Can a Payday loan company file criminal charges against me?
Question Details:
Approximately 4 months ago I took out a loan on-line. However, my wife continues to be unemployed so I'm am having major problems paying all the bills myself. Now this company says they are going to tell my work and bring me up on charges for fraud. I never intended for this to happen can they do this?
Defaulting on a loan is not criminal unless fraud is involved. And its not up to the company anyway it is the state that decides whether or not to prosecute. Source: https://www.lightpaydayloan.com/
Absent fraud (ie you never intended on paying the money back), threats of criminal action are just that, threats. You can't be arrested for failure to pay on a debt. In fact, it is against the law for a creditor to threaten criminal action for non-payment. (again, unless there has been fraud). However, since you have already paid half of the amount that you borrowed back, and you wife is truly unemployed, this seems to be more of a case of hard luck than fraud.
Additionally, if the company calling you is what is known as a "third party collector", that is someone who bought the loan from your original debtor, then they may not call you at work once you have informed them that your employer does not allow these type of calls. Additionally, you can also tell them not to call you at all, even at home. In fact you should tell them this by letter as well. Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), if they continue to harass you by phone, you can bring a legal action against them. If the original debtor is calling you then the FDCPA does not apply. However, even if it is the original creditor, there may be some specific state law protection for you on this.
