Can Collection Agencies Be Told to Stop Calling?
When the phone rings, anybody who has been substantially late in paying credit card payments understands how depressing it can be to hear the phone ringing. Collectors of late payments are nothing if not tenacious in their efforts to recover the money they owe. Aside from paying what you owe, your ability to prevent the calls from continuing is primarily dependent on the origin of the calls themselves.
Billing Inaccuracies Must Be Returned.
Ignoring a billing issue is the very worst thing that may happen when you suspect you’ve been wrongfully charged. You will still get phone calls and notices in the mail, even if they are incorrect. It is quite straightforward to dispute an inaccuracy.
You have 60 days from the date on which you discover a billing mistake to tell your card issuer in writing, according to the legislation. The majority of organizations will credit your account instantly while they review the disputed charge or charges on your account..
Debt Collector versus Creditor
As a result of unfair, fraudulent, and abusive practices used by debt collectors to pursue consumer debtors, Congress passed the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act in response. It not only limits the operations of collectors, but it also offers customers with recourse against those who violate the law’s requirements.
It’s important to remember that it only applies to third-party debt collectors, such as collection agencies, and not to the original creditor. While you may take action under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to halt a collector’s calls, you will need to take other actions to prevent calls from the creditor who issued your credit card in the first place from being received.
Third-Party Collectors are being stopped.
A third-party collector’s calls may be stopped by simply notifying the company in writing that you do not want to be contacted any more. Using certified mail and a “return receipt,” you’ll be able to demonstrate to the collector that the letter was received. Keep a copy of this document for your records, as well.
If you are contacted at that moment, the collector may only inform you that it will not be contacting you in the future or that it intends to pursue legal action against you on your behalf. However, although writing a letter to your debt collector might halt the calls, it will not prevent you from being sued in order to collect the amount.
In search of a Debt Settlement Agreement
Negotiating a lower interest rate or lower monthly payment via the use of a hardship or workout plan to settle your debt is one method of preventing creditors from contacting you. If you are experiencing financial difficulties, there is absolutely no harm in contacting your credit card provider and inquiring about possible assistance.
Keep in mind that, although agreeing to a settlement with a credit card company may allow you to get by in the short term and will most likely cease the calls, it will still have a bad influence on your credit rating in the long run.
Data Breach, Fraudulent Account Collection, and Identity Theft
Someone stealing your personal information and using it without your consent is known as identity theft. The majority of the time, the first time you realize you’ve been a victim is when you get a call from a debt collector seeking charges on an account that was formed without your authorization.
Contact the debt collector, the firm that started the bogus account, and the three major credit reporting agencies — Experian, Equifax, and TransUnion — as soon as possible to put a halt to contact and collection activities on your account. If you have any knowledge regarding who may have stolen your personal information, you should call the authorities immediately..
