Understanding Consumer Law

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We hope the articles below help you understand your rights as a consumer. You can scroll through the titles, or sort by Practice Area or Topic. You can also use the search feature to locate information by keyword.

Flitter Milz represents people with a variety of problems involving consumer credit and collections. If you have a particular question or believe your consumer rights have been violated, Contact Us for a no cost consultation.

Author: Consumers Law

What You Should Know About Employment Background Checks

Be sure to request your credit report and verify that your credit history is up to date and accurate before seeking a new job. Prospective employers often run credit checks on potential employees prior to making hiring decisions, and negative listings could hurt your chances for employment or a promotion. The Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) is the law that requires employers to obtain a prospective hire’s consent prior to pulling a credit file.

Employers Must Obtain Permission

Employers must obtain your written permission before they can access your credit file. During the application process, the employer should provide you with background check disclosure and authorization forms that require your signature.

Easy to Understand Forms

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) states that these authorization forms should be free of “complicated legal jargon” or “extra acknowledgement or waivers.” You should never feel confused or misled when it comes to authorization forms that an employer or prospective employer provides in order to get your consent to view your credit.

Your Right to View the Report

You also have the right to see the report that the employer used as a means to determine your employment. You should inform the prospective employer that you want to have a copy whether you are hired or not.

Seek Legal Advice

Flitter Milz is a nationally recognized consumer protection law firm that represents victims of inaccurate credit reporting. Contact us for a free evaluation of your reports.

How a Judgment Affects Your Credit

Many people know that unfortunate circumstances in life, such as divorce, health issues, job loss or death, can result in financial hardship.  All of a sudden, accounts go unpaid, collectors call, negative listings appear on credit reports, and sometimes, lawsuits are filed.

You are a defendant in a lawsuit
Whether the default was for a credit card, auto loan, a medical bill or another personal obligation, if you were sued DO NOT IGNORE THE LAWSUIT.  After receiving a summons, as the defendant, you must inform the court of your intent to defend.  Whether you seek legal representation from an attorney or intend to represent yourself  “pro se“, you must attend the court hearing.

Default Judgment
When you fail to appear in court on the hearing date to defend the lawsuit, a default judgment will be entered against you.  This means that the judge ruled against you in non-criminal court.  You will be required to pay the damages or judgment amount.

Judgments are public court records, which means anyone has access to view the court filings.  Credit bureaus commonly obtain these records from the courthouse and list judgments on the consumer’s credit file.  Although judgments can only be listed on credit reports for 7 1/2 years from the filing date, after that time period, judgments could be re-filed, or revived, before it expires, causing a re-reporting by the bureaus for another 7 1/2 years. This varies from state to state.

Do not Ignore a Judgment
If there’s a judgment entered against you, you must address it. Even if it’s a mistake and the debt doesn’t belong to you, you will need to take action to get it resolved to avoid negative consequences on your credit report.  Judgments allow for the plaintiff to take steps, such as garnish bank accounts, place liens on property,  and in some states, garnish wages.

You have rights against the debt collector
When a creditor assigns the collection of a debt to a third party collector, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) , offers protections from a collector’s abusive collection tactics.  Whether the consumer owes the debt or not, the collector must follow the law.

Seek Legal Help

Flitter Milz is a consumer protection law firm that represents consumers against debt collectors.   Contact Us if you have received collection calls or letters.  You have rights against the collector and may be able to bring a lawsuit against the collection agency or collection law firm for violation of your consumer rights. There is no cost to you for the legal review.

How a Move Can Affect Your Credit

Your credit follows you wherever you go, and that includes whether you purchase a new home or move to a new apartment. But how does the process of moving affect your credit?

Credit Inquiries

When you apply for a mortgage or fill out an application for an apartment rental, the bank or landlord will most likely perform a credit check.

There are two types of credit inquiries: hard and soft. Most financial inquiries are considered hard and have the potential to negatively affect your credit, especially if you are declined. As well, lenders may see you as a higher risk if you have several hard inquiries.

If you’re concerned about the effect of a credit inquiry on your credit score, check to see if the prospective lender or landlord would accept a copy of a credit report that you pulled yourself. You’re entitled to one free credit report from each Transunion, Experian and Equifax every twelve months. Requesting the reports yourself will not affect your credit in any way.

Avoid Breaking a Lease

The terms detailed in the lease agreement will state your options if you need to terminate a lease early.  You may have to pay extra fees or surrender your security deposit for an early termination. Make sure you pay any agreed amount on time. If you don’t, the landlord may have the right to take you to court or send the account to a debt collector. This type of activity will appear on your credit report and will damage your credit score.

