According to consumer attorney Kenneth Hiller, "These kinds of abusive practices by debt collectors are common."

The president of Nationwide Collections, Phil McGarvey, told the Blotter on ABCNews.com that the account in question contained the offensive name when Nationwide purchased it from another company. McGarvey said the profanity wasn't caught by his employees because collection letters are sent through an automated system.   

McGarvey said the threat of a lawsuit contained in the letter was also an oversight and that his company typically doesn't sue customers over such low amounts of money.