My Noogee

Posts Tagged ‘collection agencies’

Keep an eye out if you are trying to purchase tickets to Colts-Saints game. Criminals love to take advantage of the fans. Travel ploys in all types of shapes and sizes come out of the woodwork whenever there is a landmark sporting event.

Last year there was an email sent out in Pennsylvania attempting to trick Steelers fans. Saying that they are in charge of the Visa Super Bowl Winning Contest, with an NFL logo on top, scammers promised $100,000 to fans and two Super Bowl Tickets. Sounds too good to be true? That’s because it is. The catch was that in order to retrieve their prize the fan had to wire the email senders $3,000 to cover taxes.

Already, there are emails being pumped through the internet about the upcoming World Cup. One promises three free tickets and two million dollars. Despite the fact that there are spelling errors throughout and a shoddy cut and paste job with the World Cup Logo, there are bound to be a number of victims.

Another ploy to keep an eye out for is the postcard scam. Postcards promising packages similar to the ones just mentioned, on “travel certificates.” One thing to keep in mind is that unethical scam companies are able to cut and paste logos or art that they want to use, lending a false sense of authenticity to whatever is being sent out.

Finally, there are travel “certificates” that claim that you’ve won a trip to the Super Bowl and an amazing Super Bowl package, complete with hotel room. Yet the hotel you get to is a dump, and you have to book your airline tickets through the “contest office,” and these tickets are way more expensive than you could get on your own. And the kicker is, once you have arrived at the dump of a hotel, you find out that the package never included tickets to the game.

Mallory Megan is employed by a debt collection company. Also she writes stories on business and finance, consumer spending and collection agencies. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service

It is important that debt collectors respect your privacy. According to the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act, debt collectors cannot exchange information about people that owe a debt. They can’t distribute a list of debtors to its creditor subscribers. They cannot advertise a debt for sale, or compile a list of debtors to its creditor subscribers.

They cannot advertise a debt for the use of sale, or make a list of debtors for sale to others. They are prohibited from leaving messages with third parties asking the debtor to call them. The exterior of envelopes sent by collections agents cannot indicate the purpose of the letter in any way. Postcards are never allowed.

A collector is permitted to send mail in care of another person only if you reside at that address or if you receive your mail at that address. If you share your address with others the mail should be labeled “private” or personal. Basically, the letter can’t give any appearance alluding to the fact that it is a collections bill.

A debt collector that knows your name and telephone number and thus can contact you directly is not allowed to contact your neighbors or family members. If they cannot locate you and they do call your family members or neighbors, the collector must identify themselves by name but not disclose the fact that they are a debt collector.

They can’t tell others you owe money or speak to them about account details. They cannot contact the person more than once, can’t leave information about a the money on another person’s voicemail and they have to disclose the name of the collection agency but only if asked.

If you are being contacted by a collector looking for your former roommate, relative or neighbor, the Fair Debt Collection Practice Act says a collector can only be in contact with you to find the location of the person who owes the money. Only if the collector believes you have new information can they be in touch again. If a collector contacts you repeatedly about a third party that can be considered harassment and you can file a complaint.

Mallory McGuinness-Hickey is employed by Rapid Recovery Solution and writes free lance articles on debt collection and finances.

If the person in debt agrees to pay, the bill collector will record this commitment and will check up later to make sure that the payment was made. If a debtor does not pay, the collector will prepare a statement about their delinquency for the credit department of whoever they work for. In extreme cases, collectors may call for repossession, hand over the account to an attorney or disconnect service.

Collectors must be careful to abide by the Federal and State procedures that apply due to the fact that people’s financial problems have the capacity to be a sensitive issue. The Federal Trade Commission says that a collector must positively identify the person who owes money before they can announce that the purpose of the call is to collect debt.

The bill collector will then issue a statement, sometimes known as a “mini-Miranda” that lets the customer know that they are in fact a collector.

Collectors also must follow the state laws that say how they must proceed. Now, a large portion of agencies utilize electronic systems to assist debt collectors when it comes to remembering all of the regulations and laws regarding each call.

Debt collectors use computers and an assortment of automated systems in their jobs. Companies will keep track of their accounts by using computers, and debt collectors are able to keep track of past collection attempts and other information in notes that are kept on the computer. As with most call centers, collectors use headsets instead of regular phones. Automatic dialing lets bill collectors work efficiently and quickly and with no chance of dialing the wrong number. Typically, in house bill and account collectors work in an office environment, people who work for a third party agency may work in a call center type environment.

