Seven Steps To Protect Against False Courtroom Scams

Debt collection has descended to a new low point with prosecution of Unicredit America Inc for bringing false proceedings against debtors.

The Pennsylvania State Attorney  alleges that the company furnished bogus courtrooms with judges bench, lawyer’s table, witness stand, seating for spectators, legal books and complete with a person dressed in black acting as a judge.

Consumers apparently received notices to appear in the bogus Court often hand delivered by persons dressed as Sheriffs. The idea was to intimidate consumers into thinking they would be dragged off to prison if they failed to appear in the bogus Court. Once inside the Court, consumers were further intimidated into giving personal details including bank accounts, make immediate payments and surrender vehicles and other assets. Often an employee of the Company would go to the consumer’s house to retrieve further documents more than likely with a bogus search warrant or other document claiming to give lawful entry unless the consumer had been intimidated into giving permission to enter and take documents.

These are very serious allegations and we all hope that this sort of practice is stamped out once and for all and very heavy penalties applied to the offending Company and its directors.

It’s very difficult to detect if a document is bogus or not as sometimes the offenders will go to great lengths to forge the documents, consider money and passports for example, but there are a number of things you can do to help protect yourself:

1.       Check the date for your appearance at the Court. It is rare that a Court would require your appearance immediately. Be suspicious if it does.

2.       Check the name and address for the Court. All Courts have official addresses and if the address on the document is not one of those again treat with the utmost suspicion.

3.       Check for official Court stamps. Every document filed with the Court has the official Court seal on the face of the document.

4.       Make a note of the person or company filing the claim. Look for complete details such as address, phone numbers and contact person. If possible phone the company to verify the details then contact your local State Attorney’s Office to follow up on the validity.

5.       If a person is at your door claiming to have an authority to do something and you are in the slightest doubt, contact Police and an attorney immediately and refuse entry until validity of the claim is established.

6.       If you’ve been taken to an alleged Court, look at the surroundings, the type of building, the location of the alleged Courtroom, the other offices situated in the building, the people milling about. You should see of official looking people such as security, Court staff and attorneys in addition to other consumers.

7.       You have a right to legal representation and may reasonably refuse to give any evidence until you have consulted your attorney. Proper Courts rarely demand immediate action particularly when it is the first appearance. You are generally given the opportunity to prepare your defence and consult your attorney.

If you are in any doubt whatsoever regarding the official looking Court notice check it’s validity as outlined above. And, if faced with a person at your door demanding things contact Police and your attorney. Often even the threat of contacting Police will scare off the scammer immediately.

Consumer Debt Initiative – Is it a Scam?

There have been a number of companies soliciting people by sending letters to them titled the ‘consumer debt initiative’ or something of the like. These letters appear to be from government agencies but a closer examination of them will reveal the sender of the letter is not in fact a government agency.

The letters also use many buzz words such as ‘rapid tax rebates’ and ‘relieving consumer debt’, and that these debt relief strategies form part of a government debt relief initiative for the consumer. The letters may also go on to refer to companies such as Fanni Mae and Freddie Mac or other mortgage lenders.

The truth is that there is no consumer debt initiative set up by the government to reduce consumer debt. The closest program to consumer debt initiative set up by the government is the Recovery Rebates and Economic Stimulus for the American People Act of 2008.

The unsolicited letters are nothing more than attempts to lure people into debt relief programs or worse still are a form of debt collection under false pretence. On no account should you  respond to this form of advertising.

Let’s de-construct the phrase consumer debt initiative. It is simply initiatives that can be applied by, or for, consumers in need of debt relief.

Such initiatives can be, for example:

• Setting a monthly budget; something that can be done by yourself or someone else.

• Debt settlement, debt counselling, debt consolidation; usually better handled by professionals

• Bankruptcy; clearly the most extreme initiative and should be handled by professionals.