Missed or Late Payments

With the stress of moving, often it is more difficult to keep track of your finances and make timely payments. Missed or late payments can be very harmful to your credit. Depending on how late the payment is, it could appear as a negative mark on your credit report and also lower your credit score significantly.

Mail Forwarding

Prior to your move, ensure that you will receive mail from your old address by taking the following steps:
-Notify the United States Postal Service to forward all mail to your new address
-Notify your creditors in writing of your address change
-Inform your landlord of your new address and contact information.

Seek Legal Help

Flitter Milz is a nationally recognized consumer protection law firm that represents victims of abusive collection tactics, credit reporting privacy and accuracy violations and vehicle repossessions.  Contact Us for a free consultation.

6 Credit Definitions You Must Know

Poor credit and unsteady financial standing can make many aspects of your life much more difficult than they need to be. Your credit follows you wherever you go, and it can affect your ability to get a job, rent an apartment, or secure new lines of credit. For this reason, it’s important to prioritize your credit health and always make sure your finances are in the best order that they can be.

As a consumer, it’s important to educate yourself on all of the financial aspects that affect your credit. Make sure that you’re aware of how your open accounts will increase or decrease your credit score and how certain financial mishaps are reflected on your credit report. Certain occurrences like a vehicle repossession, late payments, or a defaulted account will result in negative marks on your credit report. These types of negative marks can remain on your report for many years. Take the following steps:

Learn these 6 Important Credit Definitions.

1. Credit Report:  A credit report is a statement that has information about your credit activity and current credit situation such as loan paying history and the status of your credit accounts.

2: Credit Bureau: The three main credit bureaus are Transunion, Experian and Equifax. Credit bureaus collect data from lenders and creditors and provide reports to the consumer, and to prospective lenders.  The reports show a consumer’s payment history and amounts owed on credit cards, mortgages, auto loans, etc.

3. Credit Score: A credit score is based on credit history – the number of open accounts, total levels of debt, and repayment history, and other factors.  Lenders used credit scores to evaluate the probability that an individual will repay loans in a timely manner.

4. Hard Inquiry: A hard inquiry, or “hard pull”, occurs when you apply for a new line of credit, such as a credit card or loan.  It means that a creditor has requested to look at your credit report to determine how much risk you pose as a borrower. Hard inquiries show up on your credit report and can affect your credit score.

5. Soft Inquiry: A soft inquiry occurs in cases where you check your own credit or when a lender or credit card company checks your credit to pre-approve you for an offer.  Soft inquiries do not impact your credit scores.

6. Debt-to-Income Ratio: A Debt-to-Income Ratio is all your monthly debt payments divided by your gross monthly income.  This number is one way lenders measure your ability to manage the monthly payments to repay the money you plan to borrow.

Check your credit reports regularly.

Ensure that all information on your credit reports is accurate and up to date by checking your reports regularly. All consumers are entitled to one free credit report each year from each three of the credit reporting bureaus.

Set Goals to Improve your Credit.

Determining benchmarks to improve your credit standing over time.

Seek Legal Help

Flitter Milz is a nationally recognized consumer protection law firm that represents victims of abusive collection tactics, wrongful vehicle repossessions and credit reporting privacy and accuracy issues.  Contact Us to discuss your consumer credit concern.

 

How a Voluntary Surrender Impacts your Credit

If you’re behind on your car loan payments, it’s possible that your vehicle will be repossessed by the lender. Your vehicle is considered collateral under the terms of the loan agreement, so the lender has the right to take back the car or truck if there is a lapse in payments or terms of the agreement are broken.

If you’re suffering a financial hardship, often borrowers that have fallen behind on payments may consider whether to voluntarily surrender their vehicle instead of the embarrassment of a repo-man coming to their door.  Either way, the repossession of a vehicle may impact your credit report negatively and make it difficult to get credit approval on an auto loan in the future.

What to Do Before Repossession

First and foremost, if there’s a chance that your vehicle will be repossessed, you should take the following actions in preparation:

  • Remove all purchase and loan documents from the vehicle.
  • Remove all personal belongings from the vehicle.
  • Note the current odometer mileage.
  • Take photographs of the vehicle’s interior and exterior.
  • Request that the lender provide you with a written loan payment history.
  • Request that the lender provide you with a payoff figure.
  • Do not hide or conceal the vehicle to avoid a repossession.

This will ensure that you have all the information you need along with your personal belongings should a repossession take place.

