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DISCLAIMER: This article is based on a complaint. The defendant has not responded to the complaint to present its side of the case. The claims mentioned are accusations and should be considered as such until and unless proven otherwise.
A collection operation is facing a class-action lawsuit in Florida federal court for allegedly violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Regulation F by making more than seven calls in a seven-day period.
The background: The complaint alleges that between October 22 and October 27 of last year, the defendant made nine calls to the plaintiff attempting to collect on an unpaid debt.
- The complaint includes four screenshots that the plaintiff claims documents the calls that were made by the defendant. All of the screenshots reference the same number that was used to make the calls.
- One of the screenshots references two calls that were purportedly made on October 22, and two of the screenshots reference four calls that were made on October 23. The fourth screenshot details three calls that were made, but instead of where the date was identified in the other screenshots, this screenshot just says, “yesterday.” Perhaps this is also only interesting to me, but this screenshot also appears to have been taken while the individual had been on a call for more than five hours and he still had a fully charged battery.
- The plaintiff was forced to waste time and/or money evaluating the legal ramifications of the defendant’s collection efforts, according to the complaint.
The claims: The complaint accuses the defendant of violating Section 1692d(5) of the FDCPA by annoying or harassing the plaintiff and the other potential members of the class.
- The complaint also accuses the defendant of violating Section 1006.14 of Regulation F for placing more than seven calls within seven consecutive days.
- The defendant is also accused of violating the Florida Consumer Collection Practices Act.
- The suit seeks to include anyone else living in the United States who received more than seven calls in a seven-day period from the defendant. It alleges that the defendant has made potentially thousands of collection communications to consumers after the person requested for the defendant to cease communications with the consumer, which is a little interesting because there is nothing in the complaint that references the plaintiff requested communications to be ceased and the sections of Regulation F and the FDCPA that are cited as the relevant laws that were violated don’t need the consumer to have revoked consent to be applicable.
