Texas man at odds with septic company

A dispute over the work performed on a Houston, Texas man's septic system resulted in a trial and multiple allegations of debt collection violations. Lynn Kirkpatrick had contracted New Braunfels-based Homeland Septic to perform work on his backyard septic system. Upon completion, he wasn't pleased with the quality of work that had been done and refused to pay. Homeland, however, claimed the work was sufficient and demanded payment from Kirkpatrick. The dispute was taken to court, and according to the Kirkpatrick's defense, Homeland would eventually break several state laws in its ongoing collection efforts. Homeland did not seek a professional agency for help with collections - rather, the company took matters into its own hands and began to "hound" Kirkpatrick for payment. According to court documents, tactics included leaving voicemails and text messages that contained vulgar language and threats to Kirkpatrick's family and home, as well as a Facebook message claiming a lien had been placed on his house for three times the original amount of money owed. Bizmology points out that the Association of Credit and Collections Professionals recently proposed a blueprint to accommodate for the growing use of internet, email and social media among debtors, hoping it will modernize their collection efforts.