In the counties of Butler and Hamilton, Ohio, the sheriff’s departments attempted to collect money from inmates to pay for the cost of their stay at jail. A miserable failure, the program was halted a few weeks ago after it cost taxpayers $69,000 to settle a federal lawsuit. The state auditor put an end to the program because it wasn’t generating any revenue.

Despite this fact, these counties are discussing reviving the program through collecting booking fees. Financial analysts remain dubious. Even in the best case scenarios, the policy may not be lucrative at all; most prisoners that end up in jail have no money.

Lawsuits were the issue that originally stopped the program. An Ohio jail nearby began charging booking fees at a hundred dollars and an additional $67.77 daily charge for every day held. But federal lawsuits against Hamilton and Butler counties sparked an end to “pay to stay” programs. The main issue at hand was determining who had to pay the fee.

Ohio law permits a county to charge prisoners for room and board, property damage, medical and dental treatment and a onetime booking fee. The law states that inmates should be billed at the end of their stay, but the key provision of this legislation is that only convicted inmates could be charged. The District Judge stated that it was unconstitutional to take these fines from inmates who weren’t convicted yet.

Hamilton County was taken to court in 2000 and was ordered to return around one million dollars in prison fees and to pay $150,000 for an educational program for inmates. In 2001, Butler County was also sued. By 2003, the grand total of money that was returned to settle litigation was $63,846 to 2,431 prisoners. Additionally, the county was ordered to pay a $5,000 donation to the Legal aid Society after officials did not add the agreed upon ten percent interest on refund checks.

Despite the fact that the plan to charge pay to stay fees to prisoners has been a failure, and has charged taxpayers more money than the program is worth, the Sheriff’s department still looks to take more cash from the jail. Charging booking fees, and taking in out of state prisoners are current considerations.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution, a credit debt collection agency. Having trouble collecting money from small claims? collection agencies can help.

In the first two articles I defined what a delinquent account that had been sent to collection was, how sending late accounts out to an debt collection company benefits a creditor, and the practice of selling an old debt to a third party collection agency.

I wrote about what type of information a collection agency will collect and use in their efforts, and also that third party collection agencies are governed by federal and state laws and are overseen by the FTC.

A minority of collection companies will utilize deceptive, strong arm and illegal methods to confuse and scare debtors that include pretending that they are one of their creditors and asking them to verify information, pretending to be an old friend or neighbor to catch a debtor off guard, repetitively calling or mailing a debtor to the point where it gets to be a nuisance, or sending threatening letters or leaving threatening voicemail messages.

Legal but manipulative methods include pressing the consumer, preying on their emotions, and utilizing vague threats such as “respond within so and so amount of days or further collections attempts will follow.” Other illegal practices include making an idle threat of litigation or pursuing litigation when the debt collector has no intention to, threatening to throw a debtor in jail, threatening to garnish wages or seize bank accounts when they have no authority to, lying about the amount that is owed, or asking for more than what is owed are used as well.

For the collections industry, time is the enemy and a good bill collector is completely aware of this bit of information. Their main task is specifically to get money as soon as possible.If you are talking to a debt collector, keep in mind that at any time you have the legal right to tell them you are busy and will call them back if you are flustered, hang up, cool off, develop a game plan, and contact them later. An aggressive debt collector will ask you why you can’t make payment arrangements today.

Rapid Recovery Solution is a commercial collection agency that writes articles on medical collection companies.

In today’s recession, collection companies are not exempt. Starting last year, they first started to suffer from declining liquidation performance, staffing cuts, and increased placements.

In January 2009, the U.S. savings rate shot up and continued to spike. By May 2009 the rate was the highest level of savings by consumers in sixteen years.

Generally, an increase in the U.S. savings rate would mean that debtors will be more fiscally responsible and try to pay off debts that they may owe in case of an unexpected bad turn of events. Unfortunately the first half of 2009 has shown us that this is not what is going to happen and the collections industry shouldn’t expect it to.

One factor that makes the situation worse is that the sustainability of savings growth is quite doubtful because a part of the increase was the result of the Obama stimulus package, which sent one time only disbursements to consumers. Also, in today’s economy any type of consumer savings may be considered a means to keep heads afloat as opposed to future planning. And although savings boost personal income, they slow down consumer spending.

