What constitutes harassment under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)?

Harassment under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) in South Dakota includes any act that is abusive or harassing in nature when collecting a debt. This includes frequent phone calls, profane or obscene language, and threats of physical harm. Additionally, debt collectors cannot give false information about a consumer, such as inflated debt amounts, falsely accusing a consumer of committing fraud, or using false legal authority to threaten a consumer. Furthermore, debt collectors cannot threaten to take action that they legally cannot take, such as seizing property or taking legal action against a consumer. Harassment also includes threats to disclose information about a consumer’s debt to third parties such as friends, family, or an employer. Debt collectors cannot contact third parties for information about a consumer, and they are barred from publishing the name of a consumer or discussing the debt publicly. They cannot contact a consumer by postcard or collect a debt with post-dated checks. The FDCPA also states that debt collectors cannot use unfair or unconscionable means of collecting a debt, such as charging excessive interest or other fees associated with the debt. If the debt collector does any of these things, they may be in violation of the FDCPA, and the consumer has the right to file a complaint against them.

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What constitutes harassment under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)?

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