Consumer Says Company Violated Illinois Debt Collection Laws

A plaintiff, Matthew V., has filed a lawsuit against Illinois Collection Service Inc. and Lawn Medical Center. The Illinois debt collection state laws, according to the plaintiff, were violated by both of these defendants over a period of time, enabling the plaintiff to lodge a lawsuit.

Matthew, who is alleging that the companies violated Illinois debt collection laws, says he was injured in the course of his employment in 2015 while working at O’Hare International Airport. He initiated a workers’ compensation claim and obtained medical treatment through one of the defendants, LMC.

The plaintiff says that part of the confusion over the violation of the Illinois debt collection state laws has to do with the fact that he did indeed inform LMC that he had a workers’ compensation case pending and he provided his attorney’s contact information at that time.

Despite having all of the relevant details connected to the existing and pending workers’ compensation claim, the plaintiff says that the company still violated Illinois debt collection state laws by sending him bills directly.

Collection Lawsuit Details

In March of 2018, Matthew says he sent a cover letter and subpoena for bills and medical records in the course of the workers’ compensation case, further clarifying that he should not be receiving these bills directly.

However, according to the Illinois debt collection state laws lawsuit, the illegal collection attempts carried out by the company continued, and the subject debt was placed for collection with ICS. ICS then sent the plaintiff a notice on April 4th, 2018, as a payment demand.

The Illinois debt collection laws claim says that payment demand was misleading, false and unfair due to the fact that there is a prohibition for holding employees liable for costs for medical services linked to a known work-related injury that is connected to a pending workers’ compensation case.

The plaintiff says that this violated Illinois debt collection state laws as well because any consumer who is known to be represented by an attorney should not be contacted directly.

Consumer Rights

Matthew is just one example of people who are taking action when they believe that a debt collector has violated the laws designed to protect consumers from unfair debt collection tactics. Both state and federal protections exist after many consumers had the unfortunate experience of being constantly harassed about past due debts.

Even though it’s legal for companies to use debt collection agencies and to reach out to people who owe a legitimate debt, it’s not always within the bounds of the law when an agency or lender connects with a consumer or people who might know that consumer.

In those cases, the only recourse the consumer might have is to pursue a lawsuit or to file complaints with relevant state and federal agencies. Consumer protection laws have become more important in recent years since many people have alleged this kind of harassment.

The Illinois Debt Collection Laws Lawsuit is Case No. 1:18-CV-03963, filed in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, Eastern Division.

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If you’ve been hit with unfair debt collection practices, you may have a legal claim and could be owed compensation for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).

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DISCLAIMER: Debt collection itself is not illegal. However, debt collection firms collecting on consumer debts must adhere to the FDCPA. Even though debt attorneys are investigating these companies, their debt collection practices may be legal.