For the first time, collections agencies need to alter their focus greatly. Its not that consumers won’t pay, it’s that they can’t pay. Thus, the future success of collection companies is depending on U.S. economic recovery.

That being said, savvy conclusions can be drawn about the future growth in the collections industry. Better job opportunities would be an amazing gain for the collection industry. If debtors are employed, they are more likely to resolve their issues. Renewed consumer confidence and spending would be a huge boost.

There is an looming tide of pro-consumer adjustments that the collection industry can do little about. How it can truly affect change would be the quality of responses they offer, and that they are carefully considered and level-headed. Finally, increased access to credit is an absolute necessity for the collections industry.

Mallory Megan works for a debt collection company. Also she writes articles on business and finance, consumer spending and collection agencies.

Individual phone collectors will be given a portfolio of accounts, and the bulk of their workday, every day, will be spent working them. Collection agents are subject to many performance evaluations and most of their paycheck is earned from personal commission payments. Thus, the size of a debt collector’s paycheck depends on how successful he or she is at collecting from debtors. This factor, coupled with relentless confrontations with angry and sensitive debtors, makes for an extremely high stress job with high employee turnover.

If a debt collector attempts to reach a debtor and comes into contact with somebody else, they are legally prohibited from informing this person that they are calling about a debt. Each state has its own laws that debt collectors must abide by, and sometimes, the collector can speak to the debtor’s spouse.

If a collection agent gets an answering machine or voicemail, they will usually leave a message, but theoretically someone besides the debtor might hear it. Therefore, the details of the call will not be disclosed, and the tone of the debtor will be apathetic. Collection agencies generally have to provide a toll free number so that it does not cost money for the debtor to return the call.

When the debt collector gets a debtor on the phone, they will start out with what is called a “mini Miranda.” Just like your Miranda rights, which inform you that “anything you say can and will be held against you in a court of law,” the mini Miranda informs the debtor that this is in fact an attempt to collect debt, and any information disclosed will be used for that purpose. This is typically what separates a mediocre debt collector from an excellent one. A mediocre collector will often do most of the talking, but a skilled collector develops good listening skills to ferret out important information.

Thus, debt collection phone calls are usually recorded, and any helpful information is written down on the debtor’s permanent record. Important information includes anything that could be utilized to ascertain the probability that they could successfully collect, or if taking legal action could be a good decision. In other words, if the debtor mentions that they are employed, makes mention of assets, or admits that they owe the debt, this is very encouraging for the collector and could be used in future litigation.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on medical collection agencies

Personal finance is an issue that is, well, personal. Due to the delicate nature of this subject, debt collection is closely monitored by Federal and State laws that do their best to protect the privacy of a debtor. The Fair Debt Collection Practice Act (FDCPA) is a federal law that all third party debt collectors must abide by and it comes with strict guidelines regulating how a collection agent may approach the issue of contacting consumers and how to preserve their privacy. First off, a bill collector can only speak about your debt to you, the credit bureaus, and the creditor that they are working for. They certainly cannot make up a list of their debtors to distribute to other creditors, or advertise a debt for sale.

The way that a third party bill collector is permitted to send mail is strictly monitored. Collections letters are only able to be sent in care of another person if you, the debtor, live at that address, or if you get your mail at that address. If the address where you get your mail is shared, collections letters should be labeled “private,” or “personal.” Any mail that alludes to the fact that it could be mail from a collection agency is strictly prohibited; thus, the envelopes sent by collections agents can’t indicate the purpose of the letter in any way. Post cards are especially prohibited.

If a collection agent knows your name and your phone number and thus can contact you yourself is not permitted to call your family members or neighbors. When they reach you, they must positively identify that they are speaking with you, the debtor, before they can proceed in their attempt to collect a debt. If a debt collector calls you at your job, you can ask them to stop calling you there and they must comply with your wish.

If a debt collector cannot locate you, they can call your family members or neighbors. In these cases, the collector must identify themselves by name but certainly cannot offer the information that they are a debt collector. They are not permitted to let other people know that you owe money, or talk to them about account details. If a debt collector calls a third party to locate you, they cannot contact that person a second time, or leave any information about your debt on a third party voicemail.

