This guide is designed to equip you with the information you need to fight debt collectors attempting to collect personal, family, and household debts. This does not cover business debts.
Debt collectors buy old debts from companies or lenders for pennies on the dollar. For them, it’s a business transaction. They are doing whatever they can to get you to pay the debt. They’re facing increased regulation because many have used intimidation tactics such as yelling and insulting their targets. They’ve often blatantly lied or otherwise deceived their targets. They’re often run into cases of mistaken identity and continue to harass the wrong parties. Many debt collectors are not nice people because they operate in an environment where they are often treated in the same way, though that shouldn’t excuse their behavior.
The number one rule in this fight is that the informed consumer is one that stands the best chance of getting things resolved quickly. Debt collectors like picking the low hanging fruit and will use whatever shortcuts they can to get the job done.
Keep Everything
Before getting into what you should do, one bit of advice that is universally given in is that you should collect every piece of correspondence you receive. You should also keep written notes of phone calls, or record them if you have the capability (check to see what level of disclosure you need to provide in your state), in the event you need that information later. Many of the things you do will depend on dates, so keeping a written record of the date and time of the call is crucial. When you send the collector written correspondence, send it certified mail so you have record of when it is sent.
Step 1. Be Informed of Your Rights
Read the FTC’s brochure on your rights and contact your state’s Attorney General for more information about your state’s debt collection laws. If you’re especially ambitious, read the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) or summaries of the salient details. Those laws explain what the debt collector can and cannot do, if they violate those laws then you have legal recourse (you can sue) and those documents explain how you go about doing that.
Once you understand what they can and cannot do, you’ll want to keep notes of when they break those rules. For example, they can’t call before 8AM or after 9PM or say you committed a crime. If they do, note it. They can’t say you will be arrested if you don’t pay up, if they say that… write it down (or note when it was said in the recording!). Each of those are chips in your pocket because they’re deceptive practices prohibited by the FDCPA.
Step 2. Wait For The Letter…
Once the debt collector contacts you, they have five days to send you a letter explaining the amount and reason of the debt. Once you receive the letter, look it over. The letter should contain information about your rights to dispute, specifically how you have thirty days to respond. If the letter does not contain information about your rights to dispute, that may be grounds for a lawsuit. You will see a lot of instances where collectors violate the FDCPA, each one is grounds for a lawsuit with a potential gain of $1000 on your part. If push comes to shove, each one is a chip in your pocket because that’s $1000 of profit out of their pocket (if you get to the point when you need an attorney, they can find all of these things by reviewing your notes and saved correspondence).
Either way, you should write a letter, sent certified mail, demanding validation/proof of the debt. This is known as a Debt Validation letter.
Step 3. Write A Debt Validation Letter
Here is the statute that governs debt validation:
FDCPA Section 809. Validation of debts [15 USC 1692g]
(b) If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt, or any disputed portion thereof, until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or any copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such verification or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor, is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector.
In other words, they have to stop contacting you unless they can prove that the debt is yours. This forces the debt collector to prove that:
- The collection company now owns the debt that once belonged to the original creditor.
- Proof of how they arrived at the figure they are trying to collect, this should include the original contact you agreed to and any payment history.
- The original agreement between you and the original creditor.
Here is a great sample Debt Validation letter that you can use.
Step 4. Contact an Attorney
At this point, either the debt collector will have given up or they will start using underhanded tactics to get you to buckle. I would recommend getting a lawyer to assist you, you can find one through the National Association of Consumer Advocates’ Find an Attorney tool. If you reach this point, I recommend you follow the advice of your attorney. 
