The Eleventh Circuit Court of Appeals (the Appeals Court presiding over Alabama’s Federal Courts) recently addressed a critical question concerning debt collection in modern day America – whether a debt collector may leave voicemail messages in an attempt to collect a debt.  In the case of Edwards v. Niagara Credit Solutions, Inc., No. 08-17006 (11^th Cir. Oct. 14, 2009), Brenda Edwards had owed a debt to the Consumer Shopping Network.  Niagara was thereafter assigned to collect Ms. Edwards’ debt.

Between July 2007 and October 2007, Niagara left over a dozen messages on Ms. Edwards’ phone answering machine.  In September 2007, Niagara left a pre-recorded message on the answering machine stating as follows: “This is an important message for Edwards Brenda [sic]. Please return this message at 1-800-381-0416, between the hours of 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. eastern standard time.  It is important that you reach our office.”  Niagara followed up the next month with a second pre-recorded message (similar in content to the first).

In September 2007, Ms. Edwards sued Niagara alleging that the messages left on her answering machine violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).  Niagara’s dilemma in responding is that the FDCPA prohibits communications regarding a debt to third parties but also requires collection agency employees to identify themselves as debt collectors in each communication.  As such, Niagara argued it did not identify itself to Ms. Edwards in the answering machine messages because those messages could have been heard by third parties.

The Eleventh Circuit Court found that argument unpersuasive and mocked Niagara’s logic as being akin to the oft-repeated statement from an unidentified American soldier in the Vietnam War: “[W]e had to destroy the village to save it.”  The Court ultimately held Niagara had intentionally violated the FDCPA by failing to disclose its identity as a debt collector in the answering machine messages and further cautioned that “the [FDCPA] does not guarantee a debt collector the right to leave answering machine messages."