- 1). Read the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) and become familiar with what constitutes a "violation" on the part of the collection agency or debt collector.
- 2
Document everything
Document every violation. If they call you at 10 p.m. write down the date and time (and name of the debt collector if you answer the phone). If they continually call your place of employment after being told not to, write down the date and time. The same for calling family members or friends, or for calling repeatedly throughout the day. - 3). Tell them they are violating the FDCPA. You can't win in court unless you can prove that the violations occurred willfully and not as a mistake. Make sure that you repeatedly make them aware of their violations and write that down as well.
- 4
Record your calls!
Record each telephone call if you can, just be sure to let the debt collector know that he or she is being recorded. - 5
Talk to them
Answer the phone. Allow the debt collector to dig himself or herself a hole by threatening you or using profanity against you. Record it if you can. Document it either way. - 6
Send a dispute letter
Send a dispute letter to the collection agency asking that they validate the debt. If they do not respond or if they send a printout of merely your name and the amount owed, you can include this as a violation (and use it to have the negative removed while you are in court!) - 7
Recover damages
Make a list of any monetary damages the collection agency has caused you. Did repeated calls at work cause you to lose your job? Did their negative tradeline cause you to pay a higher interest rate on your car? You can sue for any monetary damages + $1000. - 8
investigate their licensure
Check www.collectionagency411.com to see if the collection agency harassing you is even licensed to collect in your state. If they aren't, they have to cease communication with you immediately and remove their tradeline from your credit report. Plus, its just one more violation on the road to your successful lawsuit. - 9). File your lawsuit. Whether or not you hire a lawyer is up to you, but it is most likely that the collection agency will offer to settle with you by removing the tradeline from your credit report. Only agree to this if they provide you with proof in writing that the tradeline will be removed and the debt will not be resold.
- 10
Watch your time frame. You can only sue a collection agency for damages within one year of the time those damages took place.
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