Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Indiana

Re: Charged off Debt

Yes, probably. Unless you have somehting in writing that indicates he agreed to accept half the amount owed to be paid on your time table then whomever owns the debt now can sue you. However, if he was willing to take one-half before, he will still probably take one-half now or in the near future.

The question about harrassment is pretty straightforward. If the man is a debt collector, then he has certain guidelines to follow, and one of them is not to harrass you or your husband at work. There are restrictions such as identifying himself as a bill collector, not calling you late at night or early in the morning, using profanity, etc. The best thing to do when you get a call from someone like him is to write down the person's identifying information, and a summary of the call. Things you want to make a note of is the time of the call, whether the person fully identified who they were and who they represented, the person's demeanor (pleasant, screaming, threatening or use of profanity).

If a debt collector violates any of these restrictions then you can file a complaint against them under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act, which is a federal statute. The Courts have taken a pretty liberal view of the statute's enforcement. If the Court finds for the consumer, the debt collector usually gets hit with a $1,000 fine (which goes to the consumer) and has to pay the consumer's attorney fees.

If the man or a replacement keeps calling and harrassing you, you probably should see an attorney who represents clients under the FDCPA.