All, When being sued by a debt collector how can you determine the maximum fees/interest allowed by law for them to charge ? I was recently scared into paying a lawsuit to prevent garnishment and the totals cost was $2100.00 but I only owed the OC $1500. If this is excessive can I go back and sue them for illegaly charging more than the law permits ? It would be a nice payback. I could also get them to remove the tradeline if I dropped my suit (one can dream I guess : )
Edog, What state are you in and what state was the lawsuit in? The rules for this vary from state to state.
They can make you pay legal fees, etc. but I would check the judgement to see what fee you actually paid. What was the amount when they actually filed the suit vs. the final judgement amount? Depending on your state's laws, you may be able to sue them for the extra fees. Generally, they're not allowed to add "collection fees" or "late fees" over the original amount from the OC (or beyond a judgement). If you find out that you're entitled to a return of money, I wouldn't notify the CA - I'd just file in small claims court. Start studying the FDCPA and you might want to check out www.naca.org to see if you can get any advice from a lawyer in your area. Good luck !
This site has info on each the 50 states...not exactly sure what "no statatory provision" for the interest rate for judgements means, but I am fairly sure it is bad. -Peace, Dave
