Dealing with collection agencies can seem like a lose-lose situation for many people. Collection agencies can at times seem like they are “bullying” some clients but this can be completely prevented by you if you know all your rights and speak up for them.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is in place to protect people who are dealing with collection agencies that may not be treating debtors exactly as they should. This act was made in 1977 to protect you from abusive or unjust collection practices and may vary with state laws but the general provisions are those which are used to protect all consumers from abuse or unfair practices. This act can become very important to the consumer when working with collection agencies.
Some of the provisions for dealing with collection agencies under this act are listed below:
- After five days after the agency first contacts you, the agency has to send you a written notification of how much you debt you owe and the name of the creditor who referred your name to their agency. This same note should also let you know that you have a right to dispute your debt within 30 days or when you receive the note.
- The collector may contact you only between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. your time unless you give them permission to do otherwise.
- The agency is allowed to contact people who are not directly involved to get information about where you work or live as it is not a conversation about your debt. However, the collector must say their name but must only say the name of the collection agency they work for if specifically asked.
- There are allowed to contact you directly unless you have told them to speak to your attorney about this debt and have given them the information about where to reach your attorney.
- The collector cannot use profane or offensive language and can only use business appropriate language when speaking to you.
- The collector is not allowed to make excessive phone calls to you in order to harass or bother you.
- The collector cannot threaten to take an illegal action against you or threaten to take any action against you that they do not intend to take.
- You can also send the collection agency a written request to stop all contact with you on the issue and then the collector can contact you only one more time to tell you any other legal or any type of action they are going to engage in. This action can protect you from a collector who is being abusive or inappropriate but it does not alleviate the debt.
Always keep in mind as well when dealing with a collection agency that you can always contact your original creditor and ask if they will allow you to make payments directly to them instead of having to deal with the collection agency so you do not have to deal with the agency or any potential associated fees.
It also always looks good when dealing with collection agencies to make some type of payment so it shows that you are making an effort.
By Lauren Culliton