Advantage Collection Professionals or ACP debt collection agency is bound by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Learn more about the company and how you can stop harassing debt collection calls.
Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC or ACP is a legitimate third-party debt collection agency based in Minnesota.
According to its website, Advantage Collection Professionals is a full-service collection agency. Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC boasts that it “consistently recovers debts at rates well above the industry average.” Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC “has designed and implemented results-oriented debt-collection methodologies specifically for the healthcare industry that allow them to consistently exceed” industry standards. ACP claims to be “among the best in the business of convincing customers to make good on bad checks.” Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC’s “expertise in the collection of accounts for retail stores and businesses” has enabled them “to design and implement specific methodologies that have resulted in recovery rates that soar above the industry average.”
ACP employs a number of tactics in support of its debt collection efforts, including using advanced skip tracing to “ pursue delinquent customers who are attempting to run away from their financial obligations.” In addition, ACP boasts that it “has invested heavily in technology and process improvement to facilitate seamless integration,” including “leading collection software…by Comtech Systems.” If Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC is unable to collect, it will utilize its network of attorneys “to assist with hard-to-collect accounts.” This could involve obtaining judgments against individual debtors as well as applying wage garnishments to individual debtor’s paychecks.
Advantage Collection Professionals states that it maintains “full compliance with laws and regulations that include, but are not limited to,” the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA); the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA); the Gramm-Leach-Bliley Act (GLBA); the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act (HIPAA); all required licensing, insurance, and bonding; and the Minnesota Attorney General Hospital Agreement. However, its website does not provide any links or references to consumer protection resources or enforcement agencies.
Advantage Collection Professionals is affiliated with numerous professional debt-collection associations, the International Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (ACA International); Credit Score Services; the American Association of Healthcare Administrative Management; TransUnion, and the Minnesota Collection Network.
Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC collects delinquent debts for medical and healthcare service providers, education lenders, and consumer retail lenders. ACP also provides check recovery services and commercial debt recovery.
As a third-party debt collection agency, Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC is required to adhere to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), a federal law that protects consumers from abusive debt collection tactics. Nevertheless, consumers have filed complaints accusing Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC of violating the FDCPA. Those accusations have included claims that the debt collection agency has threatened to sue consumers without actually intending to do so and talking to third parties about consumers’ debts. It’s imperative that you know your rights under the law before speaking with Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC debt collectors.
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Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC is not accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB). However, the BBB issued Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC an “A+” rating despite 4 recorded complaints against Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC in the past three years. Two of these complaints alleged problems with billing and collections, while the remaining two complaints alleged problems with services provided by Advantage Collection Professionals, LLC. Since June 2014, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has received 17 complaints against ACP, LLC, all of which contained allegations related to Advantage Collection Professional LLC’s debt collection practices
If you’ve been contacted by ACP you have the right to sue them in federal court if the debt collection agency has violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Signs that you may be on solid legal footing are:
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was put into law in order to protect consumers like you, but there’s a catch. While the government sues debt collection agencies that egregiously violate the law, it doesn’t sue agencies on behalf of individual consumers. Instead, the FDCPA has what’s called a fee-shifting provision. This means that, if you sue and win, then the debt collection agency has to pay your court costs and attorney fees. Fee-shifting levels the playing field so that you can assert your rights.
Are you asking yourself…
Advantage Collection Professionals could be calling for a number of reasons, all of them related to debt collection:
If you’ve been contacted by ACP it’s important to know your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. If they’ve violated your rights, you can take the agency to court and sue for statutory damages of up to $1,000 – along with court costs and attorney fees.
Yes. Advantage Collection Professionals can sue you if you owe the debt, however, threatening to sue or serve you with papers if they don’t intend to do so is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Additionally, after receiving the first collection notice, you have 30 days to dispute the debt. If you dispute the debt, then ACP is required by the FDCPA to prove that you do, in fact, owe the money. A debt collection agency isn’t allowed to sue you if, for example, the debt is past the statute of limitations or if you do not legally owe the debt. It’s a good idea to speak with a fair debt attorney if you’ve been served with a summons or legal complaint.
Yes. However, Advantage Collection Professionals cannot threaten you to garnish your wages and garnishment can only only occur if ACP files a lawsuit and obtains a judgment against you. It’s common for consumers to ignore notice of a lawsuit; if you don’t appear in court, the judge may automatically rule against you. Debt collection agencies have been known to avoid serving consumers with notice to increase the odds of obtaining a judgment. This is called “sewer service” or “gutter service.” The bottom line? If wage garnishment takes you by surprise, talk to a consumer attorney who can fight for your rights.
Yes. Advantage Collection Professionals can report debts in collection to the three major credit reporting agencies – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. Once a debt is reported to the credit bureaus, it will appear on your credit report and will impact your credit score.
Yes. However, as with wage garnishment, a property lien can only arise out of a court judgment against you. If ACP files a lawsuit against you and the judge rules in their favor, then the debt collection agency has a right to collect that money. One way of doing that is by putting a lien on your house or property. That’s why it’s imperative to respond to legal papers and to have an attorney by your side who will fight on your behalf.
No. Advantage Collection Professionals – or any other debt collection agency like ACP for that matter – has no authority whatsoever to arrest you. In fact, threatening you with arrest or jail is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. While so-called “debtors prisons” are illegal, only non-payment of things like traffic tickets can lead a judge to issue a bench warrant, which in turn can lead to arrest.
Yes. You absolutely have the right to sue Advantage Collection Professionals if you believe ACP violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The FDCPA says that debt collection agencies that violate the law must pay consumers up to $1,000 in statutory damages, as well as court costs and attorney fees. That’s why engaging a fair debt attorney to represent you in an FDCPA lawsuit typically doesn’t cost you anything out of pocket. The attorney that agrees to take on your case knows that the debt collection agency will be forced to pay their fees.
If Advantage Collection Professionals – or any other debt collection agency – is calling you to the point of harassment, using abusive or profane language, or violating the FDCPA in some other way, it’s time to fight back. Under the law, you may be entitled to up to $1,000. At Lemberg Law, we won’t charge you a dime out of pocket, and we only get paid when you win. Call us today for a free, no-obligation, case evaluation. We’ll get the justice that you deserve.
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Lemberg Law is a consumer law firm helping victims of collection harassment and abuse. We are ranked A+ by the BBB. We’ve helped more than 15,000 consumers stop harassment and recover money from debt collectors. Harassed? Abused? Misled by a collector? Call our Helpline today! There is no charge unless we win.
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