Review the debt validation letter
Collectors are required by Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to send you a written debt establishment poster with information about the debt they ’ re trying to collect. It must be sent within five days of the first contact. The debt validation letter includes :
- The amount owed .
- The identify of the creditor seeking payment .
- A statement that the debt is assumed valid by the collector unless you dispute it within 30 days of the first contact .
- A statement that if you write to dispute the debt or request more data within 30 days, the debt collector will verify the debt by mail .
- A argument that if you request information about the original creditor within 30 days, the collector must provide it .
If you don ’ thyroxine receive a establishment notice within 10 days of the first base contact, request one from the debt collector the adjacent time you ’ re contacted. Ask for the debt collector ’ s mailing address at this time arsenic well, in case you decide to request a debt verification letter.
Write a debt verification letter
The validation letter might leave you with more questions than answers. In that case — or if you never received a validation comment — you can request a confirmation letter proving this debt is in fact yours. confirmation letters are best used in two circumstances :
- If you ’ re facing an aggressive debt collector : A debt verification letter can pause collection efforts and may deter debt collectors who do n’t have sufficient information .
- If you intend to pay the debt : To resolve the account, you might want more information to verify you ’ re paying the correct collector for the right debt.
Read more: How to file a car insurance claim
If the debt is nearing its legislative act of limitations, for exemplar, you may be better off ignoring debt solicitation notices than drawing more attention to yourself with a verification letter. The CFPB has sample letters you can use. The key is to be exhaustive in your request for debt confirmation. In your letter, ask for details on :
- Why the collector thinks you owe the debt : Ask who the original creditor is and request software documentation that verifies you owe the debt, such as a copy of the original contract .
- The total and age of the debt : Ask for a copy of the last charge statement sent by the original creditor, the measure owed when the collector purchased the debt, the date of last requital and whether the debt is past the codified of limitations .
- authority to collect the debt : Ask whether this agency is licensed to collect debt in your state .
You may want to send this letter by certify mail and request return receipt so you can document the correspondence between you and the debt collector. Although you can ask for many details, debt collectors are entirely required to provide information on the master creditor, the balanced owed and the identify of the person who owes the debt before resuming collection efforts. Getting even that sum of information, however, can help you determine if you actually owe this debt, if it ’ second past the codified of limitations, or if there ’ s an mistake such as exaggeration of the measure owed. If you send the letter within 30 days of the foremost contact, the debt collector must stop trying to collect payment until it verifies that the debt is yours. You can still send a confirmation letter after the 30-day score, but the debt will be assumed valid and the collector can continue to seek requital while it responds to your letter. It ’ s a irreverence of the solicitation practices act for a debt collector to refuse to send a validation notice or fail to respond to your verification letter. If you encounter such behavior, you can file a complaint with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
Find new ways to save
Know what you’ve already spent across your linked accounts to see where you can cut back or save.
Read more: When Can You File Taxes? | H&R Block
TRACK YOUR TRENDS
