Paul Stephens
Paul Stephens, director of policy and advocacy, Privacy Rights Clearinghouse, a nonprofit consumer information and advocacy group based in San Diego (www.privacyrights.org).
Debt collection agencies often harass consumers to pay their bills. Unfortunately, the collectors do not always get their facts right. Sometimes they pursue the wrong people or seek payments on bills settled years before. On other occasions, they pursue bills that are legitimately owed but intentionally deceive debtors about their rights. Ways to stop collection agency harassment…
If you receive a call from a debt collection agency, get the caller’s name… the name of the collection agency… the address, phone and fax numbers… the amount that you allegedly owe… and the name of the creditor — the company or individual that claims you didn’t pay a bill. The collection agency is legally required to provide this information upon request. Then check with the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals (952-926-6547, www.acainternational.org) to see if the agency that called you is a member. If it is not, call the original lender and ask if the collection agency is representing it.
Also note any verbal abuse, lies, threats or profanity made by the collection agent — The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act of 1977, a federal law that governs debt collection practices, bars such behavior. It also says that agencies cannot call between 9 pm and 8 am.
Ask to have all evidence of the debt, such as a copy of the original receipt or contract, mailed to you. Collection agencies sometimes decide that it is not worth their trouble to compile evidence, particularly for debts smaller than $100.
Important: Refuse to make any comment about the accuracy of the debt whether or not you believe it is legitimate. Acknowledging responsibility for a debt can extend the period of time during which the collection agency or the original creditor can legally sue you for repayment.
It is your legal right to demand that the collection agency stop phoning you. Say that future contact with you must be made only in writing to your home address. Don’t give them your name and address if they ask for it — they should already have it. Add that this is your right under The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. That way, you’ll have written evidence of any claims or promises.
Write a letter to the collection agency reiterating what you have said, including your request for evidence of the debt and your insistence that the phone calls end. Send this letter — and all future correspondence to the collection agency — by certified mail with return receipt requested.
Note: The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act applies only to debt collection agencies. Businesses attempting to collect money owed directly to them, government agencies and property managers are not required to follow these rules, though some states have rules that cover them as well.
When you receive a written account of the debt from the collection agency, send your response ideally within 30 days (according to The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, if you do not dispute the debt within 30 days, the debt collector will consider the debt valid). How to handle the following scenarios…
Include any relevant evidence, such as a copy of a canceled check showing that you already paid. Ask the collection agency to send you written confirmation that it no longer holds you accountable for the debt.
Once you file this written dispute, the collection agency is legally required to conduct an investigation into the legitimacy of the bill before pursuing payment any further.
Be sure to include a copy of a police report confirming identity theft if you have one. This report should list all of the fraudulent accounts opened in your name or the fraudulent charges made using your accounts.
Otherwise, submit a complaint to the Federal Trade Commission by calling 877-438-4338 or by using their on-line “Complaint Assistant” (www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov). Include any additional evidence of identity theft as well, such as copies of credit card receipts with signatures that are not yours.
Inform the debt collection agency that the statute of limitations on the debt has expired, and insist that it stop contacting you.
Warning: Do not acknowledge that the debt was yours. Debt collection agencies sometimes attempt to “re-age” debts that have passed statute of limitations deadlines. They might convince the debtor to acknowledge responsibility for the debt or to send a small partial payment, either of which can reset the statute of limitations clock. (It is the date of most recent account activity, not the date the debt was incurred, that matters in many cases.)
Do not make any payment until you have received a written, signed copy of the terms of your payment agreement. This agreement should include a promise that the debt will be considered paid in full for whatever amount you have agreed to send… that no mention of late payment or nonpayment will be placed on your credit report… and that any mention of this late payment that already appears will be updated to state that the debt now has been paid in full.
If the late payment later appears on your credit report in a manner more negative than you negotiated in this agreement, send a copy of the agreement directly to the credit reporting agencies and request that it be corrected.
Disreputable collection agencies sometimes continue their aggressive tactics even after consumers invoke their legal rights. If this occurs, report the collection agency to the Federal Trade Commission (877-382-4357, www.ftc.gov) and your state’s attorney general (visit the National Association of Attorneys General Web site at www.naag.org).
Warn the collection agency in writing that it has violated your legal rights under The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Threaten to take legal action if the abuses continue. If the harassment does not end, consider hiring an attorney. The Web site of the National Association of Consumer Advocates (www.naca.net) or the Web site of lawyer database Martindale-Hubbell, www.martindale.com, can help you locate an appropriate attorney in your region.
