Self Help

Unfair Practices: No debt collector can use dishonest or unfair means of making you pay your debts to them. The following actions are deemed to be violations of the law by these debt collectors:

1. Collecting any money at all - such as interest, late fees, or any charges other than the principal amount - unless it is specifically permitted by law and/or authorized by the agreement that created the debt.
2. Taking post-dated checks from you that are more than five days away, unless the debt collector informs you no more than 10 or less than three business days before depositing the cheek.
3. Soliciting postdated checks for the purpose of threatening or instituting criminal prosecution.
   Depositing or threatening to deposit any postdated checks that you have sent them before the date of such check.
4. Making collect calls to consumers, or doing anything that would cause debtors to incur charges for communication by debt collectors that are trying to conceal the purpose of their contact.

Validation of Debts: As a consumer, you have the right to verify, validate or dispute any debt you are told about by the agency, within a given time frame. Within five days of initially contacting you, a debt collection agency must:

1. Send you a written notice containing the amount of the debt, the name of the credit, a statement informing you of your right to dispute it within 30 days, and a statement indicating that if you contest any portion of the debt, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt and mail it to you.
2. Supply you with the name and address of the original creditor if it is different from the current creditor (if you happen to ask for this info in writing).
3. Cease collection attempts during the “verification of debt” period, if you dispute the debt or ask for the name and address of the original creditor.

Multiple Debts: The law protects your repayment rights when you owe multiple debts to creditors. In this case, debt collectors:

1. May not apply any payments you make to any debt that you dispute.
2. Must follow your instructions about how you want debts repaid (for example, which debt should be paid first on your outstanding balances or how much you want to designate towards each debt).