Once a debt collector starts contacting you, it might feel like a downhill battle. The thought of receiving the call can be scary as well as confusing. Now, for what you need to do or how you can pay the debt, everything should be decided meticulously. For that, you need to be aware of your rights too. Collection agencies like Nelson, Cooper and Ortiz LLC not only offer the creditors flawless debt collection service, they also educate the debtor about their rights. The Fair Debt Collection Practice Act or FDCPA has given you some rights to protect yourself from extortion and meaningless harassment.

If officials from credit collection services are connecting with you, you need to know about your crucial four rights that you can practice to stop the harassment. Take a look at the following points to know more.

Right to Written Notice Explaining Your Debt

You have the right to written notice that will explain your debt. Once you receive the phone call for debt collection, you need to ask for the written notice even before you consider the payment. The debt collection service calling you is supposed to provide you with that in the next five days. The notice will contain,

• The amount of debt
• The name of the creditor they are working on behalf of
• It will also say that you can dispute the debt
• A statement that will say if you don’t call the debt dispute, it will be considered as a valid debt
• A statement which says that in case you call it dispute in 30 days, the debt collector will send you the verification of the debt
• The name and address of the original creditor in case they are different from the current creditor

The five days deadlines won’t be necessary if they have already conveyed these details in the first place in written or you have already paid the debt.

Right to Know About the Debt Collector

If a legitimate agency is contacting you for business debt collection, you get the right to know about their details under FDCPA. They are supposed to share the agency name, address, contact, and license details with you. In case, if you find the agency that is contacting you to be suspicious, you can verify them via the state’s attorney general’s office or consumer’s affair office.

Right Not To Be Harassed

While the debt collectors are supposed to make you pay the debt, the FDCPA clearly defines their boundaries too. So, they are not allowed to,

• Call you before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m.
• Call you at the workplace if you have asked them not to call there
• Use abusive harassing language or yell at you
• Threaten you with anything outside the enforcement
• Engaging in any activity that translates into oppressing, harassing, or abusing. This will also include calling you repeatedly or dialing up and hanging up

Right to Privacy

Debt collectors cannot look for too much personal information about you. In fact, they can only reach some specific people about your personal information. They can only talk to

• Your spouse
• Your parents in case you are a minor
• Your guardian, executor, or administrator
• Your attorney if you have hired one for representing you for that particular debt

The information that they can collect about you is only limited to the following,

• Your residential address
• Your contact number
• Address of your workplace

So, when you are getting contacted for business debt collection, protect these rights and ensure that you settle the debt as quickly as possible.