If you are a neighbor or family member being contacted by a collection agent who is looking for someone you know, the FDCPA mandates that a collection agent is only permitted to call you in order to locate the person you know who owes the money, and only once. If a debt collector thinks you have new information they can contact you again, but only under those circumstances. If a debt collector is contacting you repeatedly about a third party, that can be considered harassment and you can file a complaint with your attorney general’s office.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on medical collection agencies.

Welcome back to debt collection 101, your beginners guide to debt collection. In article two of this series, I wrote about what a debt collector will do after they have located their debtor and informed them of their debt. Oftentimes debt collectors can make it easier for debtors to pay back their delinquent accounts, can be friendly and offer advice, but also have the authority to mark your credit score negatively, and hand your account over to an attorney if you refuse to pay.

In article one, I spoke about the two different kinds of collection agents, in house collectors, and third party collectors. In house collectors are debt collectors that work directly for the creditor, and these creditors are usually financially based organizations like mortgage or credit card companies. Third party debt collectors make up the majority of debt collectors and work directly for a third party collection agency that is hired by a creditor to collect on their delinquent accounts.

Because in house collectors directly represent the creditors, they are not bound by many of the rules and regulations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). On the other hand, third party collection agents are, and there are a number of rules and provisions that they are restricted by.

In addition to the Federal regulations third party debt collectors must follow, they must also be careful to abide by the state procedures that apply as well. Debt collecting is closely monitored because of the fact that people’s financial issues have the ability to be a sensitive issue. According to the Federal Trade Commission, a collection agent has to positively verify that they are speaking with the debtor themselves, and not anyone else before they can proceed with the phone call.

After they have positively identified the debtor, the debt collector will issue a statement, known as a “mini-Miranda” which informs the consumer that this phone call is an attempt to collect debt, and any information in the conversation can be used to do so. The numbers of rules and regulations for a collector who is calling cross country can be overwhelming. A number of companies use electronic systems now to help debt collectors keep track of all of the rules regarding each call. To be continued in parts 4, 5, and 6.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles about medical collection agencies.

In parts one and two in this set of articles on the very basics of debt collection, I spoke about the differences between an in house collector and a third party collection agent. I let you know about the different types of ways that debt collectors will locate the debtors, and described a number of statements that the debt collector must say before they can proceed in their attempt to collect debt from you.

Debt collectors refer to these legal guidelines as a “mini Miranda.” If a debt collector does not give this information to you, he or she is violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. If questioned, the debt collector is obligated to tell you her name, the name, address and fax number of her agency, and what creditor she is calling on behalf of.

If it is necessary she will go over the terms of sale with you, or credit contracts. Keep in mind that your conversation will most likely be recorded, and a good bill collector is a sneaky one. They will most likely use their listening skills to try to determine the cause of the delinquency.

Despite what you may have heard from anecdotal stories, or the sensational stories you have heard on the news, most debt collectors are empathetic people, working to make a buck like you. Even if your debt collector is calling aggressively, it is never a good idea to ignore their calls. A debt collector will have the authority to offer a repayment plan, or some other type of help to make it easier for you to pay off of your debt.

At times, they are capable of finding solutions to your financial problems. After all, they work with people like you every day. They can even offer you some helpful advice or they might be able to refer you to some helpful debt counselors. Unfortunately, it has been said that all stereotypes have some truth in them, and there will be an occasional debt collector who may use strong arm or even illegal tactics to collect a debt. If something doesn’t sit right with you, consult the FDCPA, and call your local attorney general’s office to report the incident.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on national collection agencies.

In the city of Cody, Wyoming, 219 utility accounts were sent for collection. Only four of the bills belonged to property owners. Some are suggesting that the city council consider holding property owners responsible for utility costs that their renters left unpaid. A policy like that could have added $180,000 to the city budget during the past five years, and furthermore, other utility users are subsidizing those that don’t pay their bills.

Landlords are offering obvious and swift objection, wondering why it should be their job to pay a bill that somebody else was responsible for. Another plan has been suggested however, one that would require a deposit from every person opening up a utility account.

This change in policy would involve a number of modifications like a requirement that a property owner co-sign for a renter’s account. Tenants would be billed under their own account but have an open landlord account for each property. Unpaid bills would be transferred to the landlord’s account if the tenant doesn’t pay.

