An email from a debt collection agency does not bode well. The demands are usually immense, and a threat is also included. Be careful! This is most likely a fake. More and more consumers are currently complaining about the massive and intimidating behavior of fraudsters. How to recognize fakes and how best to act:
How do I recognize fake debt collection letters?
More than half of the claims sent out are unjustified. However, many consumers get a huge fright and pay. Do not do this under any circumstances! If you receive a debt collection letter, then
- keep calm first.
- Check whether your bills have all been paid or whether there is anything outstanding.
It's like with competitions: If you haven't taken part in one, you can't win anything. If all your bills have been paid, there can be no outstanding debts.
You can often recognize fake debt collection letters by the unprofessional look of the email address and subject line. This usually runs through the entire e-mail (e.g. missing file number, client, reason for claim, breakdown of costs, typing errors). Furthermore, forgeries can often be recognized by the fact that the money is to be transferred to accounts in Romania or Bulgaria. In addition, bailiffs or even an arrest warrant are often threatened. However, this is only possible with an enforcement order or judgment. Also: check the company. The law stipulates that debt collection agencies must also be registered. You can check whether the company is listed at www.rechtsdienstleistungsregister.de. In the case of fake letters, nothing is usually true - in other words, the claims are also fictitious.
In these cases: Delete the mail or forward it to the police. NEVER OPEN ATTACHMENTS!
You have not received a reminder in advance?
If you have overlooked invoices and a debt collection agency is now contacting you, this may be justified. If an invoice states a payment term of 30 days, for example, the company does not have to send a reminder if the money has not been received. It can pass the outstanding invoice on to a debt collection service immediately. In contrast to reminder fees, which amount to a maximum of two to three euros, debt collection fees are extremely high. In some cases, they are higher than the amount claimed. Unfortunately, the law does not stipulate what companies are allowed to charge. For the sake of good form, some companies, doctors' surgeries and the like point out in their invoice that if you do not pay, the matter will be passed directly to a debt collection agency. This may be annoying, but there are many people and companies that have a poor payment record. Smaller companies in particular can get into difficulties themselves due to outstanding invoices. The aim of hiring debt collection agencies is to minimize the bureaucracy and time required to collect outstanding debts in your own company.
How do you defend yourself?
The best way is to seek advice from the consumer advice service. There is not only the debt collection check, which tells you whether the claim is justified. There is also information on guide values for the appropriate amount of fees. For example, it is suggested that a maximum fee of 45 euros should be paid for a claim of 250 euros. You should send the explanation for the reduction to the company, pay, of course, and then wait and see.
And what is phishing?
Phishing is when crooks use fake websites, emails from banks and companies or text messages to try to get hold of your data. Phishing emails often look deceptively genuine. If you are unsure whether you have received a phishing email, log into your browser via the original page and check your account to see whether the request is genuine. If you are still unsure: Write or call the institution that the email or text message is supposed to have come from - find out if they have sent a message out to them. We can only advise you to do this, because
1. you are 100 percent protected.
2. the company will be informed about short phishing attacks and can file a criminal complaint with the public prosecutor's office. If incidents become more frequent, warning letters are often sent out by the institutions concerned.