Jun 27, 2014
This is a long summary, but you need to read it carefully if you think you are being threatened by a debt collector.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) includes statements such as this:
* Every collector must send you a written “validation notice” telling you how much money you owe within five days after they first contact you. This notice also must include the name of the creditor to whom you owe the money, and how to proceed if you don’t think you owe the money. ["Written" means snailmailed ... not emailed or texted]
* Debt collectors may NOT
- repeatedly use the phone to annoy someone.
- falsely claim that they are attorneys or government representatives
- falsely claim that you have committed a crime
- falsely represent that they operate or work for a credit reporting company
- say you will be arrested if you don’t pay your debt
- say they’ll seize, garnish, attach, or sell your property or wages unless they are permitted by law to take the action and intend to do so
- communicate with consumers at their place of employment after being told this is unacceptable or prohibited by the employer.
- say that legal action will be taken against you, if doing so would be illegal or if they don’t intend to take the action
- use a false company name
- take or threaten to take your property unless it can be done legally;
The debt collector may not garnish your wages unless there is a court order to do so.
+ Many Federal benefits (including Social Security Benefits) are exempt from garnishment
You have the right to sue a collector in a state or federal court within one year from the date the law was violated. If you win, the judge can require the collector to pay you for any damages you can prove you suffered because of the illegal collection practices, like lost wages and medical bills. The judge can require the debt collector to pay you up to $1,000,
Report any problems you have with a debt collector to your state Attorney General’s office, the Federal Trade Commission, and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Source:
https://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0149-debt-collection