The Sun Sentinel out of Florida is reporting that cases where a creditor has sued a consumer over a debt owed are increasing.
Small claims courts in Broward and Palm Beach counties are reporting a spike in the number of cases against debtors, who typically owe between $2,000 to $4,000. Some judges say they are handling more than 25 such cases a week, compared to just a handful a few years ago.
“People…understand that [collectors] can call all they want [but] there’s not much they can really do,” said Deryl Hunt, an attorney in Margate who specializes in debt collection. “Companies have come to the realization that they have to invest more and sue individuals to get their attention and it’s unfortunate.”
For example, Asset Acceptance, a Michigan-based company that buys debt from credit card issuers, filed about 250 cases in Broward County in 2007. In 2010, it filed 938 cases.
You can read the whole story here.
