Are collectors calling you day and night?
Are you having trouble keeping up with your bills?
Are you drowning in debt
and living in fear of your creditors?
If you answered YES to any of the above questions and you are thinking about bankruptcy, credit
counseling, debt management plans, home equity loans or debt settlement; this
information is for YOU!
With today’s struggling economy, credit crunch, record job losses, sky
rocketing unemployment, bank failures, crashing housing market, and ailing stock
market; our economy is teetering on the edge of a total meltdown. Add these
problems to the never ending cycle of credit card debt and it's no wonder
millions of Americans are struggling just to survive.
This section of our website is designed to inform you about the collection
process and the SCARE
TACTICS used by debt collectors so that you don't have to live
in FEAR.
Your biggest weapon in the battle against debt collectors is KNOWLEDGE. Study the
following information closely and you will soon realize that there is really NOTHING to fear in the
collection process and you will be armed to do battle with even the best debt
collector.
Tactics Used By Debt Collectors
The main goal of most debt collectors is to create fear in their
targets. Collectors for credit card companies are often seasoned pros and the
average debtor doesn’t stand a chance against them. Collectors often wage
psychological warfare on debtors and could probably scare most people into
paying a credit card bill before they put food on their family's table.
Collectors typically work on a commission basis and it is their
job to try to get you to make a payment so they can make a commission. They
will often manipulate, con, trick and lie to you to scare you into making a
payment. Below are some of the most common scare tactics used by debt
collectors:
Telling you they are going to turn your account over to collections.
This is just a normal part of the collection process and a debt can flow
through several collection agencies within a span of only a few months.
Telling you they need payment ASAP…Send the payment next day
delivery.
This is not normally needed. Some collection companies have contests to see who
can collect the most the fastest. The
collector with the MOST next day delivery pouches on their wall for the month
wins a prize. What did you get? NOTHING but your hard earned money wasted on
priority shipping so someone else could make an extra buck at your expense. Remember
you didn’t get into the mess over night…and you can’t fix it overnight.
Telling you they are going to "charge-off" your account.
This means they are writing your account off as a bad debt for
accounting purposes. It really means nothing as far as the collection process
is concerned.
Telling you they’re going to garnish your wages or put a lien on
your property.
First of all, before any type of garnishment, lien or levy can
take place; a creditor must go through a lengthy legal process and then be
lucky enough for a judge grant one of these. See "Threats of Lawsuits” for
a more detailed explanation.
Acting like they’re your friend and they’re looking out for your
best interests.
They may show concern and give you advice about what you should do
in your situation. We can almost guarantee you that the collector on the other
end of the phone could care less about you than what’s for lunch that day. They
are in business to make money and rarely if ever do they care about you or the
situation you’re in.
Treating you like a child, trying to make you feel guilty, acting
like you’re in big trouble, etc.
Collectors are very deceptive and they can be very good at playing
into your emotions and making you feel like you’re the bad guy. You’re in the
same situation as millions of other Americans and there is nothing to be afraid
or ashamed of.
Calling you 10 to 20 times in a
day.
When you’re having financial difficulty, the last thing you need
is a collector continuously calling and harassing you. This is just another
tactic used to try to wear you down mentally.
Sending official looking letters
from collection agencies posing as attorney firms.
It is common to receive many different types of collection
letters. Many of them include threats of lawsuits but the fine print usually
says no attorney has even looked at your case. Thousands of these letters are
sent out daily and they are typically just another scare tactic used in the
collection process.
Telling you "We don’t work with settlement companies." or
"We don’t do settlements".
This is a common tactic used to scare people enrolled with debt
settlement companies. All major creditors and collection agencies do
settlements. They don’t want YOU to know this because they want to try to get
what they can out of you through the normal collection process. If they can
convince you they won’t work with a settlement company, they have you right
where they want you. Credit card companies don’t necessarily like settlement
companies because they know the "tricks of the trade" but they work
with settlement companies every day, regardless of what they want you to
believe.
From our experience, most collectors will tell you anything they
can think of to scare you into making a payment. Be prepared for anything they
throw at you and don't become a victim to their SCARE
TACTICS.
Legal Disclaimer
Everyone’s situation is different and not all methods presented
will work 100% of the time, the information provided is designed to help you
understand the process and arm you with knowledge. The information provided is
not intended to give anyone legal advice, and if you feel you need to speak
with an attorney for professional advice them please contact an attorney and
get legal advice. Most attorneys will offer a free consultation.
To download a copy of Scare
tactics ---Tactics Used by Debt Collectors please click the link below
Titan-Debt-Collector-Tactics.pdf (33k)