On behalf of Law Offices of Mark M. Kratter, LLC on October 09, 2012
It's little surprise that more consumers are beginning to fight against credit card debt. With high incidents of identity theft and erroneous reporting information in Connecticut and around the country, consumers are sometimes left holding the bag. A recent fight over credit card debt has highlighted the practices of debt collection agencies across the nation.
A man fought against a company that sued him for over $1,500. The collection agency sought a judgment against the man for the debt, interest and fees. The company filed the lawsuit after they had acquired his MasterCard account. Although the company's complaint had copies of the man's credit card application and one of his billing statements, they ultimately lost their case after the judge told them they had to prove that it had the authority to pursue the man for the debt.
Many companies that buy consumer debt still pursue lawsuits related to credit card debt even with faulty documents, potentially questionable claims and insufficient records to prove they actually own the debt. This man's legal representation stated that the company failed to provide the credit-card transactions, amounts charged on the card and item descriptions for what the man allegedly purchased. The company fired back, claiming that it only had to provide the billing statement for the year affected to collect the debt
The judge disagreed and the company withdrew their lawsuit after they were told to provide copies of the credit card terms and conditions, proof that the debt was either assigned or sold to their company and a copy of the man's original credit card agreement. The man ultimately won his case even though he never contested the amount of the credit card debt the company was seeking. This lawsuit puts unscrupulous debt collection practices in Connecticut and around the nation under the microscope.
For many consumers, fighting back is a way to show that abusive practices by these organizations won't be tolerated. Americans struggling with high debt loads may have other options available to them as well. Filing for bankruptcy can stop debt collectors' efforts to collect credit card or other types of debt, which can take a load of stress off of those trying to get their debt under control.
Source: Thetimes-tribune.com, "More people challenging credit card debt collection," James Haggerty, Oct. 21, 2012