Additional resources:
(Photo: pumpkinjuice)
译文:
如何对付收债人
这项指导是关于提出辩诉对付收债人的所需信息。这里债主收取的债务仅限于个人，家族，家庭 ，不包括商业债务。
债主从公司收旧账或者跟债务人讨小钱。对于债主说，这是商业交易。他们竭尽所能收回债款。 他们将面对越来越多的规则，因为很多人已经用过威胁的计策比如，呼喊，侮辱他们的借款人。他们经常编制明显的谎言或欺骗欠他们钱的人。他们常常确认错误，然却继续骚扰这个搞错了的群体。很多收债人都不是好人，因为他们常常在这样的一个环境下用相同的手法对待别人，尽管他们的行为无从指责。
对付措施里的第一项规则是要知道收债人处于速战速决的立场。收债人会利用一切短处马上完成工作，就像摘那么挂的低低的果子一样。
保留所有
在你被卷入是非之前，给你一条小建议，这也是很普遍的做法，即收集收到的所有信函。还应保留所有的通话记录，如果你有能力的话对他们进行录音(以你的立场所要曝光的程度而定），以防不时之需。很多记录要根据日期才有效，因此保留通话记录的日期很重要。所以当你给你的收债人发送书面信函或确认邮件时要记录日期。
第一步，明确权限
阅读 FTC’s brochure on your rights(FTC 小册子中关于你的权限部分)和 contact your state’s Attorney General（联系国家最高法庭） 以获得更多相关国家债务法律的信息。如果你有特殊抱负，阅读公平债务催收作业法或者其重点摘要。这项法律说明了收债人的该做和不该做，如果他们违反了这项法律，那么你便有了合法依据（你可以起诉），这项法律文件也说明了你起诉收债人要做的事项。
一旦你明确他们能做和不能做的，你便可以在他们违反规定时做记录。举个例子，他们不能在早上8点前和晚上9点后打电话给你或者说你犯罪。如果他们这样做了，那么记下来。他们不能说诸如，如果你不还钱就会被捕等等这样的话，记录下来（或者在录音里这么说也要记录下来！）。 每条记录都是你口袋里的砝码，因为他们的欺骗行为是公平债务催收作业法所禁止的。
第二步。等待信件
当你的债主联系你，他们有5天的时间寄信给你说明这笔债务的款额和返还债务的事由。当你收到这封信时要仔细检查。如果这封信件含有相关你债务权限的内容，确切的说你有三十天的时间考虑你该如何答复。如果这封信件没有相关内容，它就是你起诉的底线。你会看到很多债权人违反公平债务催收作业法法例的地方，每处违反点都将成为你赢得一千美元的起诉底线。若是到了无法挽回的地步，每处违反点都是你口袋里的砝码，因为这一千美金已经不是他们口袋里的钱了。（到了这个地步，你需要律师，他们可以通过审核你的笔记和保留的信函搞定一切事情。）
无论是哪条路子，你都地写封信，发送确认邮件，索要债务验证/证明。这被称为债务验证信.
第三步。写封债务验证信
以下的法规规定了债务验证：
公平债务催收作业法第809部分，债务的验证[15 USC 1692g]
(b)如果消费者需在收债人通知的在30天内做出答复，在章节 (a) 有这样的描述。对这笔债务或者其任何的相关部分，都可以提出辩诉。消费者索要原来债权人的姓名和地址，收债人应该停止收债或者任何相关部分的争议，直到收债人得到债务确认和评审复印件或者原来债权人的名字和地址。确认书和评审的复印件或者原来债权人的名字和地址应该由收债人发给消费者。
换言之，他们不得不停止联系你除非他们能证明债务是你的。这些强迫收债人证明这些：
- 债务公司现在有的债权属于原来的债权人。
- 如何收到这笔款额的证明，这应当包括你联络协议的原过程和所有的付款历史。
- 你和原来的债权人之间的协议原件。
在此你可以看到一封 great sample Debt Validation letter（优秀的债务验证信）。
第四步，联系律师
关于这点，不论收债人是放弃还是耍阴招。推荐通过国家消费者诉讼协会找个律师帮助你。 Find an Attorney tool（找律师的工具）. 如果你这样做了的话，我推荐你按律师建议去做。 
附加资源：
(图片: pumpkinjuice)