The work has the capacity to be quite stressful; people get angry when they are questioned about their debts. The best collectors must face rejection on a regular business, but still be ready to make their next call in a positive voice. Fortunately for them, some customers appreciate help in resolving their debts.

Mallory Megan works for a collection agencies agency. She also writes articles on business, finance, the credit industry and debt collection. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service

Despite the fact that it is always a good idea to hire more workers to add to your ranks, sustaining a good relationship with the best employees in a collections agency is crucial. It has become a recent trend that tenured collectors are now requesting to work at home.

It may be a smart move to consider accommodations for them keeping in mind that their commissions have been lower as of late, and the stress of the commute or a need to spend more time with family may turn your best collectors away.

Work at home programs haven’t become an every day thing yet, but there are a few companies that are making exceptions for certain bill collectors. Generally these collectors are the best at what they do and might like to work from home a couple of days a week.

The way that working at home works is simple. Usually, the collector is set up with a computer that can access the computers at the office and they are given designated phone equipment to use. The beauty of it is that everything the collector does can be monitored still, as if he or she was working in the call center itself.

But before you start to send employees to work at home, it is imperative to assess the good and bad qualities of each collector. But studies have illustrated that if a collector is a decent candidate to work from home, they will be more productive, take fewer breaks, and without social interaction with other employees they can hone in on the job itself.

There are still a good amount of issues that have to be addressed when one thinks about working at home. First, there are potential data security performance control and data security issues. Additionally, in light of all of the recent laws impacting the collections business, it is not probable that we will know of many formal work at home programs anytime soon. Yet experts believe it is not good to alienate the best workers who are inquiring about work at home. They predict that we will see more collection agencies allowing collectors to work from home within the next five years.

Mallory Megan works for a debt collection agency. She also composes articles on business, finance, consumer spending and collection agencies. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service

Pay cuts and Layoffs put more people into bankruptcy last year, and researchers allege that the situation will not be likely to improve until the unemployment problem is resolved. In Wisconsin, bankruptcy filings raised to 30 percent in 2009. This came on top of a 35 percent increase in 2008.

Bankruptcy lawyers claim that not only is it layoffs and firings that are motivation to file. It’s the losses of once-regular over time pay and full time status that have left consumers unable to keep up with monthly payments that in the past were not a problem to take care of.

U.S. Bankruptcy Court records illustrate that there were 27,413 bankruptcy petitions filed in Wisconsin in 2008. More than eighty percent of these cases were Chapter 7 cases. Chapter 7 takes out medical bills, credit card balances, and other types of debt. Recent Research by The Associated Press illustrated that more than 1.4 million bankruptcies were filed in 2009, an increase of about 32% from 2008.

And although bankruptcy takes care of the looming debt and gives debtors a fresh financial start, consumers often remain unemployed and are not able to find any new type of employment to get an acceptable income again.

As if that wasn’t enough, unless the economy gets good enough for industries to start hiring again, there isn’t much reason to believe that bankruptcies will go down in 2010. Analysts have mentioned that home foreclosures will continue to pile up in 2010 because people who previously had adequate credit have lost employment and cannot keep up with payments.

Bankruptcy could seem like a good option to get a fresh start, but it has a negative effect on your credit report for ten years, leaving you unable to get a car, place of residence, or employment. Before declaring bankruptcy, it might be a wise decision to speak with your creditors and see if some sort of repayment plan can be worked out.

Mallory McGuinness works for a debt collection agency. Also she writes articles on business, finance, the credit industry and collection agencies. Grab a totally unique version of this article from the Uber Article Directory

We’ve all seen them – the flashy “Cash4Gold” commercials, at times they feature people on the street dancing, or at other times, M.C. Hammer promising fast cash in turn for your old, unused jewelry. Although human nature makes us want to unconditionally trust the dancing person or even with his track record, M.C. Hammer, it turns out that Cash4Gold may not in fact be too legit to quit.

In recent news, Representative Anthony D. Weiner fingered Cash4Gold because of their bad business practices. Making a speech in front of jewelry appraisers that were legitimate, Weiner requested consumers to take their business to a place that they knew was valid as opposed to the shady mail in gold exchange.

