IMGCAP(1)]
U.S. Sen. Charles Schumer, D-N.Y., earlier this week asked the Federal Trade Commission to investigate agencies that collect deceased debt. In a letter to FTC Chairman Jon Leibowitz, Schumer said "these companies call surviving relatives, often shortly after the death of a loved one, to coax or cajole them into making payments on the deceased relative's credit card," according to published reports. Furthermore, Schumer alleges the debt-collection firms "conveniently omit" informing relatives of deceased debtors that they are not legally obligated to pay. Attempts to obtain a copy of the letter from Schumer's office were unsuccessful. "Even though the senator thinks he is going after a good cause, he is a little bit confused about how companies work these accounts," says J.C. Gunnell, CEO at Columbus, Ohio-based Estate Information Services LLC, which specializes in the collection of deceased debt. "As far as my company is concerned, we have specific requirements from our clients to [ask] any family members if they want to pay, but they are not liable. We have quality controls in place that monitor that to be sure those words are said," Gunnell tells CardLine sister publication Collections & Credit Risk. Schumer asked the FTC for an accounting of how many firms engage in deceased debt collection and which credit card issuers retain debt collectors for that purpose. If the practice is not illegal, Schumer suggested the FTC could at least require collection firms to notify the relatives that they have no legal obligation to pay the debts.
