FTC Fined Debt Collection Firm $800,000

In a recent settlement with the Federal Trade Commission, a debt buyer and a debt collection law firm have been fined almost $800,000. The two companies worked together to scam people with fabricated fees, on top of their payments. Debt buyer Security Credit Services and attorneys at the Jacob Law Group worked together since 2006 to collect consumer debts nationwide, according to the FTC’s report. Security Credit buys consumer debt accounts and contracts with Jacob Law to collect on them; the two Mississippi businesses violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), and the FTC Act, thousands of times.The law firm told people that a fee of $18.95 for immediately making payments on their debts (via authorizing electronic checks or credit or debit card payments) over the phone was unavoidable. The firm did not mention that that people could avoid the fee by mailing in the payment or paying online, the FTC said. And, Jacob Law Group also falsely threatened to sue people as a means of getting them to pay—this, too is illegal under the FCPA. Since just 2008, the two companies collected at least $799,958 in fraudulent fees from consumers.If a collection agency has harassed you, you may be entitled to money damages up to $1,000.00, based on the FDCPA, which has been around for almost 35 years. The FDCPA is a federal law that applies to every state. In other words, everyone is protected by the FDCPA. The FDCPA is essentially a laundry list of what debt collectors can and cannot do while collecting a debt, as well as things debt collectors must do while collecting a debt. Plus, the FDCPA has a fee-shift provision. This means, the collection agency pays your attorney’s fees and costs. Founding attorney, Michael Agruss, has settled over 1,500 debt collection harassment cases. We want to help you, too.