Stop Creditor Harassment

Everybody gets into a tough financial situation at one time or another and has trouble paying their debts. But that doesn't mean a creditor or debt collector can legally harass or bully you into paying. When that happens, you can fight back.

First, as described throughout this website, you can file a bankruptcy (Chapter 7 or Chapter 13) to immediately stop a creditor from harassing you or trying to collect a debt. You can also use bankruptcy to discharge the debt (Chapter 7) or set up a court-imposed repayment plan (Chapter 13).

In addition to bankruptcy, when a debt collector harasses you, you may be able to sue the debt collector — which can force them to pay you at least $1,000 plus your attorney fees for filing the lawsuit.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

In 1977, Congress enacted the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) — a federal law designed to protect you from unfair and abusive debt collection practices. Under the FDCPA, a collection agency generally cannot:

• Call you before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. (or at other inconvenient hours if you notify them);
• Communicate with you after you send written notice to stop contacting you;
• Call you over and over intending to annoy, abuse, or harass you;
• Call you at work if you tell them it is unacceptable to do so;
• Contact you if you are represented by an attorney;
• Use deceptive means — such as falsely claiming the caller is an attorney or law enforcement officer, or threatening to sue when they have no intention or authorization to do so;
• Publish your name or address on a “bad debt” list (or threaten to);
• Attempt to collect amounts not permitted by law;
• Threaten to arrest you or take legal action that is not permitted or not actually contemplated;
• Use abusive language or profanity;
• Discuss your debts with third parties (other than your spouse or attorney);
• Contact you by embarrassing means, such as a postcard;
• Report false information on your credit report, or threaten to do so.

If a debt collector violates these provisions, you may be able to sue the collector in federal court for $1,000 (or your actual damages), plus have the collector reimburse your attorney fees — even if you owe the debt.

If you live in the Metro Detroit area and want to stop the debt collectors harassing you night and day, call us today at 248-417-9800 or contact us online to set up a free, no-obligation, confidential consultation. Our phone lines are available 24 hours a day.

Pursuant to 11 U.S.C. § 528 we are required to state that we are a debt relief agency. We help people file for bankruptcy relief under the Bankruptcy Code.