"Collections" is the process by which creditors attempt to get nonpaying debtors to pay the money they owe. There are a large number of laws in Orange Beach, Alabama governing the tactics that collection agencies can and cannot do.

What if I Am Owed Money in Orange Beach, Alabama?

If you are owed money and the debtor refuses to pay, you have some options at your disposal. However, you must tread lightly when it comes to collecting your debts. Creditors and collectors are governed by strict consumer protection rules. Violating these rules can hurt your chances of recovering what you are owed, and even subject you to civil or criminal penalties.

For example, it should go without saying that creditors are not allowed to use threatened or actual violence when trying to collect. They are also not authorized to use abusive language to the debtor, or contact a third party about the debt.

What you can do, however, is send an invoice of the debt to the debtor, along with a firm (but civil) demand for timely payment. If the debt is considerable, you might also want to hire a collection agency in Orange Beach, Alabama. You should make sure that any agency you hire is dependable, and has not been cited for violations of the laws governing collections.

What if Someone Is Trying to Collect Money Against Me in Orange Beach, Alabama?

Of course, if you owe money and have the ability to pay it, you should do so. If the collections caller is behaving civilly, you should do the same. In any case, it is never a good idea to ignore the issue, because that will definitely not make it go away.

Your best option in Orange Beach, Alabama might be to contact the creditor directly, and try to work out some type of new repayment plan. The sooner you do this, the more receptive to your ideas the creditor is likely to be. If this isn't successful, you can demand that the collectors stop contacting you by phone, and they will normally be obliged to do so. Of course, this doesn't make the debt go away, and you should only take this route if you are prepared to defend against a lawsuit from your creditors, since demanding that they stop contacting you typically leaves them with no other option but to sue.

If you have hired a lawyer in Orange Beach, Alabama, they might advise that you file for bankruptcy. Of course, whether or not this is a good idea depends heavily on the facts of your individual case, so you should not do so until an attorney has reviewed the facts and determined that bankruptcy is a feasible solution.

How Can a Orange Beach, Alabama Collections Attorney Help?

If you believe that a creditor is violating the law in its attempts to collect from you, you should get in touch with an Orange Beach, Alabama attorney, since you might actually have a claim for damages against the creditor.

Also, if you're considering filing for bankruptcy, a good attorney in Alabama can tell you if this is a good option, and, if it is, help you through the process.