Mail from the debt collection agency: How to recognize rip-offs

If a letter comes from a collection agency, consumers should be careful. Sometimes the letters come from scammers.

Sex hotlines, sweepstakes campaigns or music streaming services: Bills from dubious service providers and dealers keep ending up in the mailboxes of unsuspecting consumers. The senders are often debt collection companies that allegedly collect outstanding debts for their clients.

Even if the recipients of the letters are not aware of any guilt, they often pay out of insecurity. The problem: the demands are often made out of thin air. t-online shows you how you can recognize dubious debt collection letters – and how you should react to them.

Collection means that a creditor collects the debtor’s claims. The word comes from Italian and means “to collect” or “to collect money”.

In practice, it usually works like this: If you order something on the Internet and don’t pay the bill, you will usually receive at least one, and often a second, reminder from the company to which you owe money. If you still don’t pay, the company often hires an extra service provider, a lawyer or a debt collection agency.

This collection service provider then initiates what is known as a collection procedure, which will also cost you something (see below): The office will check the claims against you and send you a corresponding collection letter.

If this is correct and you have not yet paid the debts, you should do so now at the latest (see below). The next step is a court order. In this case, you must also reckon with a negative entry at a credit agency such as Schufa.

However, it may be that claims by the collection agency are unjustified or the collection letter is even forged. You can easily check this (see below).

If you receive a letter from a collection agency, do not panic. First you should check whether the claim is legitimate. The collection letter may remind you of your purchase – and the invoice.

However, it is also possible that you have not received a direct debit confirmation for the online purchase. In this case, you should check your bank statements. It is possible, for example, that you made a typo when entering the account number when paying by direct debit. However, if everything is correct, you do not have to settle the claim (see below).

However, if you find out that the request is not legitimate, the letter is most likely from scammers. The following indications speak in favor of this:

• Information in the letterhead: Fraudsters often use the identity of reputable, registered companies – they then use their logo or company name, for example. Check that the information in the letterhead matches the rest of the letter.
• Bank details: Check the bank details to which you should transfer the money. The first two letters should have “DE” for Germany. If the bank details refer to a foreign country, this often indicates that the sender is not serious.
• formulations: Collection agencies are subject to certain information obligations. According to the legislator, you must already provide precise information on the claim in the first reminder letter. For example, you must state the reason, the exact amount and the interest and the name and address of the debt collection agency. If such information is not found, the letter is probably not genuine. Debt collection agencies are also not allowed to threaten the police or the court with a negative Schufa entry.
• Spelling mistake: If there are obvious spelling mistakes in the collection letter or your name is spelled incorrectly, this also indicates fraud.

If you are unsure, you can ask the debt collection agency directly. Reputable service providers will clearly state the creditor’s claim for payment.

If consumers receive a spam email or a false warning, they should not respond to it directly. “If fraudsters notice that someone is reacting, they never give up in the end,” warns Marco Weber from the Federal Association of German Debt Collection Companies (BDIU).

It is better to report the incident to the police – “so that the authorities can take action against it with the power of the law,” says Weber.

That means: If in doubt, simply ignore the letter or e-mail. In this case, doing nothing is better than writing to the scammers.

It may be that the company turns out to be reputable, but the claim is unjustified – for example because you have already transferred the amount or a contract was concluded illegally. This can happen if you said “yes” in the wrong place on the phone or clicked in the wrong place on the internet.

In this case, you should object to the alleged creditor of the claim in writing: send him a letter and explain why the claims are unlawful. If in doubt, contact the consumer advice center or a lawyer. Doing nothing is not an option here.

However, those affected should not ignore justified demands. Otherwise the costs can add up.

In addition, there are legal consequences such as a lawsuit or a court order for payment. The foreclosure may come. So you should definitely act here.