How Debt Collectors Find Debtors

It can be rather difficult to hide from a debt collector, especially in this modern age of information and the digital means of accessing and storing it. Even with just a debtor’s name, collectors can do their research using public records and resources to dig deeper and find more personal information, and here are some of the ways this information is tracked down through various agencies:– The creditor – Debt collectors typically begin here when trying to contact you, as creditors usually maintain up-to-date information of their debtors, such as addresses and phone numbers. These make the collector’s job much easier from the outset if current and valid.– Credit reports – Collectors can learn more about you and your payment history by accessing a past credit report. This method comes at certain costs, however, and is used sparingly as such.– Data brokers – When you sign up for something online, provide personal information, or even fill out a survey, it is possible that this information will be collected by a “data aggregator.” These are agencies which gather demographic information and purchase-histories from consumers and sell this information to interested parties. There is often an option to “opt out” of data aggregation, so be sure to look out for this when submitting any personal information online.– Government agencies – From voters’ registration and the postal service to the Department of Motor Vehicles, collection agencies are sometimes able to access information that debtors provide to government organizations in an effort to obtain and verify a debtor’s up-to-date contact information.– Public records – Online public records are more prevalent now than ever before, and debt collectors use this to their advantage whether through the internet, phonebook, or county records office to reach your information.– Skip tracers – Skip tracers are specialized investigators who use both traditional and technological methods to locate an individual, often someone who is hiding from the law in some way. Although they have a more limited role in the 21st century and are legally prohibited from using a variety of “tricks of the trade” which were legal in the past, they are still sometimes used as last-resorts by collectors to locate a debtor.If you are being harassed over a debt, you may be entitled to money damages. Get up to $1,000 for harassment, and $500-$1,500 for illegal robocalls. Under various state and federal laws, we will help you based on a fee-shift provision and/or based on a contingency fee. That means, the collector pays your attorney’s fees and costs. You won’t pay us a penny. We have settled thousands of debt collection harassment cases. Let us help you today. Contact America’s Consumer Lawyer at 888-572-0176 to stop the harassment once and for all.