If you are in debt, chances are you have had the unpleasant experience of dealing with bill collectors. As difficult as this experience is, you can make the experience easier on yourself if you know your rights and don’t let them harass you.

The Fair Debt and Collection Practices Act, puts limitations on what third-party collection companies can do. (A third party collection company is an agency that attempts to collect on another person’s debt. The law does not apply to a creditor’s in-house debt collectors.) If you fall behind on certain bills and are being contacted by a collection agency, understand there are certain things bill collectors can not do:

• Call you at inconvenient times. Generally, bill collectors can only call you between the hours of 8am and 9pm, unless you agree to be contacted at other times. However, “inconvenient” can vary from person to person. For example, if you work the third shift and sleep during the day, an 11am call can be inconvenient, and you can ask collectors not to call you at that time.
• Call you at work if you advise them your employer does not allow such calls. It is generally up to your discretion to decide if your employer allows such calls. You do not need your supervisor to tell the collector the employer frowns on the calls.
• Inform friends and family members about your debt. Bill collectors can only report specific information regarding your debt to the original creditor, credit reporting agencies, or your attorney. While they may contact your friends and family members to get limited information such as your contact information and where you work, they cannot inform these parties any details of your account.
• Contact you if you have an attorney. If you have an attorney, a bill collector must deal with your attorney, the collect cannot contact you directly.
• Make false claims. Bill collectors can not claim you may serve jail time if you don’t pay, threaten to garnish your wages, liquidate your property, or file a lawsuit if they have no legitimate plans to do so.
• Make threats or harassing statements. Collectors are forbidden from making any threats of violence against you, nor can they use profane language.

Finally, according to the Act, you can contact a collector in writing and tell them to stop contacting you. The collector may then can communicate with you to verify they will cease contacting you or to inform you that the creditor or collector intend to take a specific action. However, this does not absolve you of the debt, nor does it prevent you from being sued by either the creditor or collector.

By knowing your rights, and what bill collectors can and cannot do, you may relieve some of the stress of this situation and keep your focus on your primary goal of getting out of debt.

By David Plowman

411Web provides finance ideas for its readers. Our postings, articles and e-mail responses are not meant as to serve as personal advice, nor are they endorsements of any investment or personal finance strategy. Any financial or investment plan must take into consideration an individual’s personal experience and circumstances. Individuals may want to contact their investment or tax advisor on these subjects.

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