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Alabama collection lawsuits are up almost 4 times according to court documents for the U.S. District Court for North Alabama. Many of these cases are related to collection agencies collecting from the wrong person, and certain companies seem to have a very high rate of suits.

Unifund tops the list with 26 suits filed in the last 12 months in North Alabama alone. Behind them is California’s Midland Credit Management with 22 suits in the last year. Here is an excerpt from the article in the Birmingham News:

California-based collection agent Midland Credit Management was sued by a woman living in Limestone County.

The problem? The woman was getting regular phone calls from Midland Credit’s bill collectors. Among the messages left by the collectors, according to the suit: “Trash like you need to pay your bills and stop ignoring them.”

The real problem was that the woman didn’t owe $1,492 to a furniture dealer for a debt allegedly incurred in 2003. Midland Credit Management was never able to substantiate the debt with receipts or signed credit agreements or other documentation, despite repeated requests, the suit said.

A spokesman for Midland Credit’s parent company, San Diego-based Encore Capital Group, said the corporation doesn’t comment on collections lawsuits. The case, like many, was settled under confidential terms.

Of course it was settled under “confidential terms.” That’s the standard method of operation for many of these collection agencies. Consistently and systematically break the collection laws that are there to protect consumers and settle any lawsuits that come up as fast and quietly as possible. Then, the lawyers representing consumers get 75% of the settlement money. Unethical collection agencies just view these lawsuits as a cost of doing business. Until there is greater enforcement from state agencies or the FTC, consumers will continue to suffer from collection harassment, while lawyers and collection agencies reap the profits.

**Read the full Birmingham News Story**