Debtcollection Articles - DailyFinance.com

More Americans Haunted by the Ghost of Phone Bills Past Due

3:10PM 1/30/2012

Sprint Nextel Corp, AT&T, Deutsche Telekom, Family Money

Far too many customers aren't paying their phone bills on time, if you ask the phone companies. Three of the top four submitters to third-party collection agencies are major telephone carriers. And the reasons why should come as no surprise.

Don't Get Scammed: Free Fraud Hotline Aims to Aid, Educate

7:00AM 11/08/2011

By Loren Berlin

Consumer Ally

This is International Fraud Awareness Week, when various companies and nonprofit organizations work to educate people about how to avoid becoming victims of financial fraud. And we need the help: Last year, American consumers lost more than $1.7 billion to financial scams.

If a company offers debt management, be wary

4:45PM 3/15/2010

By Martha C. White

Debt, Credit

With so many Americans in dire financial straits these days, it's no wonder that advertisers of "settle your debt" services for debt management have found an eager audience. These companies promise to slash your debt by thousands, even tens of thousands of dollars. But is it too good to be true?...

10 tips to cut your expenses

4:00PM 11/16/2009

By Barbara Bartlein

Credit, Economizer, Personal Finance, Saving Money

While some are declaring that the recession is over, the good news has not trickled down to my pocketbook. My husband and I are looking closely at all our expenses to cut our overhead. Our wages have decreased in the last year, mostly due to the slow down in my business, but costs have continued to...

Credit card addiction: How to spot the warning signs and break the habit

6:00AM 11/02/2009

By Gina Roberts-Grey

Debt, Recession Diaries, Credit Reports, Credit Cards, Credit, Economizer

With more than $40,000 in credit card debt and more than 20 credit cards to her name, Diana Ryan didn't think she had a problem -- even though her husband had no idea just how many pieces of plastic she had tucked in her wallet. "It sounds cliche," Ryan says, "but I thought I could stop at any...

Debt collection practices act needs updating

4:00PM 10/22/2009

By Lita Epstein

Debt, Credit Cards, Credit

How often have you gotten a robocall or other annoying call from a debt collection agency for a debt you never incurred? I get them regularly because someone who had my telephone number before me didn't pay her bills. Some of them just won't believe I'm telling them the truth that I'm not that...

5 things to know about debt collector's calls

5:30PM 9/11/2009

By Mitch Lipka

Economy, Credit, Consumer Ally

Being in debt is challenging enough before you add the pressure of the debt collector.The nature of business doesn't lend itself to friendliness -- although they could give it a try once in a while. With so many people unemployed and the economy still gasping, more and more people are having to...

Facebook Jezebels: Using social networks to collect debts

4:00PM 5/05/2009

By Bruce Watson

Sex Sells, Relationships, Technology, Crime

Forget knives and handguns, slingshots and the atom bomb; the world's most dangerous weapon is still the human libido. As far back as Homer's Odyssey and the Old Testament, lust was the go-to weapon when arrows and armies failed. Even today, Sirens can still draw men to wreck their boats and...

Debt collectors going after the dead

7:00AM 3/04/2009

By Aaron Crowe

Debt, Relationships, Consumer Complaints, Credit, Banking

As if the recession, high unemployment and home foreclosures isn't giving them enough business, debt collectors are finding new clients in the deceased. Actually, it's the survivors of the dead. And while they don't have a legal obligation to assume the debt, they sometimes do out of respect for...

Debt collectors hit hard by the recession too

6:30PM 1/27/2009

By Zac Bissonnette

Economy, Credit

With all the trouble that people are having paying their bills, you might think that this would be a boom time for debt collectors -- those shameless mercenaries charged with harassing deadbeat credit cardholders.But it isn't. Although delinquencies are up and there are tons of accounts for...