How a Voluntary Surrender and Repossession Affect Your Credit

Many consumers who anticipate a repossession wonder if the consequences will be less negative if they voluntarily surrender the vehicle to the lender. The only significant difference between the two is the way they appear on your credit report; a voluntary surrender will be listed as such, but the negative effect will be about the same as a repossession. It’s possible, however, that the lender will be more willing to enter a loan agreement with you in the future if you voluntarily surrender the vehicle.

A repossession can stay on your credit report for up to seven and a half years. It’s a negative listing that lowers your credit score and it can make it more difficult to secure a new auto loan or line of credit.

Discuss Your Options with Your Lender

If you are having difficulty making payments, contact your lender as soon as possible. You may be able to avoid repossession by deferring payments to the end of the loan and prevent your credit from taking a further hit.

Seek Legal Help

Whether you have fallen behind on your car payments or not, there are legal protections for borrowers from lenders and repo agents that wrongfully repossess vehicles.  Learn more about your rights and contact Flitter Milz, a nationally recognized consumer protection law firm.

 

Beware of Buy Here Pay Here Car Dealerships

Your credit affects many aspects of your life, perhaps even more than you realize. Consumers with significant negative marks on their credit report and a low credit score will likely have more difficulty securing a new line of credit, renting an apartment, and avoiding high interest rates on loans and credit cards.

Poor credit also makes it difficult, and sometimes impossible, to secure an auto loan. If you find yourself in this position and are trying to purchase a new vehicle, you may be tempted by dealerships that advertise, “No credit, no problem!” These dealerships finance loans “in-house” and often carry extremely high interest rates when compared to loans from banks, credit unions, and other lenders.

Shop Around for an Auto Loan

Auto car sales manpointing out odometer and selling couple used carBefore agreeing to a loan with one of these dealerships, be sure to shop around and see if there is a bank, credit union or other lender who is willing to loan to you.  An auto loan with high interest rates, like those that typically come from buy here – pay here dealerships, may not be worth it; the cost of the loan could outweigh the benefit of purchasing the vehicle.  Learn more about steps to take to secure an auto loan.

Obtain Current Credit Reports

Before visiting the car dealership, it’s important to check your credit reports.  If you discover errors on your report, address them before seeking new credit.  You do not want to risk denial for a loan, and possibly a drop in credit score, because of these errors.

Send your written dispute to the credit bureau and the creditor. Request the listing on your report be corrected.  Once your report is accurate, shop for the loan that offers you the best terms.

Seek Legal Advice

Flitter Milz is a consumer protection law firm that represents people that defaulted on auto loan payments and had a vehicle repossessed.  Contact Us for a FREE legal evaluation of whether the lender or repo agent violated the consumer protection laws.

How to Tell if Debt Collection by the IRS is Legitimate

You may have heard that the IRS has hired four private debt collection agencies to collect unpaid income tax.  These agencies are CBE Group, ConServe, Performant and Pioneer Credit Recovery. This means that consumers may begin receiving collection contact from these agencies.  To tell the difference between a scam and legitimate collection contact on behalf of the IRS, take note of the following key points:

You’ll only be contacted if you have unpaid income tax debt

If you’re contacted out of the blue by someone claiming to be affiliated with the IRS, but know you’ve never been contacted about unpaid taxes before, it’s not legitimate. These firms will be focusing on individuals with unpaid taxes that go back several years. Consumers will have heard from the IRS multiple times already.

You’ll receive a notice in the mail first

The firms acting on behalf of the IRS won’t begin with phone contact. You should receive a letter from both the IRS and the debt collection firm prior to being contacted by phone.

They’ll only ask you to send payments directly to the IRS

Anyone who asks you to remit payment anywhere other than directly to the IRS is illegitimate. Never provide personal financial information like a credit or debit card number over the phone.

They still have to follow the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act

Working with the IRS does not mean the firms are exempt from complying with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Among other regulations, debt collectors are not permitted to:

  • Threaten or harass you
  • Discuss your debt with anyone other than you
  • Tell you incorrect information about the debt
  • Contact you after 9pm or before 8am, unless you request that they do so

Questions about Debt Collection?

Flitter Milz is a nationally recognized consumer protection law firm that represents victims of abusive debt collection tactics.  Contact Us for a free legal evaluation.

How to Secure an Auto Loan

When you’re in the market to purchase a new vehicle and need to secure an auto loan to do so, it’s always best not only to shop around for the car, but also to shop for the best interest rate and loan that works best for you.

Often times, consumers will secure a loan to purchase their dream car, but will then fall behind on payments and become delinquent. This tarnishes your credit score and may even result in vehicle repossession.

Here are some steps to take prior to securing a loan, and how to ensure that you find the best loan agreement that fits your budget.

