Collecting Debts from the Dead

(LA Times) — Death is no excuse for not paying your bills.  But federal authorities say debt collectors have become increasingly aggressive — and often misleading — in their efforts to wring unpaid obligations from dead people’s next of kin.  To rein in the practice, the Federal Trade Commission is preparing new rules that would crack down on overzealous debt collection involving the deceased but also potentially make it easier for unscrupulous collectors to dupe the unwary into paying bills they’re not responsible for.

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