How to Deal With a Collection Agency That Is Calling a Wrong Number?

You can stop a collection agency from calling you in error.

Persistent calls from a collection agency can be both frustrating and annoying. If you don't owe the debt in question, however, and the collection agency is calling the wrong number, those calls can be downright maddening. Collection calls are a common method that debt collectors use to convince debtors to pay what they owe, and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which regulates collection agency activity, permits this collection method. The FDCPA does not, however, allow a collection agency to call a consumer repeatedly at a wrong number. If a collection agency continues to call you after you inform the company that it has the wrong number, you can make the calls stop.

Instructions

1. Answer the phone when the collection agency calls. Ask for the name of the company and its mailing address. Write down the information.

2. Write a letter to the collection agency informing it that you are not the debtor in question and have received multiple calls from the company regarding a debt you know nothing about. Demand that the company immediately cease all contact with you and remove your telephone number from its database. Section 805 of the FDCPA stipulates that, once a collection agency receives a notice to cease all communication, continuing to contact a consumer violates federal collection laws.

3. Send your letter to the collection agency via registered or certified mail. Doing so allows you to request a return receipt. When you send mail with a return receipt, a representative at the collection agency must sign for your letter--proving that the letter was received. The postal service then returns the signature card to you.

4. Write down the dates and times of any subsequent collection calls that you receive after the postal service returns your initial letter's signature card. If you have a caller ID service that records these dates and times, save the record.

5. File a lawsuit against the collection agency for violating the FDCPA and harassment. The FDCPA allows consumers to sue collection agencies for failing to adhere to federal collection guidelines. You can sue for up to $1,000 in damages for a collection agency's refusal to adhere to your written request to stop calling. Keep your record of the illegal calls to use in court.

Tips & Warnings

• If you opt to sue the collection agency, you must do so within one year of the date the FDCPA violation occurred.

• If you don't send your letter through registered or certified mail with a return receipt, the collection agency can claim that it never received your written notice to stop calling and continue to harass you.

References

• Federal Trade Commission: The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (Section 805/813)
• United States Postal Service: Return Receipt

Resources

• CNN.com: Rogue Debt Collectors and How to Fight Them
• CardReport.com: Collection Agency FAQ