The way that Cash4Gold works is that consumers use special envelopes to mail jewelry and gold to the company’s offices in Florida. According to the advertisements, the company will provide customers with a quick appraisal of the value of the items they have sent, and then they will mail them a check for that amount.

Apparently customers are given a twelve day period in which they are able to return their check and get the jewelry back. Yet according to research by Rep. Weiner and Consumer Reports, Cash4Gold paid out only 11 to 29 percent of the actual value of valuables sent to them, and they often refused to send jewelry back when it was asked to do so within the 12 day period.

Weiner proposed that the Federal Trade Commission should do some research the whole Cash4Gold problem, adding that he wants to introduce laws that would regulate companies that use mail to exchange cash and jewelry.

This legislation would put fines on companies that melt down gold without the owner’s permission or before a return period has been passed. It will make companies allow enough time for consumers to request a refund and make sure that companies actually insure the jewelry they are returning to consumers.

Mallory Megan works for a debt collection agency. Also she writes articles on business, finance, the credit industry and collection agencies. Get a totally unique version of this article from our article submission service

Discover Financial Services, facing the demand for added funding while profits are diminishing and credit card charge offs are amplifying, received only a indifferent response from the equity market as a public offering last week of its ordinary shares had to be priced at a 12 percent markdown to the market.

Right now there is a outstanding mass of risk aversion when it comes to credit cards, said Dan North, chief economist at Euler Hermes ACI, a trade credit insurance firm.

The credit fright started last fall. As a result, people have begun employing their credit cards less, meaning less interchange proceeds from transactions. The credit card firms have also become watchful, carving credit lines, hiking up fees and altering interest rates from fixed to changing, both in response to the need for more revenue now and to prepare for the restrictions from the Credit Cardholders Bill of Rights, which goes into effect next year.

According to North, Discover cardholders have frail credit ratings, on a whole, than holders of MasterCards, Visas and American Express cards, though those companies are fighting the same financial challenges.

All of those factors have also made it difficult for a new competitor in the market, Revolution Money, a payment platform complete with credit card and money transfer service designed to compete with major card companies Visa, MasterCard, Discover and American Express. Revolution LLC, headed by AOL founder Steve Case, had hoped to compete mainly by offering better security through a chip-based card and lower interchange fees to merchants.

A group of niche players that are acquiring more traction now, according to a Scripps Howard News Service report, is peer-to-peer lending (P2P), which effectively avoids traditional financial institutions. P2P lending services bundle pledges from individual investors and offer small loans to other individuals at attractive rates, a model that could evolve into direct competition for credit cards.

Mallory Megan is employed by a debt collection agency. She also writes stories on business, finance, and collections agencies.

In one of its last acts before approving the state budget late last month, the Assembly gave its approval to the New Jersey Fair Debt Collection Practices Act by a 60-18 vote. That sent the measure to the state Senate, where it initially will be considered by the Commerce Committee.

Advocates say the legislation would supplement existing federal protections and curb collectors’ ability to contact a debtor at work or at “any time and place” known to be inopportune. It also will protect consumers from harassing, intimidating or abusive collection processes and give them a way to dispute and verify debt information to ensure its certainty.

“We’re doing nothing here to relieve a consumer of a rightful debt, but this is a fairness bill that will ensure consumers are not harassed by unscrupulous debt collectors,” said Burzichelli, D-Paulsboro. He sponsored the act along with Assemblymen Matthew W. Milam, D-Cape May Court House, Wayne P. DeAngelo, D-Hamilton and Paul Moriarty, D-Turnersville.

State consumer affairs officials receive numerous complaints about debt collection tactics each year, and that number appears to be on the upswing in recent months as more people struggle with their finances.

“There are many people who have fallen behind and are in debt, and some (debt collectors) are telling them they could be drug in to court tomorrow if they don’t pay up right away or making other threats,” Burzichelli said. “We want to make sure people are aware of their rights and their responsibilities (about paying debts).

The bill would prohibit, with limited exceptions, a debt collector from communicating with a debtor earlier than 8 a.m, and later than 9 p.m. At the debtor’s place of employment, although the collector may send a single letter or make one phone call per month to the debtor at their place of employment if the debt collector hasn’t been able to contact the debtor at home.

