At Lawyers and Settlements, an interview with New York bankruptcy attorney Charles Juntikka, about how fraudulent “zombie” debt collectors harass and victimize people who have gone through a bankruptcy:
That kind of old debt is often called Zombie debt, because scammers just won’t let it die. Phony debt collection agencies buy packages of unpaid bills from banks and other creditors. The Zombie debt collectors pay pennies on the dollar; the debt packages then set up telephone boiler operations using cheap internet phone lines. Then they go to work harassing and haranguing people until they finally give in and send them a check. “Bankruptcy clients are perfect victims,” says Juntikka. “I see very few smiling bankruptcy clients. They feel guilty, they feel horrible and that’s the people these scam artists prey on.”
People who have had a Chapter 7 bankruptcy do not have to repay these old debts. Those targeted by the scammers can ignore the calls and letters, or ask their bankruptcy attorney to write a letter.
New regulations and bigger fines could stop Zombie debt collectors, according to Juntikka. “Maybe now that Mr. Obama has taken over, that will happen.”
