Dealing With Debt Collectors
Anyone who has had the misfortune of being in debt and behind in
payments will know how stressful it is when it comes to the issue of
debt collectors. However it's important that you understand what laws
there are to protect you. It's stated by the Fair Debt Collection
Practices that a debt collector is only allowed to phone you between the
hours of 8 in the morning and 9 in the evening. They are also unable to
take money out of your wages or harass you with an endless stream of
phone calls. You can learn more about it here.
Knowing the law is a really good idea because then it call provide you with different options in dealing with the debt collectors. Just because they call you on the telephone doesn't mean you have to answer them or talk to them. You can either just hang up on them or you could use an answering service to screen your calls. There are also services with your telephone company that allow you to block certain phone numbers too.
If you decide that you do want to answer the telephone then you can just inform them that you aren't wanting to speak to anyone and that they shouldn't call you again. According to the law, you can send them a ‘cease and desist’ letter so that they are unable to call you again. Of course, when it comes to legal action, this can be a costly process so it's a good idea to deal with them via other means to begin with.
If you took out a loan then you have to repay it and doing your best to do this is the best option ultimately. Sometimes you might find yourself in a financially difficult situation due to illness, job loss or some other reason. So instead of burying your head in the sand, you should talk to the debt collection agency to see if they can arrange a repayment plan which is easy for you to handle.
By communicating with the creditor you'll find that the calls and letters demanding money will come to an end. You need to agree on a repayment plan and do your best to adhere to it.
Keeping a diary of all of your dealing with debt collectors is a very good idea. Take a note of who you spoke to, when you spoke to them and what the conversation was about. Write down anything that you think is important. If you decide to make a sound recording of the calls you need to tell the advisor that you are doing this.
Recording conversations is also a good idea simply because the advisor will be on their best behavior and not give you any abuse.
The interesting thing about debt collection agencies is that they are able to lower the amount you need to repay. At the end of the day, they want their money as quickly as possible and with little fuss. So for a quick deal they may well be able to reduce your amount by 50%. It's worth trying anyway.
Whilst you are negotiating the total repayable amount, you should also insist that no further black marks are made against your credit report. They should also report to the credit agencies that you are making payments and to lower the amount of debt that is listed.
Having this sort of agreement in writing is so important too because if you haven't taken a recording of the call, there is really no proof of what was agreed. Before you get this is writing you can send a small amount as part of the repayment, however if you send too much they might go back on their word.
Whenever you are talking to anyone from a debt collection agency, do your best to stay calm and civil. By becoming irate you might just make everything a whole lot worse.
Categories: Law