This situation involving the collection industry amuses me, but there is a serious issue here. Some elderly citizens have their capacity for self-protection diminish as time passes. Extortionate collectors know this and threaten to begin impossible acts if payment is not made immediately. Those threats are usually accompanied by an offer to settle for some lesser amount. Victims not confident of their rights, or lacking judgment because of advancing age, may pay crippling amounts for which they have no legal obligation.