Stop Debt Collector Calls Now
Oct 18th, 2008 | By Rob | Category: Uncategorized
Phone calls are a favorite tool of debt collection agencies. They are annoying. They may catch you offguard or create an awkward situation. They don’t provide you the time to think through what the call is about. And they offer collectors a quick and easy form of direct contact without the hassle of knocking on your door in person. No matter how prepared you are for the calls of debt collectors, they are always upsetting. I’ve known individuals who are deep in debt that will stop answering phone calls, ignore their voicemail, or even change their phone number in order to avoid calls from collection companies about their credit card debt.
Fortunately, there is no need to put up with the annoying, harassing, upsetting or simply inconvenient debt collection phone calls, as the law provides for several manners for a consumer to stop the letters and phone calls of a debt collector. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requires that debt collectors stop communication with debtors if (a) they have an attorney or (b) the consumer notifies them to cease communications.
One way to stop debt collector calls is to hire an attorney to represent you against your debt collectors, such as a lawyer at a bankruptcy law firm. If a debt collector is aware that the consumer is represented by an attorney regarding their debt, then the collection agency is required to deal with the attorney rather than the consumer, unless the attorney doesn’t respond to communications with the debt collector or the attorney authorizes direct communication between the debt collector and the consumer. If you are contacted by a debt collector when you are represented by an attorney, you or your attorney should provide the name, address, and telephone number to your attorney to the debt collection agency and they are required to stop communication with you.
Another way - and perhaps the cheaper option - is to send a written letter to the debt collector to cease communication with you. The law provides that a debt collector who has received written notice that the consumer wishes that they cease communication must stop letters and phone calls upon receipt except to the extent that they are notifying you of remedies that they have available to them or are taking. In other words, a debt collector may contact you to inform you that they are filing a lawsuit against you over the debt owed. They are also allowed to send you a letter that they are ceasing debt collection efforts, though I don’t expect that those letters are sent too frequently.
Should a debt collector continue to contact you, they are liable for actual damages to you or punitive damages in an amount up to $1,000.
A sample letter to send to debt collection companies to notify them of your desire to cease debt communications follows:
Date
Your Name
Your Address
Debt Collector Name
Debt Collector Address
To Whom It May Concern:
Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, please cease all further communications with me (whether by letter, phone call, or other method) regarding all debts allegedly owed by me to you, your company, or any agent or client of you or your company.
Sincerely,
Your Signature
Your Name
