Debt Collecting Guidelines

Times to Contact

When you are in the middle of debt collection, it may seem like the debt collector is trying to contact you at all times of the day. If this is the case, the debt collector may be in violation of the law. Debt collectors are not allowed to contact you at inconvenient times. This includes any time that is before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. If the debt collector contacts you at work and you tell him not to do it again, he cannot call you there again.

When a debt collector is trying to find out more information about you to help collect the debt, he may need to determine where you are currently located. If you moved recently, the debt collector may not know how to contact you. In this situation, the debt collector can talk to someone else besides you to find out where you are. When he does, he cannot tell the person that you owe a debt or the reason for the call. The debt collector can simply say that he is trying to update his records.

When a debt collector is in communication with you, he must adhere to a strict set of rules regarding what can and cannot be said. The debt collector must start out by identifying himself and telling you that he is attempting to collect a debt. The collector cannot harass you or make any threats against you. The debt collector cannot make any false statements, such as telling you that you will go to jail or that he is someone besides a debt collector.

If you are interested in stopping collection calls, you can take a few different approaches. One way that you can stop collection calls is to hire an attorney. At that point, you can notify the debt collectors that they need to contact your attorney only. If anyone contacts you again after this, she would be in violation of the law. You can also ask the debt collector to only contact you in writing. At that point, she cannot call you any longer and must communicate through the mail.