Check Your Credit

Man questioning credit reportThere are a number of factors that will affect your auto loan agreement, but the most important is your credit history. Before you start shopping for interest rates, check your credit report and credit score. You can get a free credit report from each of the credit reporting bureaus, TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax, every 12 months.

Review each credit report for accuracy. Dispute any credit report errors by writing directly to the reporting agency. Negative listings that are more than seven and a half years old, like prior vehicle repossessions, should no longer appear on your report.

You should also review your credit score. This gives lenders an idea of your creditworthiness and will help determine what kind of interest rates you’ll be eligible for.

Assess Your Finances

Take the time to consider your current financial situation. Create a budget if you don’t already have one. This will help you determine how much you can afford to spend on monthly auto loan payments and will help you avoid signing an agreement that you can’t afford.

Choose a Lender

Once you know your budget, you can begin shopping around for lenders and interest rates. A higher credit score and healthy credit report will make you eligible for loans with lower interest rates. You should also consider whether you want to sign an agreement with a bank, finance company or credit union.

Credit unions may be able to offer lower interest rates than banks and finance companies, but they may only lend to members and may have more stringent credit requirements than a bank. Do your homework!

Review Documents Carefully Before Signing

Always secure your auto loan agreement in writing, and be sure to review all of the details of the agreement very carefully before signing. This agreement should provide details related to default and steps the lender can take if terms of the loan are broken.

Seek Legal Advice

Flitter Milz is a consumer protection law firm that represents borrowers that have defaulted on their auto loan.  Whether payments have been missed or not, the lender must follow the law.   Contact Us for a FREE legal evaluation.

How Increased Interest Rates Will Affect You

What does it mean when the Federal Reserve increases interest rates and how will it affect your overall financial well-being?

Rate increases by the Federal Reserve may impact auto loans, mortgages, savings accounts, credit cards and refinanced loans. Unfortunately, if you carry a balance on that credit, you’ll most likely see your monthly payments increase. Paying off your credit balance with each statement will not only help you avoid an increase in monthly payment amounts, it will also help to improve your overall credit score.

If you can’t afford your monthly payments and your account goes into default, it may be sent to a third party debt collector. Debt collectors must follow specific guidelines when they contact you about your debt. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act  is the federal law that outlines violations to a consumer’s rights by abusive debt collectors. You may request the collector provide validation of the debt and a detailed itemization of the amount claimed.

Negotiate a Payment Plan

You may also be able to negotiate a payment plan with the collector. Charges like interest and late fees could be removed from the balance when negotiated. If the collector is willing to agree to a payment plan, be sure to get the agreement in writing.  This letter should detail payment terms including the monthly payment amount, payment due date, total of payments and total balance owed.  Be sure to make your payments as agreed.

Settled Debt and Tax Implications

If you settle a debt consisting of $600 or more in principal — the actual loan amount, not interest or fees — for less than the full balance owed, there could be income tax consequences.  If you have questions concerning tax on a settled debt, be sure to seek advice of an accountant or tax advisor.

Seek Legal Help

Flitter Milz is a nationally recognized consumer protection law firm that represents victims of abusive debt collection tactics.  Contact Us for a free evaluation of collection letters and phone calls that you have received.  Whether or not you owe the debt, the collector must follow the law.

Avoid These Credit Card Problems

Credit cards are useful for a number of reasons. They’re convenient when you don’t have cash on hand, and some cards carry perks like cash back or travel savings. However, you should avoid using credit for emergencies, and you should always be sure to make payments in full and on time. Carrying a balance from month to month can result in unruly interest charges that are more difficult to pay off, especially when trying to stick to a budget.

Credit Score Drop

Failing to make a payment on time just once could cause your credit score to fall as much as 110 points. Once lost, these points can be difficult to build back up and can make other aspects of your life more challenging. Your overall credit can affect your ability to secure new lines of credit, affect your interest rates, and even hurt your chances of renting an apartment or securing a new job.

Check your Credit Reports

Always be sure to stay on top of payments and check your credit report regularly. It’s not uncommon for credit reports to contain errors or inaccurate information, which could further harm your overall credit. You can request one FREE credit report every year from the three credit bureaus – TransUnion, Experian, and Equifax. Check for duplicate negative listings, someone else’s information, and any unfamiliar activity. Dispute any credit report errors immediately.

Seek Free Legal Help 


Flitter Milz is a consumer protection law firm that represents people in matters concerning credit reporting issues, contact from abusive debt collectors, or have had a vehicle repossession.  Contact us for a free evaluation of your consumer law concern —  whether you had fallen behind on payments or not.