Do you have debt collectors calling you? Do you want them to STOP!
Are they calling you during dinnertime, at work? You know you owe them but you don’t have money to pay them?
Lets see what the Federal Trade Commission has to say about the harassment from debt collectors. Here are the laws taken direct from the Fair Debt Practices Collection Act
Acquisition of location information section 804:
Any debt collector communicating with any person other than the consumer for the purpose of acquiring location information about the consumer shall --
(1) Identify himself, state that he is confirming or correcting location information concerning the consumer, and, only if expressly requested, identify his employer.
This means if you ask where he or she is calling from they must state the company name.
(2) Not state that such consumer owes any debt.
He or she cannot states this is Mr./Ms. debt collector and I am calling because Joe/Jane owes XYZ Company a $1000.00 do you know how they are going to pay?
(3) Not communicate with any such person more than once unless requested to do so by such person or unless the debt collector reasonably believes that the earlier response of such person is erroneous or incomplete and that such person now has correct or complete location information.
Mr./Ms. debt collector cannot keeping calling your friends or family once they have told them I don’t know where the debtor is, unless family member states I’ll let the debtor know you called, now the collector can call back and say did you give the debtor my message. If your friend or family does not want the collector to call again just ask them not to call, say he/she does not live here, please don’t call again.
(4) After the debt collector knows the consumer is represented by an attorney with regard to the subject debt and has knowledge of, or can readily ascertain such attorney's name and address. Not communicate with any person other than that attorney, unless the attorney fails to respond within a reasonable period of time to the communication from the debt collector.
This means if you have an attorney and the attorney does not call back say within 30 days the debt collector can contact you again, to let you know they have not had contact with your attorney and to see how the bill will be paid.
Communication in connection with debt collection section 805:
COMMUNICATION WITH THE CONSUMER GENERALLY. Without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector or the express permission of a court of competent jurisdiction, a debt collector may not communicate with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt.
(1) At any unusual time or place or a time or place known or which should be known to be inconvenient to the consumer. In the absence of knowledge of circumstances to the contrary, a debt collector shall assume that the convenient time for communicating with a consumer is after 8 o'clock antimeridian and before 9 o'clock postmeridian, local time at the consumer's location.
This just means they cannot call you before 8:00Am or after 9:00Pm your time.
(2) At the consumer's place of employment if the debt collector knows or has reason to know that the consumer's employer prohibits the consumer from receiving such communication.
Tell the debt collector do not contact you at work your company does not allow such calls and put this in writing or better send the request on the companies letterhead.
(3) CEASING COMMUNICATION. If a consumer notifies a debt collector in writing that the consumer refuses to pay a debt or that the consumer wishes the debt collector to cease further communication with the consumer, the debt collector shall not communicate further with the consumer with respect to such debt, except.
To really make this on work for you PUT IT IN WRITING, send it certified mail return receipt requested.
The debt collector can contact you one last time if it’s for the following:
(1) To advise the consumer that the debt collector's further efforts are being terminated.
(2) To notify the consumer that the debt collector or creditor may invoke specified remedies, which are ordinarily invoked by such debt collector or creditor.
(3) Where applicable, to notify the consumer that the debt collector or creditor intends to invoke a specified remedy.