Collecting Interest on Debt in Violation of State and Federal Law
This week, Howie Law, PC and attorney John Howie, Jr. filed a federal lawsuit against two California debt collectors. The Defendants in the lawsuit are Bay Area Credit Services and Alliant Law Group which are both based in Northern California. The suit alleges that these entities attempted to collect interest on debt in violation of state and federal law. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and the Texas Debt Collection Act prohibit the collection of interest on a debt unless the agreement creating the debt expressly provides for interest or interest is allowed by law.
The specific debt in this case arose from an American Medical Response (AMR) ambulance transport. The AMR ambulance agreement did not make any mention of interest, and Texas law does not allow for interest to be recovered on this type of debt. The lawsuit asks that the Court to certify a class action against these Defendants on behalf of all individuals against whom these Defendants have attempted to collect interest or actually collected interest in violation of the law. It also seeks an injunction against these Defendants to prohibit them from collecting or attempting to collect interest in violation of the law.
If you or someone you know has been the victim of an abusive or harassing debt collector, or to find out more about this lawsuit, please contact us immediately either by e-mail (info@howielaw.net) or by phone at 214-622-6340 or 1-866-828-2028.