Poeppelmeier says he doubts he’s alone, and he’s right. As unemployment and debt have risen, complaints to the Ohio Attorney General’s office about debt collection agencies have doubled since 2006, with more than 2,000 recorded in the first eight months of this year alone. A total of 386 complaints have been filed this year against Allied Interstate of Columbus, the office said.
“A line must be drawn to keep debt collection from crossing over into harassment,” Ohio Attorney General Robert Cordray said in a recent press release. “Overly aggressive tactics, such as making threats and repeated phone calls, are not allowed. Ohioans have enough financial worries without the added stress of harassing collection practices.”
Poeppelmeier said the calls from Allied Interstate finally stopped last week after he and his wife filed a complaint earlier this month with Cordray’s office. Allied’s headquarters in West Palm Beach, Fla., did not answer calls for comment Friday, Nov. 27.
Has Poeppelmeier’s phone harassment problems been solved? “I got another call this morning from a debt collection agency in Delaware,” he said Wednesday, Nov. 25. “They’re trying to collect on the financial estate of Dante Smith. I think my head is about to explode.”
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