The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is the legislation that governs the collection industry. If you are in a credit repair program and have any active collections you should know your rights.
Bad Behavior
As get your credit repair effort underway you might be contacted by collectors. While some collection accounts may be questionable, past the statute of limitation, or even beyond the FCRA reporting period limit, others may be legitimate. It is best to confront these credit repair challenges in a respectful and thoughtful manner. But there is some behavior that you do not have to stand for. Collectors cannot badger you with excessive phone calls, threaten you with exaggerated punishment, or use obscene language. And you have many useful rights as well.
The No Call Zone
It is handy to know that collectors are not allowed to contact you at inconvenient hours, like prior to 8 AM or after 9 PM. Collectors are also not allowed to call you during working hours if you inform them that such calls are not permitted by your employer.
The Lawyer Hand-Off
If you are not comfortable speaking with a collector and have the means to hire an attorney to protect your interest it’s easy to get rid of collectors. If you are contacted by a collector just let them know that you have an attorney. They will ask you for the attorney’s contact information and you are done. Once a collector is told that you have an attorney they are required to contact only the attorney from that point forward.
Cease Communication
Another useful credit repair tactic you can use to put an end to unwanted collector communications is the cease communication letter. We recommend that you use this tool carefully and only after researching the debt, but if you put your cease communication request in writing and send it to the collector they will not contact you again except to inform you of intent to take legal action.
A General Caution
If you are in our credit repair program we will research the debt carefully and take the appropriate actions on your behalf. If you are managing your own credit repair project we suggest that you manage all active collection activity with caution. Proper use of legal leverage is always appropriate, but if you don’t do your homework you could trigger unwanted and possibly unnecessary legal action. Do you have credit repair questions? Please call us to discuss.