Creditor Harassment Attorney in Queens

Defending You Against Unlawful Debt Collection Tactics

If you have missed payments for any type of debt, you can expect to hear from your creditor or lender. They will begin by calling you and sending letters. Over time, this will escalate, and they may threaten to take legal action. In other words, they may sue you. If the court grants a judgment against you, the creditor could garnish your wages, freeze your bank account, and more. Bankruptcy may STOP all collection efforts and prevent the creditor from contacting your employer, suing you in court, seizing your assets, or garnishing your wages, or levying against your bank account.

These are all perfectly legal forms of debt collection. However, some collection agencies cross the line. As a consumer, you have extensive rights under laws like the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). If a debt collector violates these rights, they are committing creditor harassment, and you likely have legal recourse.

At the Law Office of Seni Popat, our bankruptcy lawyer in Queens can help you understand your rights and expose a debt collector’s unlawful tactics. In some cases, the compensation a debtor obtains when they take a harassing debt collector to court can cover everything they originally owed.

If you believe you have experienced creditor harassment, call our attorney at (718) 340-3385 right away. Get started with a free consultation without Queens bankruptcy lawyer to assess your situation.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

Collection agencies that own consumer debt must adhere to strict guidelines during their collection attempts. If they don’t, consumers can sue them for damages.

Under the FDCPA, the following collection tactics are federally prohibited:

• Calling you at unreasonable hours (i.e. before 8am or after 9pm)
• Calling your place of work (if they have been told they cannot try to reach you there)
• Contacting you directly when they know that your attorney is representing you
• Lying about their identity
• Lying about what you owe
• Threatening you with a consequence that cannot or will not occur (e.g. arrest, asset seizure, etc.)
• Threatening you with violence
• Using obscene language
• Verbally abusing you
• Publicizing (or threatening to publicize) information about your debt
• Any other unfair, deceptive, or harassing actions

Like many other states, New York has its own debt collection regulations. Under the New York State Debt Collection Procedures Law, creditors and debt collectors cannot:

• Give your employer details about your debt unless the creditor has obtained a judgment against you
• Threaten you with a tactic they could not or would not undertake
• Threaten you with additional fees and penalties (beyond what you owe)
• Contact you or a family member repeatedly and/or at unusual hours (i.e. in a way that would be deemed harassment)
• Conduct what appears to be a judicial process or otherwise act as though a governmental entity has authorized their collection tactics

Even if we decide that taking a debt collector to court is not your best option, our bankruptcy attorney in Queens may use other methods to end their attempts. We are a debt-relief law firm, which means we have a wide variety of strategies at our disposal to help you improve your financial circumstances and obtain freedom from relentless creditors. We may verify your debt (i.e. make sure it’s yours), represent you in a written and oral capacity, send a notice to agencies that orders them to stop contacting you, help you file bankruptcy, or utilize one of many other forms of debt relief. Reach out to a Hicksville creditor harassment attorney today.

Let’s get started with a complimentary consultation. Call (718) 340-3385 or send us an online message. Offices located in Glen Oaks, Deer Park, Hicksville, and Brooklyn.