If the debt collector understands the debtor is represented by an attorney and can quickly confirm the attorney’s name and address. Advocates of the bill say it’s important legislation in troubling economic times.”Just because someone is in debt does not mean they forfeit their rights to be treated fairly,” Moriarty said.

Mallory works for a debt collection agency. Also, she composes stories on business, finance, and collections. .

Commissioners on Monday deferred a decision to hire a collection agency because of delinquent ambulance bills obtained in unincorporated regions of Flagler County. Instead, county staff will do more research and the item will be brought back to commissioners for discussion sometime in July.

Commissioner Alan Peterson announced during the meeting that he wasn’t ready to sign at the dotted line in the piggyback contract alongside officials in Orange County because he wanted to be informed on how the collection agency does its business.

He wanted to know how frequently the agency calls residents about their delinquent accounts and what times of the day those calls were made. He also wished to know how many written notices would be sent to residents in arrears for their emergency medical care during an ambulance ride.

“My overriding concern on this whole issue is that unlike most bills people incur, this is an involuntary expense,” Peterson said. “People don’t normally choose to take an ambulance for medical care.”

Commissioner Barbara Revels said she also wanted to ensure the county wasn’t getting into business with a “heavy-handed” collection agency that could result in consumer backlash, like some that’s now being seen around the country.

Under the county’s current billing methods, insurance companies are billed for a patient who receives medical care and transport. If the patient is not insured or the insurance does not cover the full balance due, a third-party billing company steps in and attempts to collect the debt through written notices with the help of information verification from Tax Collector Suzanne Johnston’s office. The account is kept open and debt collection attempts continue for up to a year, at which time the debt is moved to a “bad debt” list and charged off by commissioners.

The debts are not placed on residents’ credit reports and pugnacious telephone tactics are not used for collection.

Peterson also said if the board make the determination to move forward in hiring a collection agency, he’d like to see county officials add a new level of regular review to the accounts on its “bad debt” list before they’re turned over for collection.

“There should be a review of each and every account to see if it makes sense to turn it over to the collection agency,” Peterson said.

He requested county staff obtain the proposed collection agency’s procedures and has asked them to present an outline of the policy they will use for reviewing accounts before they’re turned over to the agency sometime before the end of July.

“We haven’t had a collection agency up to this point, so I don’t think it would hurt to delay the decision two weeks,” said County Administrator Craig Coffey.

Mallory is employed by a debt collection agency. Also, she writes stories on business, finance, and collections. .

The amount of a cash payout on a structured settlement depends largely on the dollar value placed on a claimant’s pain and suffering and terms offered by buyout firms. In a structured settlement, claimants can wait months and years to receive compensation for personal injury caused by motor vehicle accidents, or included in trust funds, or annuities.

By conferring with a funding agency that provides a lump sum payment for a structured settlement, individuals and families can become conscious of financial freedom and carry out some lifelong dreams. A lump sum cash payout on structured settlement can displace an annual income for disabled persons, provide money for college, or supply funds to consolidate outstanding debt, such as home and automobile loans or charge card accounts.

In a doubtful financial market, cashing in today on future income could mean the difference between staying financially steady and bankruptcy. Part of a cash payout on structured settlement can be used to purchase more secure, high-yield investment instruments, such as commodities mutual funds, certificates of deposit, or nearly invincible, government-backed U.S. Treasury bills.

Many funding agencies charge as much as 50 cents on the dollar to convert settlements to cash. To assess whether losing up to 50% of future income is a wise choice, claimants should seek advice with a banker, insurance agent, or financial planner.

Claimants should skim through on-line funding agencies to obtain various free quotes on what it will take to cash in recurrent payments before committing to any one agency. Intelligent money management will certify that claimants not only receive adequate and equitable compensation, but also that monies will provide a steady, safe income stream for a number of years.

Insurance companies realize that men and women are living longer, more productive lives. For that reason, a cash payout on structured settlement can be a real gamble. Some suggestions for handling lump sum payments include using funds to eliminate debt, especially big-ticket items, such as delinquent back taxes, outstanding medical bills, or student loans. Before taking the plunge to sell structured settlements, recipients need to ask: How much money will be accumulated by waiting on periodic payments? How much indebtedness would a lump sum payment eliminate? In the final analysis the decision to negotiate a cash payout on structured settlement plans is a personal one.

Mallory is employed by a debt collection agency. She also writes stories on business and finance, and collections. .