According to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, debt collectors must notify you in writing within five days of first communicating with you:
“Within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall, unless the following information is contained in the initial communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send the consumer a written notice containing—
- the amount of the debt;
- the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed;
- a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector.”
If the debt collector fails to do that, they are infringing on your ability to dispute the debt.
By not notifying you within that amount of time—or ever, for that matter—the debt collector is banking on the chance that you’ll run out of time to dispute the collection claim within the 30-day requirement. If the debt is in dispute, it means a lot more work for the debt collector, in that he or she must pull papers and obtain verification.
Tricky tactics such as these are common, largely because most people don’t know their rights. The law was written to protect consumers from deceitful practices. You should always get everything in writing, and hold on to the papers and take notes of your communications. The attorneys at Lemberg & Associates want you to know that you have recourse if a debt collector has violated the law. You are allowed to sue for damages, and you can be awarded $1,000. Our attorneys would be honored to help you seek justice.
