6 ms·

I read a book about the Old Debt Industry called Bad Paper a couple years ago. Its kind of shady employing ex-cons and Payday Loan types. The core document is a

I read a book about the Old Debt Industry called Bad Paper a couple years ago. Its kind of shady employing ex-cons and Payday Loan types. The core document is a spreadsheet listing debtors, SS#, last address, dates, etc. The best you can buy such directly from from lender with mostly recent debt and never worked before. But these spreadsheets trade from dealer to dealer. You dont know if its been worked before and there is any extracted debt left. AnNd they dont have the supporting documents to stand up in a lawsuit. So how do these guys make money then? They locate the debtor and hound them untilr they pay up. It doesnt matter if they are past SOL. Some of these spreadsheets sell for less than a penny on the dollar of debt. So if you can extract three percent, you've doubled your investment. A problem is that debtors tend move around a lot (from not paying their rent), so its hard to locate people, especially with a common surname.

pc86 11y ago
Does anyone know if it is illegal to pursue a debt that you know to have passed its SOL? I don't mean suing the debtor but for a collections agency to continue calling and writing after the SOL has passed.
- jrs235 11y ago
  I don't believe it is illegal for a collection agency to try to collect on a debt that is beyond SOL. If you were to not realize the debt was past SOL and made a partial payment the debt would instantly no longer be past SOL. Which is why some agencies will try to get a debtor to pay on debts beyond the SOL. However, if you know that the debt is beyond SOL you may tell the collection agency to stop contacting you. If the collector continues to call you after you send them your letter, they may be violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act[1][4] and you may be able to sue the collector for damages[2][3]. [1] http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/1405/how-can-i-stop-debt-collectors-contacting-me.html http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/1405/how-can-i-stop-d... [2] http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/rules/civil-liability-13.html http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/rules/civil-liability-13... [3] http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/damages-fdcpa-violations.html http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/damages-fdcpa-violati... [4] http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/illegal-debt-collection-practices.html http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/illegal-debt-collecti...
  - toomuchtodo 11y ago
    Who should I be going to in order to have legislation drafted, sponsored, and co-sponsored in the US to prohibit the pursuit of debt that is time-barred (and enforce penalties for attempting to do so)? This is a problem that needs to be fixed. I would like to find someone who is willing to help fix it.
    - jrs235 11y ago
      I would suggest contacting the CFPB to start. http://www.consumerfinance.gov/ http://www.consumerfinance.gov/
      - toomuchtodo 11y ago
        Any thoughts on my reaching out to Elizabeth Warren's office as well?
        jrs235 11y ago
        That would also probably be a good starting point too.
    - pc86 11y ago
      Can I ask what the damage is by allowing collection agencies who have purchased a debt to attempt to collect said debt past it's SOL? If you touch a debt (e.g. make a partial payment) it resets the SOL, so it seems there's precedent that a debt past its SOL is still a valid debt. It also seems like a beneficial negotiation tactic for the consumer. Some states have an SOL well below the ~7-year period where it falls off your credit report. So if I live in Louisiana with a 3-year SOL on consumer debt and someone tries to collect a 4-year-old debt, pay-for-delete obviously becomes a much more likely scenario. My credit goes up a lot with the removal of a delinquent account, and the collector makes money off something I could otherwise ignore without penalty.
      - toomuchtodo 11y ago

pc86 11y ago

Does anyone know if it is illegal to pursue a debt that you know to have passed its SOL? I don't mean suing the debtor but for a collections agency to continue calling and writing after the SOL has passed.

jrs235 11y ago
I don't believe it is illegal for a collection agency to try to collect on a debt that is beyond SOL. If you were to not realize the debt was past SOL and made a partial payment the debt would instantly no longer be past SOL. Which is why some agencies will try to get a debtor to pay on debts beyond the SOL. However, if you know that the debt is beyond SOL you may tell the collection agency to stop contacting you. If the collector continues to call you after you send them your letter, they may be violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act[1][4] and you may be able to sue the collector for damages[2][3]. [1] http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/1405/how-can-i-stop-debt-collectors-contacting-me.html http://www.consumerfinance.gov/askcfpb/1405/how-can-i-stop-d... [2] http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/rules/civil-liability-13.html http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/rules/civil-liability-13... [3] http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/damages-fdcpa-violations.html http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/damages-fdcpa-violati... [4] http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/illegal-debt-collection-practices.html http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/illegal-debt-collecti...
- toomuchtodo 11y ago
  Who should I be going to in order to have legislation drafted, sponsored, and co-sponsored in the US to prohibit the pursuit of debt that is time-barred (and enforce penalties for attempting to do so)? This is a problem that needs to be fixed. I would like to find someone who is willing to help fix it.
  - jrs235 11y ago
    I would suggest contacting the CFPB to start. http://www.consumerfinance.gov/ http://www.consumerfinance.gov/
    - toomuchtodo 11y ago
      Any thoughts on my reaching out to Elizabeth Warren's office as well?
      - jrs235 11y ago
        That would also probably be a good starting point too.
  - pc86 11y ago
    Can I ask what the damage is by allowing collection agencies who have purchased a debt to attempt to collect said debt past it's SOL? If you touch a debt (e.g. make a partial payment) it resets the SOL, so it seems there's precedent that a debt past its SOL is still a valid debt. It also seems like a beneficial negotiation tactic for the consumer. Some states have an SOL well below the ~7-year period where it falls off your credit report. So if I live in Louisiana with a 3-year SOL on consumer debt and someone tries to collect a 4-year-old debt, pay-for-delete obviously becomes a much more likely scenario. My credit goes up a lot with the removal of a delinquent account, and the collector makes money off something I could otherwise ignore without penalty.
    - toomuchtodo 11y ago