Need to Stop Collection Calls?

Collection calls can be horrible.  Although some collectors are polite and understanding, many debt collectors are aggressive and demanding.  Debt collection calls can certainly add stress to an already stressful debt situation.  Here are a few tips for stopping collection calls.

Tell Collectors to Only Communicate with You Through Your Attorney

Talk to a bankruptcy or debt relief attorney.  Afterwards, you may want to demand all future collection calls to only go through your attorney’s office. This will give you time to either settle your debts or file for bankruptcy.  If you cannot settle the debt or file for bankruptcy within six months, then your creditors may continue to contact you.

Your creditor will only call your bankruptcy attorney usually once or twice to verify representation.  The same creditor may call you 20 or 30 times to keep pressuring you to make payments on the debt.   Follow the instructions of your attorney on how to deal with collection calls.  You cannot trust the information being given you over the phone by debt collectors.

Tell Collectors that They No Longer Authorized to Call You at Work

Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you may be able to prevent certain creditors from contacting you at work. If you receive a collection call at work, you need to tell the creditor that they are no longer authorized to contact you at work and they need to only contact you at home or directly via cell phone.  Although this does not apply to collection attempts being made by the original creditor, generally all collection agencies will be bound by this request and will cease attempting to contact you at your workplace.

File For Bankruptcy – All Collection Calls Will Stop

The most powerful method of stopping collection calls is to file for bankruptcy.   When you file for bankruptcy, an invisible shield call the “automatic stay” protects you from any further communication with your creditors.  This “automatic stay” will almost instantly stop a collection calls.

Sometimes creditors mistakenly call you after you file for bankruptcy.  If you receive such as call, you need to give the creditor your bankruptcy case number information and demand that they do not contact you in the future.  If they call again, instruct them to contact your bankruptcy attorney.  Make sure to document the inappropriate contact.  If the same creditor continues to contact you, give all the contact information to your bankruptcy attorney.   Your bankruptcy attorney will contact the creditor to make them stop.  Sometimes your bankruptcy attorney may even sue the creditor in bankruptcy court if the contact was sufficiently inappropriate and grievous.