Minnesota AG Goes After Debt Collector AFNI

Minnesota Attorney General Lori Swanson filed a lawsuit last week in Hennepin County District Court against AFNI, Inc., an Illinois debt collection agency, for attempting to collect debts from Minnesota citizens who stated they did not actually owe the debts and for failing to substantiate debt that consumers stated they did not owe.

The lawsuit alleges that AFNI used unfair collection techniques to attempt to collect debts that Minnesota consumers stated they did not believe they owe, and that AFNI did not adequately verify the validity of debts to ensure it was collecting the debt from the right people. As a result, AFNI repeatedly contacted Minnesota consumers in an attempt to collect debts, some up to ten years old, that in some cases were not actually owed by the citizens.

“In this troubled economy, many people are struggling to pay their bills. Debt collectors are entitled to pursue payment of legitimate debts, but they must do so fairly and in compliance with the law,” Swanson said.

The lawsuit alleges that AFNI continued collection efforts, rather than verify the legitimacy of the debt, after citizens informed AFNI that it was attempting to collect the debt from the wrong person. In response to AFNI’s requests, Minnesota consumers sometimes provided private information, including social security numbers and police reports of identity theft, to prove that AFNI was collecting the debt from the wrong person, but that even after being provided with this requested information, AFNI sometimes continued its collection efforts.

AFNI also sometimes reported invalid “debts” to credit bureaus without verifying that the debts were actually owed by the citizen and did not take the action necessary to remove the debts from consumers’ credit reports.

The Minnesota Attorney General’s Office has published a Debt Collection Fact Sheet which offers tips for consumers who are contacted by collection agencies. The Attorney General’s Office provides the following tips in dealing with debt collectors:

• Consumers have the right to dispute all or part of a debt if they believe that it is not owed. Once the debt is disputed, collectors must stop trying to collect the debt until the debt collector provides proof of the debt;
• Collectors must inform consumers of their right to request verification of a given debt in writing within 30 days;
• If a consumer tells a collector it has the wrong person and he/she does not owe the debt, the burden of proof shifts back on the collector to verify the debt; and
• Collectors may not use false, deceptive, or misleading statements to collect a debt;

AFNI, Inc. is a private debt collector headquartered in Illinois that has operations throughout the country and is engaged in the business of debt collection.

Minnesota consumers who believe that they were taken advantage of by AFNI, or another debt collector, may file a complaint with the Minnesota Attorney General’s Office by calling 1-800-657-3787 or 651-296-3353.

Source – Minnesota Attorney General