Dealing with Medical Debt Collection Complaints

If you owe substantial medical debt, as so many residents of the Chicago area do, you may be dealing with particularly aggressive, and in some cases illegal, debt collection practices. According to a news release from the U.S. PIRG Education Fund, the consumer group’s recent report on “Medical Debt Malpractice” suggests that many debt collection companies may be violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) when attempting to collect on healthcare debts owed by consumers.
Incorrect Medical Debt Information
One of the major problems associated with medical debt is that the information on a consumer’s records often is inaccurate. As a result, medical debt collectors contact consumers and may even use tactics prohibited by the FDCPA to obtain debts that are not exactly owed. According to the news release, “medical debt items on credit reports are often wrong or about the wrong consumer.” A consumer will be contacted by a medical debt collector for healthcare-related debts for inaccurate amounts, or a consumer will be contacted about debts that she simply does not owe, and did not owe in the first place.
Given that medical debt “accounts for more than half of all collection items that appear on consumer credit reports,” it is extremely important to ensure that the information linked to your name is accurate.
Harassment and Other Aggressive Tactics
While the inaccuracy of information about medical debt is a serious problem, it may not be as frustrating as the harassment that consumers face from medical debt collectors, along with other aggressive debt collection tactics. The “Medical Debt Malpractice” report cites the following consumer complaints connected to aggressive medical debt collection practices:
  • Aggressive communication tactics (including calling after consumer requested communication cease, calling outside permissible hours, frequent/repeated calls, threatening calls, and the use of obscene or abusive language);
  • Continued attempts to collect medical debts that are not owed (including when the consumer never owed the debt at all, when the debt was discharged in bankruptcy, and when the debt was paid);
  • Harms related to debt verification (for instance, the collector’s failure to verify debts, or refusing to provide consumers with enough information to verify the debts);
  • Making false statements or representations (for example, attempting to collect on an inaccurate debt amount, impersonating an attorney or another official, or telling the debtor that she or he has committed a crime by not paying);
  • Improper contact with those connected to the debtor (such as contacting the debtor’s employer after being asked not to do so, contacting the debtor instead of his or her attorney, and talking to a third party about the debt owed);
  • Taking and/or threatening to take illegal action (including attempting to collect on exempt funds, seizing or attempting to seize the debtor’s property, suing the debtor without property notice, threatening to sue the debtor for an old debt, and threatening the debtor with arrest or jail time if she or he refuses to pay).
Contact a Consumer Protection Attorney in Oak Park
Have you been harassed by a medical debt collector? It is possible that the debt collector’s practices are illegal. You should speak with an experienced Oak Park consumer protection lawyer as soon as possible. Contact the Emerson Law Firm today.
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