First of all, I worked for a bank for quite a while and even bank employees think that the fees are crazy. ATM fees are the BIGGEST ripoff in town. It saves the bank hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for you to use the ATM for ANYTHING instead of going to a teller, but they STILL charge you. I could tell you horror stories about koi that the bank I worked in and other banks tried.
Second, when creditors call you about a debt that is not your own, they cannot legally even tell you it is about a debt. They can ask for the debtor, but if they say mroe than it is about a business matter then they can be sued for violating privacy matters. Even more powerful, they can and should be reported to the FCC.
I have worked in telephone sales and started several years before there were ANY regulations controlling it. I have also worked as a collector, a job I HATED. Many phone sales people and collectors do not follow the rules and there are HUGE penalties if they are reported. The company can pay HUGE fees. Most will tell their phone people that unless the person is yelling and screaming in fury, you don't EVER remove them from the call list. This is ILLEGAL. You can just ask nicely or tell them to stop calling and remove you from the list and they are required by law to do so. I was always getting into trouble for taking people off the list, and each time I told them that writing me up would result in me reporting them to the FCC because that is illegal and the fines are huge and I was NOT going to cost my employer a large amount of money because someone complained that I did not remove them from the call list. I still got itno trouble, but they couldn't fire me for it.
WHen they call you about someone else's debt, inform them that this is NOT that person's number and any future calls to that number will be reported to the FCC - and do this AFTER you take a message and get their name and phone number for the person to call back. it is pretty easy to report someone to the FCC. Or it was the alst time I did it. Usually the threat is more than enough to make them stop calling you.
If they call you and harrass you about a debt you are named on (like your child's bank account or something), you can tell them to talk to your atty or a credit management co or even that you will only handle the matter in writing and to send you a statement of the original debt with the date and what it was for and an address to send a payment to.
You cannot be sued or even harrassed if you are making a minimum payment each month - as little as $5 per month no matter the size of the debt can usually qualify so that you cannot be sued for the amount. Just make sure you have proof you sent it as some creditors will just hold a check and not cash it so that the account does not show payment and they can claim that you were not paying or they dn't receive the check. So if you have carbon checks that works, as does the receipt from the money order. If you have told them that all communication must be in writing, they MUST stop calling you. If they don't, tell them you will report them to the FCC. it is a serious threat and most companies will not push it if you say that.
Of course if a creditor is EVER rude, calls you names, etc... that is a HUGe violation as they are NOT legally allowed to abuse you. MANY companies have been in big trouble for this in the last few years so do not ever hesitate to report them.
Nancy, I am sorry you are stuck cleaning up this mess for your daughter so that you can get your name off of her bank account. PLEASE check your credit rating because as your name is on ehr account it may have a negative effect on your credit rating. You can also see if the bank used your info to give her other credit and just added your name. Some banks have done this even knowing it is not legal. be sure to check all 3 credit bureaus.
Second, when creditors call you about a debt that is not your own, they cannot legally even tell you it is about a debt. They can ask for the debtor, but if they say mroe than it is about a business matter then they can be sued for violating privacy matters. Even more powerful, they can and should be reported to the FCC.
I have worked in telephone sales and started several years before there were ANY regulations controlling it. I have also worked as a collector, a job I HATED. Many phone sales people and collectors do not follow the rules and there are HUGE penalties if they are reported. The company can pay HUGE fees. Most will tell their phone people that unless the person is yelling and screaming in fury, you don't EVER remove them from the call list. This is ILLEGAL. You can just ask nicely or tell them to stop calling and remove you from the list and they are required by law to do so. I was always getting into trouble for taking people off the list, and each time I told them that writing me up would result in me reporting them to the FCC because that is illegal and the fines are huge and I was NOT going to cost my employer a large amount of money because someone complained that I did not remove them from the call list. I still got itno trouble, but they couldn't fire me for it.
WHen they call you about someone else's debt, inform them that this is NOT that person's number and any future calls to that number will be reported to the FCC - and do this AFTER you take a message and get their name and phone number for the person to call back. it is pretty easy to report someone to the FCC. Or it was the alst time I did it. Usually the threat is more than enough to make them stop calling you.
If they call you and harrass you about a debt you are named on (like your child's bank account or something), you can tell them to talk to your atty or a credit management co or even that you will only handle the matter in writing and to send you a statement of the original debt with the date and what it was for and an address to send a payment to.
You cannot be sued or even harrassed if you are making a minimum payment each month - as little as $5 per month no matter the size of the debt can usually qualify so that you cannot be sued for the amount. Just make sure you have proof you sent it as some creditors will just hold a check and not cash it so that the account does not show payment and they can claim that you were not paying or they dn't receive the check. So if you have carbon checks that works, as does the receipt from the money order. If you have told them that all communication must be in writing, they MUST stop calling you. If they don't, tell them you will report them to the FCC. it is a serious threat and most companies will not push it if you say that.
Of course if a creditor is EVER rude, calls you names, etc... that is a HUGe violation as they are NOT legally allowed to abuse you. MANY companies have been in big trouble for this in the last few years so do not ever hesitate to report them.
Nancy, I am sorry you are stuck cleaning up this mess for your daughter so that you can get your name off of her bank account. PLEASE check your credit rating because as your name is on ehr account it may have a negative effect on your credit rating. You can also see if the bank used your info to give her other credit and just added your name. Some banks have done this even knowing it is not legal. be sure to check all 3 credit bureaus.
