Fight Back Against Unfair Debt Collection Practices: Know Your Rights and Protect Yourself from Threats, Lies, and Intimidation

22. Using Collection Law

The U.S. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits collectors from harassing, threatening, and lying to their targets. It also says that collectors must stop calling if a consumer simply asks them to do so, in writing. They are also supposed to provide verification of a debt in response to a written request.

Of course, if collectors and collection agencies obeyed the law and consistently played by those rules, there would not be tens of thousands of complaints about them pouring into the regulatory offices each year. Hundreds of consumer lawyers who chiefly represent debtors would have to find another specialty, or another line of work. There would be no need for this book. Unfortunately, collectors cannot be counted ...