people’s mind is some credit collection agency demanding some debt be paid from several years ago.
It’s reality of this economy.
I mean a debt collector can call and harrass all they want. But if the person’s bank account shows a zero balance, they are wasting their time.
Don't believe it. A college once got a collection agency after me for money I most obviously didn't owe. The college had no record of my owing any money. Didn't matter. Once the collection agency was on me it stayed on me for years. Wasn't worth a lawsuit so that stayed on my credit record.
Well, when the little guys see the big guys getting bailouts, the little guys probably figure they're paying the banks one way or the other.
Doesn't make it right but it is what it is.
I worked my first civilian job as a “debt collector” after getting out of the service. Worst job I’ve ever had.
That’s not actually true; I periodically get collection calls for some Airman; they’ve threatened to notify my command and everything. (heh heh!)
I’ve been involved in this industry for over 20 years. 99.25 percent of the people owe the money. They shouldn’t be abused, but if they owe the money andvrefuse to pay then they can be sued. The entire credit system relies upon the Creditors’ ability to enforce their rights, involuntarily seizing debtor property if necessary. The word credit comes from the Latin word “credito,” or I believe. If everyone is free to simply ignore their just debts, the system will collapse and interests will go up even higher than they are now. In short, systemic collapse.
Currently we are undergoing a massive assault on creditor rights. From GM, to the US government creditor rights are being shredded, like cabbage from a Ginsu knife.
The fact is there is going to be a massive repudiation/forgiveness of debt around the globe. This will correspond with the complete collapse of the fiat money system now in place. The dollar and all other currencies are debt based. They are born into existence by someone borrowing it into existence. This system is not sustainable and will shortly suffer the fate of all prior fiat currencies.
Well, no...why don't we see how much you know? What is your position on 10 day violations and SOL violations? BK violations?
What portions of the FDCPA do you consider to be unreasonable?
Well, no.
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