These consumer debt initiatives all rely on the consumer taking the initiative to look at their financial situation and decide if something needs to be done. Should the consumer form the opinion that their financial situation is not what it could be, or is in fact suffering, then the  next step should be to contact a professional for further assistance.

On the face of it the consumer debt initiative is not a scam. However the strategy has been used by unscrupulous companies for dubious reasons and therefore can be reasonably argued as a scam. To avoid being caught by the trap, as mentioned above, one should not respond to any unsolicited mail.

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Credit Card Debt as a Silent Financial Killer

We live in an age of technological marvels. There are so many things available today that our parents only ever dreamed about and what makes the purchase of these new and exciting products easy is the development of credit through the use of a plastic credit card. Credit cards are available to almost every person and the use of the credit card has become crucial to modern economics. However as with anything there are also some downsides, namely in the form of credit card debt.

Credit Card convenience vs. Credit Card debt

We see the credit card used for an enormous amount of transactions, everything from the corner store to the car yard to the internet. In fact credit card use over the internet is almost mandatory for any purchase. There is no doubt that the use of a plastic card has made transactions much easier and simpler, swipe the card through a box and sign or enter a pin and the deal is complete. No need to carry wads of cash with the associated risk of losing it or worse, being robbed. This very fact of the ease of use can lead to a false sense of financial security by not keeping a close eye on the balance of credit debt. And this fact is brought home when the bill arrives.

In simple terms, credit is not a bad thing it is only how it is managed and when not managed correctly is when the problems set in.

We have seen daily how the banks are posting record profits but it is not difficult to understand where these profits are coming from. It is not from real estate investments but from financial investments and those big rewarding financial investments the banks make are the supply of credit to anyone who accepts. Because the credit card works on the principle of borrowing money from the banks there is a resulting debt owed to the bank and those loans supplied by the banks are paid for by charging interest on the debts. Quite clearly, the more the banks give credit the more debt there will be and the more interest will be received by the banks resulting in those massive profits. If everyone paid their debts immediately after using the credit facility there would be no incentive for banks to continue supplying credit as there would be no profit in it.

Of course not everyone can pay their debts immediately but to avoid a personal debt crisis the borrower must be cautious and prudent but unfortunately this is not always the case and even while exercising caution a borrower may be faced with a situation that causes debt levels to rise unexpectedly such as a medical emergency. All card holders should look to their personal financial situation and assess whether there are any issues that need to be addressed, because to take pre-emptory action early is to avoid painful remedial actions later.

Indeed, paying off credit card debt may take a long time especially in circumstances where interest rates are high. But it doesn’t mean that you can’t take action to efficiently manage credit card debt and if you are overwhelmed by credit debt seek all the help you can to avoid falling into depression. Look for tips and techniques on how to pay off the debts easier, how to manage frequently encountered problems, find free debt consultation companies that can help you and, step by step, learn to re-discover ways to reduce debt and regain financial freedom.

The power to eliminate credit card debt

People who are having problems managing their credit card debt or those who are near in bankruptcy often don’t realize that the power to eliminate their credit card debt troubles is totally in their hands. Today, more and more Americans need credit card debt help badly. The main problem is that these families are having difficult times paying high interest for credit card debt. And instead of lifting the burden of credit card debt, more and more people are paying more in interest every month than that of the actual expenditure.

Apart from knowing your weapons in terminating credit card debt, it is very important that you develop a sense of control and perseverance first. Since the credit card debt elimination process requires organization, clarity, and commitment to your own growth, it is a must that you are ready for the responsibility to stand free and independent.

For those people who consider having a credit card indispensable but afraid of getting one because of the possibility of credit card debt nightmare, you must remember that credit cards can be a powerful tool in managing your finances but there will always be problems when not used properly. Of course, there are countless reasons why you should and shouldn’t get one depending on your needs. Whether you decide to get one or not, managing finances still takes a sense of good budgeting, willingness to change spending habits, and the humility to avail low interest consolidation loans when you are already burdened by too much credit card debt.