Deposit requirements would go from $150 to $200, and would be necessary for all accounts, regardless of their past credit history. Property owners would be notified of delinquencies, and they would be encouraged to get in touch with the city to determine if the bill got paid before returning rental deposits. All property owners would have to keep utilities in their names.

Supporters of the plan allege that it is not out of line with what other cities are doing, and it is a simpler and the most cost efficient way to collect debts. Collection agencies get about one third of what they collect in the city, and 60 percent of bills that go to collection remain unpaid.

Whatever decision they come to, it should be fast: city officials are noticing a trend toward less people making deposits and more accounts being sent to collection agencies.

Mallory McGuinness works for a debt collection company. She also composes articles on business and finance, consumer spending and collection agencies.

Nowadays, cash is hard to come across for everyone attempting to meet the standards of living, even young people. As the job market tightens with more and more people losing jobs, competition for employment becomes more fierce and a college education may now be a necessity. While you were in school, loans paid your way through college, but since you have graduated the unthinkable has happened, and these debts have come out to haunt you, maybe even before you are able to secure your first job. A whole slew of debt collectors may be contacting you, and now, you are a frenzied mess searching for anyone who can help you with a student loan consolidation.

The majority of students who have just finished their education and are currently looking for jobs attempt to go for federal school loan consolidation first. This loan brings many benefits to the table. First off, the government will be the source of this loan but the loan is issued by lenders that are private. What this means is that the duration of time granted to you to repay the loan can be extended for a long while.

One of the most enticing benefits of school loan consolidation is that consolidation can take multiple student loans and substitute these with just one. This leads to the overall reduction in the amount of debt you owe, at times this reduction can reach up to sixty percent. Of course, this will lead to reduction in your monthly payment.

Better yet, your improved rate of interest is founded on the weighted average of the rates that apply on your current loans. Also, you won’t have to deal with the mental stress associated with recalling the details about multiple loans. Additionally, consolidation does not mandate a cosigner or any credit score check, and this is an opportunity to improve your credit report rating.

The only downside of student loan consolidation is that experts allege that it can be potentially quite hard to prove that you are eligible for the federal school loan consolidation. Generally, you will need the help of a good financial expert to prove that you can be eligible for consolidation. The standards to qualify have the capacity to be very rigid and leave many ineligible for the loan. Despite this fact, it is worth your while to see if you can qualify. It might be a good way to protect your finances in the future.

Mallory Megan works at Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles on credit collection agencies

The economy is at an all time low, and the amount of debt that American consumers owe is at an all time high. Perhaps you have been receiving a few calls from the debt collector, or some angry letters from your creditor telling you that you better pay up, and perhaps you’ve turned to the internet and have noticed advertisements claiming to offer you debt relief as a quick fix. These offers may sure seem enticing, but it is crucial to remember that, as real as you may want the claim to be, it is still the internet, and it is important to be on the lookout for the truth behind the claim. For example, some “debt relief” places are simply offering a second mortgage. Of course, in this situation, you are going to want to be cautious. These loans will need your house to use as collateral.

A large amount of these debt relief “businesses” are simply charging you to “help” you file for bankruptcy. While it is true that bankruptcy is one way to tackle your financial woes, in most cases it should be seen as a last resort. Filing for bankruptcy is sort of like taking a big red stamp that says “DO NOT GIVE ME MONEY” and stamping it on your credit report for the next ten years. Additionally, your chances of getting a new job, a place of residence, or insurance are significantly decreased.

Before making the choice to file for bankruptcy, it is always a good idea to consider other options. Get on the phone with your creditors. Many times a re-payment plan can be hashed out. These re-payment plans can be modified or paid in installments. Valid, nonprofit credit counseling services are also available to work with you and your creditors to make debt repayment plans.

It is true that bankruptcy can stop foreclosures, debt collection activities and rid you of unsecured debts, and exemptions can be provided that allow you to keep certain pieces of property. But personal bankruptcy will not generally absolve you of your fines, taxes, child support, alimony, and student loans.

In addition, a recent change in bankruptcy laws sets up certain hurdles to overcome before you can file for bankruptcy nowadays, no matter what type. Credit counseling from an organization approved by the government is required within six months before filing for bankruptcy. Additionally, in certain circumstances, you may have to pass a test that requires you to prove that your income doesn’t exceed a set amount.

Mallory Megan works for Rapid Recovery Solution and writes articles about medical collection agencies.