A New York man has leveled a new fair debt collection practices lawsuit against Ability Recovery Services, stating that their method of attempting to collect on a debt was unlawful.
Plaintiff Joseph B. claims in his fair debt collection practices lawsuit that he was sent a collection letter from Ability Recovery Services on Oct. 17, 2016. He asserts that this letter was to collect on an allegedly defaulted consumer debt.
He believes that this letter was, at the very least, confusing and was “open to more than one reasonable interpretation, at least one of which is inaccurate.”
According to fair debt collection practices laid out by laws such as the FDCPA, or the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, debt collectors must abide by certain regulations while trying to collect a debt.
Collection letters, according to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, must disclose that the debt balance may increase due to fees and interest accrued.
Additionally, if the balance is incurring interest currently, the debt collector must inform the consumer that the balance is in fact accruing interest. However, if the debt collector will accept an amount to fulfill the full debt if the payment is made by a certain day, then the debt collector must disclose this information as well.
Essentially, Joseph claims that Ability Recovery Services were confusing in their communication to him about the interest on his alleged debt. Additionally, he claims that the communication he received from ARS was unclear about his total balance and whether or not it was accruing interest.
According to this fair debt collection practices lawsuit, Joseph claims that he did not receive any disclosure about the total in the communication he received from Ability Recovery Services.
In fact, “since contractual interest is automatically accruing daily, and since there will be undisclosed fees that will accrue, a consumer who pays the “total” stated on the notice will not know whether the debt has been paid in full.”
Joseph asserts that the debt collection agency knew the balance would accrue “due to interest, fees and/or disbursements.”
The plaintiff claims that ABS violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act in various ways. These include, but are not limited to:
- Failing to inform Joseph that the terms of his original credit card debt had been changed.
- Failing to inform Joseph whether the amount listed as his debt already included late fees, interest or other charges.
- Failing to inform Joseph whether the amount listed was the actual amount he owed.
- Failing to inform Joseph about how much of the alleged debt was principal, interest or fees.
- Failing to inform Joseph if his debt would increase as a result of interest, and
- Failing to provide information about what Joseph would actually need to pay to resolve the alleged debt.
There are other violations of the FDCPA made by the debt collection service, the plaintiff claims. He is bringing forth a cause of action of violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
This Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Lawsuit is Case No. 1:17-cv-05799-ARR-JO in the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.
Join a Free New York Unfair Debt Collection Class Action Lawsuit Investigation
If you live in New York and a lender or debt collector engaged in 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).
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.
ATTORNEY ADVERTISING
Top Class Actions is a Proud Member of the American Bar Association
LEGAL INFORMATION IS NOT LEGAL ADVICE
Top Class Actions Legal Statement
©2008 – 2026 Top Class Actions® LLC
Various Trademarks held by their respective owners
This website is not intended for viewing or usage by European Union citizens.
