When debt collection agencies persistently call consumers at all hours of the day, every day of the week that is considered harassment by federal law. Too many Americans are in between a rock and a hard place right now, with the total debt owed by U.S. households coming at a whopping $12.25 trillion. Just like there is no shortage of people in debt, there is no shortage of predatory debt collectors eager to hunt those who have fallen behind on making regular payments.
Debt is a big business in this country, with these collection agencies buying people’s debt for as little as 3 to ten cents on the dollar. With so much to gain, many collection companies can’t control themselves. They do whatever it takes to try to collect on consumer debts, even if that means breaking the law.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Telephone Consumer Protection Act are the two laws in place right now that protect consumers from predatory debt collectors. It’s important to know how these laws, which are enforced by the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and consumer law attorneys, work to protect consumers like you.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act aims to protect consumer privacy by restricting the actions of malicious debt collectors. It came out in 1977 but unfortunately, many companies continue to break the law by continuing to perform the following actions and many more, which are strictly prohibited:
Under the Telephone Consumer Protection Act, calls and texts made through the use of automatic dialing systems and prerecorded messages are prohibited if the targets of such communications did not expressly consent to them. So, if you did not tell a company like Diversified Consultants that you accept their communication via phone calls or text messages, they are breaking the law. You can explore legal options with a Miami TCPA attorney if you have been the target of incessant phone calls from collectors. Each TCPA violation can bring $500 to $1500 per call or text
HOW DID DIVERSIFIED CONSULTANTS BREAK THE LAW?
Diversified Consultants, Inc. is located in Jacksonville, Florida. It is a collection agency that was established in 1993. Currently, roughly 250-449 debt collectors work for Diversified Consultants to collect debt in all 50 states. Several court records on file confirm that the company has been accused of wrongdoing under the FDCPA and TCPA and has been sued in Tiffani Jones v. Diversified Consultants, Inc.
In this case, Tiffani Jones, a resident of Colorado, began to receive calls from Diversified in 2014 regarding a debt to Comcast. When the company called about the debt, the collector allegedly informed her that the debt would remain on her credit report until it was paid. Later, she informed the representative that she was disputing the account. Diversified Consultants, however, failed to report that the account was being disputed to the credit bureaus. Upon discovering her credit statement did not change, Ms. Jones sued Diversified Consultants for several violations. The matter was settled.
Beware of the phone number 1-800-771-5361, which is Diversified Consultant’s main line. Also be warned that these collection agencies typically call from several numbers to confuse or trick consumers into answering the phone. Find out how you may stand to receive $500 to $1500 per call or text with the counsel of a Florida TCPA attorney like Jibrael S. Hindi and his experienced team of consumer law attorneys. Call The Law Offices of Jibrael S. Hindi at 1-844-JIBRAEL today.
Here is a list of numbers that Diversified Consultants may be calling from: