But Did Dr. G’s Delray Beach Do Anything Wrong By Sending Email Seeking Payment?
BY: LITIGATION DESK | Editor and Publisher
DELRAY BEACH, FL (BocaNewsNow.com) (Copyright © 2023 MetroDesk Media, LLC) — A lawsuit just filed in Palm Beach County Circuit Court accuses popular local medical provider “Dr. G’s Urgent Care” of violating the Florida Consumer Collections Practices Act by sending an email after 9 p.m. seeking payment for services rendered. The suit seeks “class action status,” claiming that Dr. G’s routinely sent emails after 9 p.m. to an indeterminable number of people.
The suit claims that any contact after 9 p.m. is illegal under the consumer protection act, and subject to fines and other sanctions.
But it’s unclear if the claim actually has merit. Consumer collections contact is typically considered to be aggressive phone calls from debt collectors attempting to secure payment for a debt. Not a doctor’s office that is sending a bill to your email that you can choose to interact with — or not — at your convenience. The mere act of sending an email may not rise to the level of FCCPA violation.
In this specific case, patient Matthew Berman — the plaintiff — apparently owed $160. The Doctor’s office sent an email requesting payment. The email apparently arrived in his Gmail account at 2:50 in the morning. He claims that violates the FCCPA. According to the suit, emails seeking payment may not arrive in an email box after 9 p.m. or before 8 a.m.
Berman is represented by Jibrael S. Hindi and Thomas Patti of Jibrael Law. Dr. G’s Urgent Care had not responded to the suit through a public court filing as of 3 p.m. Sunday.
