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How to Stop Debt Collector Harrassment

There are some debt collectors who take their jobs very seriously, but completely ignore regulations designed to protect consumers. They will do or say just about anything to get their clients (debtors) to repay their debts. Debt collectors are typically hired by lenders to attempt to collect a debt on their behalf, although sometimes, debt collectors are another department within the same company. In 1977, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was passed to provide protection from consumers from abusive third-party debt collection practices. Here is the protection this act provides to you – and what to do if a debt collector is in violation of any of these provisions:

What Debt Collectors CANNOT Do:


  • Call you at work if you've specifically told them your employer doesn't approve of phone calls at the workplace.
  • Call you before 8am or after 9pm.
  • Lie to you
  • Imply that you've committed a crime.
  • Conceal their identity.
  • Ignore a written request from you that asks them to stop contacting you via telephone.
  • Harass or abuse you.
  • Send you a notice about a court judgement that isn't real.
  • Call someone else, other than your spouse, to talk about your debt.
  • Use profanities when talking to you on the phone
  • Threaten you or your personal property with violence.
  • Publish a listing (except to credit reporting bureaus) regarding your debt.
  • Contact you if you have an attorney to represent you regarding your debt.
  • Threaten to garnish your wages if they have no intention of doing so.
  • Add fees and additional charges to the amount you owe.
 



Are Your Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Rights Being Violated?

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act offers protection to consumers who are in debt – but only if they know how to use it. If your rights under the FDCPA are violated, you have up to one year to file a lawsuit against the debt collector. If you are awarded the case, you will be reimbursed for attorney fees, actual damages, and up to $1,000 additional money. 

If you think your rights have been violated by aggressive debt collectors, you can do something about it under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. This article from About.com explains some of your options.

Comments

robert (Guest) - Abuse? The debt collection companies need to be shutdown anyway . How do they think that calling and telling you that we'll embarrass you on your job and call your neighbors and tell them that you are a dead beat etc... I have had them tell me this before . phoenix credit solutions  told my wife "WE WILL GET YOU" !! Now they are trying to get a court order to take property on an unsecured credit card. They already froze her bank account and we have not figured out how they did this. In nc you cannot do this on an unsecured debt. Could anybody tell me how they did this?
Daniel (Guest) - In my opinion anyone who uses the FDCPA to sue a collection company is very dishonest. Are you really gonna sue a company just for trying to recover the money that you borrowed without the intention of paying back? Just think back to when you were making the purchases on the credit card, you got that brand new big screen, made some home improvements, or just used the money for living expenses. The point is you borrowed money and now your looking for any excuse to not pay it back. Last time I checked borrowing money and not paying it back is stealing. When a collection company calls you do you have to let it go to voice mail, or do you just hang up as soon as the collector tells you what company he/she is calling from? If you answered yes to either of these questions than you have borrowed money wirthout the intention of paying it back, and therefore you are a theif. A better word for it might be loser. Get life together, pay your bills, stop looking for excuses, become an example for your children and grandchildren. STOP STEALING MONEY!
babecollector - thats true that some debt collectors are actually abusive. But thanks for the info, i didnt know that we can do something about it
- IT IS SOO NICE.
- can we complain about it to main branch or to rbi?

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