You may encounter a reasonable, mild mannered collector someday, but do not hold your breath. Collectors are trained to be emotionally effective. This means aggressive. They will keep you on the phone as long as they can in an attempt to bend your will to theirs. Their goal is to get money out of you, whatever it takes. Unfortunately, in their effort to dominate, they often step over the line of legality, and hence arises the need for credit repair techniques to neutralize their wayward conduct.
Stand Up For Your Rights
Do you have collection trouble? Here comes the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) to the rescue. The FDCPA defines the behavior that collectors are allowed to engage in. The need for the law is self-evident, but you will not be surprised to hear that FDCPA rules are often bent, twisted, and even downright ignored. If you have been accosted by an aggressive collector you should take an hour, read the FDCPA, and arm yourself with the credit repair strategies you need to stand up for your rights! Here are some highlights to get you started.
No Collection Calls at Work
This simple credit repair practice will stop collectors from calling you at work. There is nothing worse than getting an unwanted or even embarrassing phone call when you are in the middle of a meeting or within earshot of your coworkers. Per the FDCPA, if you notify a collector that you are not allowed to take personal phone calls during working hours they must not call you at those times. This will not bar them from calling after hours, but if they do you might try the following cool credit repair trick.
A Cool Credit Repair Trick
Here is an excellent strategy that may provide a powerful starting point for negotiation, and maybe even eliminate the presence of the collector from your life. It starts with the simplest step. When the collector calls just tell them that you do not discuss your personal finances with strangers on the phone and politely ask them to send you something in writing. They may be taken aback and attack you verbally in an attempt to regain control, but if you stand your ground you will prevail and they will send you a collection letter. This letter opens the door to the next great credit repair technique.
Debt Validation
Per the FDCPA, collectors must validate a debt if you send them a request within thirty days of receiving their collection notice. Debt validation is an especially valuable credit repair procedure. If the collector cannot validate a debt they must stop collection efforts and not report to the credit bureaus. At a minimum they must provide proof of their legal right to collect and an account statement from the original creditor. If they do not validate the debt and disappear from your life, so be it. But if they do validate the debt at least you know that it is legitimate and you can take the next step, which may allow you to dominate any negotiation.
Statute of Limitation Surprises
The statute of limitation (SOL) for a debt is the time limit that a collector can enforce collection through the courts; in other words, sue you. The SOL is almost always far shorter than the amount of time the account can display on your credit report. The length of the SOL depends on the state and the type of debt. Once the SOL has expired a collector can attempt to collect, but they have no leverage. Research the SOL on any legitimate debts. If they are beyond the SOL you have two great new credit repair tools at your disposal. Once you inform the collector that you are aware of the SOL they should be very willing to negotiate for pennies on the dollar. But if they are not you can send them a cease communication letter and they are not allowed to bother you again.
Credit Repair Services
If you feel overwhelmed by the task of coping with the process you might consider hiring a credit repair service to assist and advise you of the most effective route to take. They will examine the collections on your report, dispute the questionable ones with the credit bureaus, research the SOL, and inform you of the best possible negotiation strategy. Collectors can be aggressive. But if you rise to the occasion you can control your communications with them and even gain the upper hand.
Ian Webber is an expert in consumer law and credit repair. Ian is a graduate of the London School of Economics and The University of Chicago where he earned his LLM. Ian consults with one of the leading online credit repair services and is currently based in Florida.
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