Dealing with unlawful tenant debt: Know your rights

Landlords are notorious for sending unlawful tenant debt to collection agencies to report negative information on your credit reports to force you to pay debts that may not be allowed under the law. Did you know that you may be entitled to compensation if this happens to you?

Virginia and other states have protections on various junk debts or landlord debt add-ons. If a third party debt collector tries to make you pay debts that are not allowed, you may have claims under your state law or various federal laws, including the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. You may have claims for:

• Attempting to collect lease termination charges that you do not owe.
• Pest fees, media addendum fees and other rent “add-ons” that are not allowed under Virginia law.
• Credit reporting debts you may not owe.

If you’ve received any communications like these, you might have a legal claim under state law or the FDCPA.

How can we help after you receive debt collection notices for unlawful tenant debt?

Our Kelly Guzzo, PLC, legal team can help you get rid of junk tenant debt. We’ll consult with you at no cost to see if you’re entitled to compensation for unlawful tenant debt collection.