Stop Collection Calls and Creditor Harassment
Our Hartford attorneys take legal action against harassing collection calls from creditors, and we legally end the harassment. If you are receiving letters and phone calls by debt collectors, our law office can stop them.
Even before you decide to declare bankruptcy, we’ll be able to put an end to the creditor harassment and phone calls you’re experiencing. Collection calls, collection letters and harassing communications of all kinds will be put to an end once we begin handling your case.
End Call Screening and Reading Collection Letters
What would it feel like to be able to answer your phone again without experiencing the embarrassment and anxiety of having a creditor or collection agency on the other end? We will provide you with the powerful tool of the automatic stay which is a legal declaration that all credit actions against you must end until your case is handled through bankruptcy. The automatic stay is one of the most effective means of ending the harassment and giving you some breathing space.
No one goes into debt with the intention of never paying it back, but sometimes the struggles of life have their own way. An unexpected illness or job loss can make it difficult to keep up with bills, and once you fall behind, it can feel like an exercise in futility trying to catch up. On top of all that stress, you have to deal with constant letters and phone calls from creditors, who often try to make you feel like a criminal for being in debt.
What debt collectors can and can’t do
As soon as you file for chapter 7 or chapter 13 bankruptcy, creditors and collection agencies are forbidden from contacting you or proceeding with any collection efforts or legal actions. If they do so, you can in turn take effective legal action against them.
If you have debt, you may have experienced how annoying debt collectors can be because they appear to hold a lot of power and they often think they can get away with irritating and abusive behavior. The fact is you still have rights even when you’re in debt.
Below are some of the usual ways in which creditors take advantage of people and are against the law:
- One prohibited behavior is harassment which includes making threats and using profanity in conversation.
- Something else they could do is publicize your debt.
- They may spam you with calls or mail for no reason.
- Providing inaccurate information like impersonating a government figure to coerce information or money out of you.
- Withholding correct information about your debt and giving you an incorrect amount of the debt you owe.
- They could imply that the law considers your debt a criminal act.
- The creditor could lie about the name of their business or that they are a debt collector in the first place.
- Use unfair practices like depositing a postdated check early.
- They may state on an envelope that its contents are about your debt.
They may even resort to illegal tactics to scare you into paying but thankfully we have the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) which is the legal framework that protects you from harassing actions by creditors.
Get Protection Through The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
If you believe that your collection agency has violated any of the above, it is time to contact our office and present your case. There’s a chance we may be able to get you reimbursed for the damages caused by the creditor and it can also stop the constant communications immediately.
The FDCPA outlines the following requirements for collectors:
- They cannot call at inconvenient hours and only between eight o’clock in the morning and nine o’clock at night.
- They cannot call you repeatedly in an effort to annoy or abuse you.
- They must stop calling if you send a written request asking them to do so.
- They cannot threaten you with legal actions or arrest.
- They are prohibited from using profanity or abusive language with you.
- Creditors also cannot call you if you have an attorney representing you.
Every time a collection agency or creditor calls they must:
- Identify themselves as debt collectors and give you the name and address of the creditor you owe
- If you ask for it, they must send you proof of the debt in writing
- They have to let you know that you can dispute your debt
The U.S. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was enacted in 1977 and amended in 1996. It was designed to protect consumers from “abusive, deceptive, and unfair debt collection practices.”
If creditors or collection agencies continue to contact or harass you once you have filed for bankruptcy, they are in violation of the law and are liable to a lawsuit. You have the right under the automatic stay provision of the United States Bankruptcy Code to file suit and collect monetary damages.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits creditors from:
- Contacting you at work without your permission
- Yelling at you or verbally abusing you
- Lying to you to collect a debt
- Threatening to garnish your wages
- Threatening to arrest you if you don’t pay
- Continuing to call you after being requested in writing to stop
- Calling early in the morning or late at night
Get In Touch With Us
For a free, confidential consultation to find out how to end harassing creditor phone calls and collection letters, contact us at 860-563-3955 or visit our consultation page to send us an instant message which we’ll return promptly.