How to Get Debt Collectors off Your Back

It’s a heyday for debt collectors

You probably won’t be surprised to hear that more complaints are lodged against debt collectors than any other kind of business. But the actual number of complaints filed may give you pause: according to the Federal Trade Commission, 78,838 people made formal complaints about debt collectors in 2008.

More and more consumers are falling behind on their bills and turning to online loans and cash advances to help stretch the budget between paydays. Naturally, the collections industry is working harder than ever to collect those unpaid debts.

And debt collectors aren’t just calling and mailing. They’re using technology like social networking sites and cell-phone texting to get people to pay.

Don’t make friends with debt collectors

A recent article on CNNMoney, describes an incident where a foreign debt collection company used a picture of an attractive woman to befriend a debtor on Facebook, the social networking site. Acting as a “faux friend” allows a debt collector to monitor your updates and keep tabs on anything you might mention online about your assets, finances, or purchases.

Read up on debt collection laws

There are strict federal laws about what debt collectors can and cannot do to try to collect debts. They must identify themselves as debt collectors. They cannot harass you or talk about your debt to anyone but you or your attorney. They cannot call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. They cannot threaten to sue you if they don’t have any intention to do so. They cannot misrepresent the amount you owe.

Find out about statutes of limitation

In every state there are statutes of limitation prescribing time periods after which a creditor can no longer sue you to collect a debt. Applicable limitation periods vary from state to state, but are generally in the range of three to six years. When the limitation period passes, you still owe the debt, but the creditor can no longer sue you to collect it. The only actions that will erase your obligation to pay a debt are cancellation of the debt by the creditor, discharge of the debt in bankruptcy, or payment of the debt.

Get legal advice

Because you still owe the debt, debt collectors don’t have to stop trying to collect just because the time has passed for filing a lawsuit. They can no longer sue you, but short of a lawsuit they can still try to get you pay up. As a practical matter, they debt collectors will stop bothering you once the limitation period passes, but they don’t have to.

If you are being hounded by collectors about old debts, it may be worth getting advice from an attorney who practices in your state. If the limitation periods have passed, telling a collector that you know they can no longer sue may be all it takes to make them go away.

Don’t jump into bankruptcy

Sometimes people file bankruptcy in order to get creditors to stop calling them. But this may be an unnecessary – not to mention expensive and complicated – reaction to pressure from debt collectors.

Before you think about filing bankruptcy, write letters to the debt collectors demanding that they cease contacting you. Send them by certified mail and pay for a return receipt so you know when they are received.

Once your letter is received, a debt collector can no longer contact you except to confirm that they won’t contact you anymore or to advise you that they are taking collection action against you.

Get Legal Advice

It’s usually not difficult to get a debt collector to stop contacting you. But remember: the fact that the collector has stopped contacting you doesn’t necessarily mean you don’t still owe the debt. On the other hand, don’t be shy about demanding that collectors leave you alone. Creditor-and-debtor law is rife with legal defenses and the fact that a collector is hounding you doesn’t necessarily mean that you owe the debt.

If you’re having problems with debt collectors and you have any doubt about whether you owe the debt or how much you owe, don’t just throw money at the collectors to get them to go away. Spend the money instead on good legal advice.