Rosenthal Act Fair Debt Collection Protection For Consumers
You've heard of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act ("FDCPA"). Well, California has codified its
own version under the Rosenthal Act found in California Civil Code Section 1788 et seq. The California Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was adopted in 1977. It regulates the conduct of “debt collectors.” The California statute prohibits numerous deceptive, dishonest, unfair and unreasonable debt collection practices by debt collectors, and it also regulates the form and content of communications by collectors to debtors and others.
Your Rights In a Nutshell:
1. The Debt Collector Must Disclose the Purpose of their Contact the First Time They Communicated with You;
2. They Must Follow-up in Writing Soon After Their Contact with You; usually within 5 days;
3. They Must Disclose Their Identity;
4. You Have a Right To Dispute The Debt;
5. You Have a Right To Stop the Communications;
6. A collector cannot provide any information to any third party; nor can they contact you at unusual times or places, such as work;
7. Debt Collectors cannot threaten criminal actions or physical threats of harm;
8. They cannot make any misrepresentations as to their identity, the amount of debt or to whom the debt is owed; nor legal misrepresentations as to their limitations and your rights.
YOU HAVE A RIGHT TO SUE HARASSING DEBT COLLECTORS that cross the line and violate the law.
Here Are Some Important Steps You Can Take To Help Your Case:
- Save copies of all letters and notices from collection agencies.
- Save all phone messages and voice mails- this is very important!
- Make note of your conversations with these bill collectors.
- Call a consumer rights attorney to help you recover your damages.
The law says that any debt collector who violates your rights may be made to pay you statutory damages of up to $1,000, actual damages, and attorney's fees and costs, if you win your FDCPA case. You may be responsible for any other costs in your lawsuit.
Most attorneys who practice in this area of law known as Consumer Protection Attorneys, will not take any fees up front to take your case and will only collect a fee in the event they are successful in obtaining a settlement on your behalf. This is known as a contingency fee arrangement.
