On Monday, August 14, 2006 NPR's Talk of the Nation did a live story “In
Mr. Robinson also stated that the debt collection industry exploded because
of tactics.
Mr. Robinson went on to say that "there is no one there to tell them their
rights"
Though, this is sometimes true when someone applies for credit, they in most cases sign something which tells them what will happen if they don't pay. Just who's responsibility is it to tell them their rights once they sign that paper? Whose job is it to tell criminals their rights when they break the law? Is it every consumer's job to educate them selves on what will happen to them if they do something wrong? There are many websites people can look up their rights, one being The Federal Trade Commission.
The debt collection industry has been cast in an unfavorable light for years, and many agencies and associations have been trying to get rid of that negative perception. For example, ACA has been out there since 1939 and has over 5,500 members worldwide for the purpose of educating, and establishing ethical standards for the credit & debt collection industry. I created Credit & Collections and my books so people who want to collect learn the laws and procedures, not how to break them.
Not all collection agencies break the law, though that was not brought up in the interview, the focus was on Massachusetts and agencies and collectors that do break the law, though Robinson stated that he was referring to debt collectors that "purchased debt".
The general conception among many, who might owe money, is that all collection agencies are bad. Some of the time, debt collectors as the "bad" guy because someone feels bad about themselves for having this debt and being called on it, and has to blame someone, and that is normally not themselves.
I know when I was in debt and debt collectors were calling me, I hated them. I only hated them because they were calling me, didn't matter what time of day. I hated them because I hated myself for being in the situation of a debt collector having to call me. People hate to be embarrassed or feel inadequate so you hate the bill collector. Because when they call you asking for money you might be insulted. (Pride is a powerful thing.) I hated them because I felt like I had to lie, they didn't make me lie, and I wanted to lie because I felt bad and I wanted to get off the phone. I felt bad that I could not pay, I felt bad that the only way to get them to stop calling was to lie and say I would send money. All the while hoping something would happen in my life to afford me more money to pay my bills. I didn't even hate the bill collector the most; I hated the phone the most. I didn't have caller ID, every time the phone rang I immediately thought it was a bill collector, which made me anxious.
The point is, I was in that situation, whether it was voluntary such as overspending or inescapable such as a job loss or medical emergency bills. If you are in that situation, that's it, you're in it. You have to help yourself get out of that situation; no one
can do it for you. So you can blame yourself, you can blame the phone company, your bank, or the bill collector, take your pick.
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