Fighting The Debt Collector


by Wm Blake - Date: 2007-03-15 - Word Count: 477 Share This!

There is nothing more disturbing to a day at home than several phone calls all made in the interest of a debt collector. The last thing you need at this point is another reminder that you've fallen behind in your bills. Whatever has brought you to this point, you are here and that is all that's important. If you've decided it's time to fight the debt collector, you should be aware of certain rights you have as the consumer.

You do not have to talk to them. Just because they are incessantly calling, that does not mean you have to pick up the phone and subject yourself to their harassing threats. If you do not want them to contact you anymore, simply write the company a letter requesting a cease of communications. Once they have received the letter, they are only allowed to call to inform you of further action they will be taking to collect the debts.

They should only be calling you certain times of day. They are only allowed to call between 8am and 9pm. If they are calling outside of those times, they are in violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and action can be taken against them. If they are calling your workplace, request that cease that action. If that is a threat to your position at your workplace, they are not allowed to call that location. Also, they are only allowed to tell you of the business of their phone call. They cannot discuss this business with anyone else that may answer the phone. They may only call relatives or other contacts as a way of finding out how to contact you. They may not reveal the business of their phone call or letter. These rules are all laid out in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

A good way to fight the debt collector and regain control of your finances is to communicate with them. Their job is to collect the debt that is assigned to you. If this is a false debt, tell them so. At this point they are required to stop contacting you and conduct a full investigation into the matter. However, if they find that the debt is verified, then the phone calls will resume. If the debt is yours and it's become overwhelming, speak to the debt collectors to try to come to a repayment agreement that will be good for both sides. In this way, the collection calls stop, you regain financial control, and your credit score stops suffering the negative effects of debt problems.

In fighting the debt collector, you want to find what way is going to help you in regaining control. Any one of the above mentioned methods will help the phone calls to stop. At that point you will regain the ability to think and plan your way out of your debt.


Related Tags: credit card debt, debt reduction, debt counseling, debt collectors

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