How to Answer a Collections Summons
A court summons for debt collection can be intimidating, but just because you've been summoned doesn't mean you'll have to pay if you handle it right. Many people simply ignore a summons because they hope it will just go away or don't know how to deal with it, but that is the worst thing you can do. Instead, you should craft a careful response and work with an attorney to settle the debt for the least amount of money possible.
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Instructions
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Don't ignore the summons. If you do, you will lose by default and a collection attorney will collect the maximum amount. Instead, dispute the collection with the credit bureaus. Keep documentation of all correspondence sent to the agency and the credit bureaus.
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Look up the debt's statute of limitations. If it's older than that statute stipulates, send the collection agency a letter telling them they are trying to collect on "zombie debt," which is debt too old to be collected. If they don't respond within a month or don't provide proof that they are allowed to collect, sue them under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
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Draft a letter requesting documentation of as many details as possible about your debt if the debt is not past the statute of limitations, including the amount of debt owed, proof that the collector is authorized to collect and a contract showing the terms of the loan. Requesting this documentation is the best weapon against collection attorneys because credit card agreements often don't have signed contracts. Debt amount often is difficult to determine, and a collection attorney might have difficulty even documenting the transfer of the debt from the bank to the debt buyer. In fact, a collection attorney often sends out summonses in bulk, knowing that most people won't respond, so he often will abandon the cases where the consumer does respond because it's not worth the fight.
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Consult with an attorney and have him examine your debt validation letter to determine if it is adequate. Usually, they can do this for a small fee. Send the letter by registered mail and keep the receipt.
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Contact a lawyer if the collection agency responds to your request for debt validation with a summons to appear in court. Court precedent stipulates that the collection agency can't file a lawsuit against you if they haven't validated your debt yet within the 30-day period. An agency might respond by telling you a request for such information needs to come from the creditor; this is false and indicates they did not perform a proper investigation. Write them a letter informing them they are in "willful noncompliance" under the Fair Credit Reporting Act.
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Send a copy of your receipt for the registered mail and a copy of the letter you sent along with a statement alleging that they have not complied with FDCPA to the collection agency and inform them that they need to immediately remove the collection listing from your credit report, or else face a lawsuit.
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Wait 15-20 days for them to remove the listing. If they do respond with proof of your debt, check to see if the agency is legally licensed for collecting debt (see Resources). If they aren't, write them a letter telling them they are in violation of state laws.
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Contact the credit bureaus before filing it, and tell them the agency has not verified the debts under the FDCPA, providing copies of the proof you have if the agency isn't giving up. Make it clear that you asked for verification from the agency. File a lawsuit in small claims court alleging that they have violated the FDCPA, and have papers served to the collection agency. You can hire a local process server, listed in business directories, to perform this service.
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Notify the bureaus about your lawsuit, who will in turn call the creditors to see if the debt is legitimate, which should prompt the agency to kill the collection attempt.
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References
Resources
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