What Is the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA)?
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a federal law that restricts the actions of third-party debt collectors that are trying to collect debts on behalf of another individual or entity. The regulation limits the ways that collectors can contact debtors, in addition to the time of day and number of times that contact can be made. If the FDCPA is violated, the debtor can take legal action against the debt collection company along with the individual debt collector for damages and lawyer fees.
How the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Works
The FDCPA does not protect debtors from those who are attempting to collect a personal debt. If you owe money to the local hardware shop, for instance, and the owner of the shop calls you to collect that debt, that person is not a debt collector under the terms of this act. The FDCPA only applies to third-party debt collectors, such as those that work for a debt collection agency. Credit card debt, medical bills, student loans, mortgages, and other kinds of household debt are covered by the law.
Example of When and How Debt Collectors Can Contact Debtors
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act specifies that debt collectors can not contact debtors at inconvenient times. That means they must not call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. unless the debtor and the collector have made an arrangement for a call to take place outside of the permitted hours. If a debtor informs a collector that they want to speak after work at 10 p.m., for example, the collector is permitted to call then. Without an invitation or agreement, however, the debtor can not legally call at that time. Debt collectors may also send letters, emails, or text messages to collect a debt.
Debt collectors can attempt to reach debtors at their homes or place of work. However, if a debtor tells a bill collector, either verbally or in writing, to stop calling their place of work, the collector must not call that number again.
Within five days of contacting a debtor, the debt collector must send a written "validation notice" that includes:
- The amount of money the debtor owes
- The name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed
- Notice that they have 30 days to dispute the debt and what to do
Special Considerations
Debtors can also stop collectors from calling their home phones, but they have to put the request in a letter and send it to the debt collector. It's a good idea to send the letter by certified mail and pay for a return receipt so that you have proof that the debt collector got the request.
If a collector does not have contact information for a debtor, they can call relatives, neighbors, or associates of the debtor to try to find the debtor's phone number, but they can not reveal any information concerning the debt, including the fact that they are calling from a debt collection agency. (The collector can only discuss the debt with the debtor or their spouse.) Furthermore, collectors can only call third parties once each.
The legislation makes it illegal for debt collectors to harass debtors in various other ways, including threats of physical harm or incarceration. They also can not lie or use profane or obscene language. Furthermore, debt collectors can not threaten to take legal action against a debtor unless they really intend to take that debtor to court.
