Letters you can send to a Debt Collector.
If you have been contacted by a debt collector about a debt that the debt collector believes you owe, you should consider sending one of the following letters that corresponds to your matter in response to the their initial letter. to you Responding to inquiries from a debt collector about a debt is very important. A response can establish whether you owe the debt or not; whether the debt collector has the right to try and collect the debt; and sends notice to the debt collector that you are aware of your rights.
Sample Letters.
“TELL ME MORE ABOUT THE DEBT”
Send this letter ASAP -- if at all possible, within 30 days of when a debt collector first contacts you about a debt. This is important because, under the Federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, your legal rights to obtain verification information from a debt collector are greater during the 30-day period.
When a debt collector is asking you to pay money, you’re entitled to ask for details. This sample letter will help you to get details on the following:
• Why a debt collector thinks you owe this debt.
• The amount of the debt and how old it is.
• Details about the debt collector’s authority to collect this money.
“THIS IS NOT MY DEBT”
Use this sample letter if you do not believe you are responsible for the debt, and do not want to be contacted again.
Why You Should Sent the Letter?
This letter tells the debt collector to stop contacting you unless it can provide you with evidence that you are responsible for this debt.
STOPPING CONTACT DOES NOT CANCEL THE DEBT. So, if a debt collector still believes you are responsible for the debt, it can still take other action. For example, it can still sue you or have the status of the debt reported to a credit bureau.
“HOW TO CONTACT ME”
Use this sample letter if you want to tell a debt collector how it can contact you and tell it not to contact you any other way.
Why You Should Send the Letter?
Debt collectors are prohibited by federal law from contacting you about a debt at a time or place they know is inconvenient for you. They also can’t contact you at your place of employment if you let them know that your employer prohibits it. Use this letter if you want to restrict how a debt collector can contact you. But be careful about over-doing it: If you want to work something out, you don’t want to make it too hard for the debt collector to reach you.
“STOP CONTACTING ME”
Use this sample letter if you want to tell the debt collector to stop contacting you.
Why You Should Send the Letter?
Generally speaking, federal law says that debt collectors must stop contacting you after they receive a written request to stop contacting you. Debt collectors can, however, still contact you to tell you that they will not contact you again, or to notify you that they or the creditor could take other action (for example, filing a lawsuit against you). If the debt collector continues to contact you after it has received this letter, you should keep a record of these contacts since it is a violation of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act and exposes the debt collector to potential liability.
“CONTACT MY ATTORNEY”
Use this sample letter if you want the debt collector to only contact your lawyer.
Why You Should Send the Letter?
If a lawyer is representing you with regard to the debt, then the debt collector should generally contact the lawyer instead of you. After you have given the debt collector your lawyer’s contact information, the debt collector should not contact you directly unless the lawyer doesn’t respond.
Need an Attorney? Our Firm would be glad to assist you. Because we have intimate knowledge of debt collection lawsuits we have an advantage in identifying misconduct by debt collector, and other institutions who violate the rights of consumers. Please feel free to contact us for a Free Consultation.