The Basics of the FDCPA

by waalien

The phone rings. You freeze, your heart beating in your chest, until you can finally move to check the Caller ID. You don't recognize the number, and so you don't answer the phone. Only after the phone stops ringing do you realize that you haven't taken a breath since the first ring.

Does this sound familiar? To millions of debtors across the United States, it's a way of life. Times are hard, and people are scared. Fortunately, there is legal protection for people in this situation.

Many people are vaguely aware that there are laws governing collection agents, and, if pressed, could probably tell you that there's a law that limits the times of day that a collection agent can call. But what other protections are available to consumers?

Congress enacted the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to protect consumers who were being harassed by collection agents. This document contains power - power granted to you, the consumer. Below, some of the highlights of the FDCPA.

• Debt collectors cannot call you before 8AM or after 9PM.
• They cannot call you repeatedly in an attempt to harass you.
• Debt collectors cannot call your neighbors and leave messages for you. They can call your neighbors once, to determine your location.
• Debt collectors cannot call your place of employment if you've told them not to.
• Debt collectors must convey to you in their initial communication (or within 5 days of it) that they are attempting to collect a debt, that any information they get from you will be used for that purpose, and that you have the right to dispute the debt or after 30 days they will assume that it is valid.
• They must convey the shortened version of your rights during every communication with you.
• Debt collectors cannot threaten legal action if they do not intend to take it or do not have the legal right to take such action.
• They cannot put you in jail. They cannot threaten to do so.
• They cannot garnish your wages. The only way a debt collector can garnish your wages is if they take you to court and obtain a judgment against you.
• They cannot take your possessions from you; again, a judgment would need to be ordered by the court except in the case of auto repossession or other secured item which has a repossession clause in the contract.
• Debt collectors cannot curse at you.
• They can't pretend to be with any legal or government agency if they are not.
• They cannot call you collect, or call you on your cell phone.
• If you request "validation" from a collection agent, they are required to cease collection activities until such time as they provide you with the validation of the debt.

These are just a few of the protections offered to the consumer by the FDCPA, for further clarification, be sure to read the whole act as well as the associated opinion letters.