Citizen Advocate Forms Group To Help Victims Of Collection Agency Abuse

Mickey Paoletta is not a lawyer and does not dispense legal advice, but he has started a group that helps consumers know their rights in debt collection cases, and encourages them to fight.

Paoletta founded Citizen’s Reform Center, which teaches people about money and banking and how they can use that knowledge to address debt issues.

The No. 1 violation of federal law by debt collectors is that they do not have proper documentation to prove that a debt exists, said Paoletta. Debt collection agencies buy debts from credit card companies and banks. However, the paperwork collectors usually get from the initial lenders includes only basic information such as a name, address and the amount of the debt. They need to show documentation such as a contract between the debtor and the original bank or credit card company, or accounting ledgers.

The debt collection agencies hire law firms to contact alleged debtors and try to scare them into paying, Paoletta said. Sometimes, the tactic works and the debtors pay up. “The least sophisticated person will pay them anything they want,”.

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