Help me find limited Cease & Desist Letter!!!

[Txgirl]

I am thinking of sending a limited C&D letter to the CA regarding my private student loans.

They are horrible on the phone! They are going to cause me to have an ulcer or go into pre-term labor! Last time we went round and round on the phone forever!

I have read if you send me a blown out C&D letter they are more likely to proceed with suing. I don't want that, I just want to limit everything in writing.

Is this a bad option too? or okay?

If so, can someone help me find a sample (limited) cease and desist letter?

TIA!

[OhioFiler]

Have you ever tried hanging up on them when they irritate you?

[Txgirl]

LOL! I should!

Here's the deal though. They wanted me not to pay my other cc bills to pay them. Wanted me to defer my mortgage payment to pay them.

I do send in payment every month, but they don't like it. My husband says, next time tell them, "Payment of $___ will be sent in on "date" and then hang up.

I did tell them that and they stated they would have to tell OC that it was a refusal to pay!

[rockyroad]

Txgirl...I would advise not answering the phone. Just keep sending them what you can and let them tell the OC it's a refusal to pay. Believe me, they will cash the check. Just don't speak to them, it's not worth it.

[ready2puke]

Does doing so make it faster for them to sue? Or is it better to just let the phone come and not answer them?

[lrprn]

Does doing so make it faster for them to sue? Or is it better to just let the phone come and not answer them?

So many of us have been afraid that telling the creditor you intend to file will rush them to court to file something and get garnishments or liens before we can file. Frankly, it's very rare.

It takes time - an absolute minimum of 60+ days by a VERY determined, typically local creditor - to get a case filed, get it on the docket, have the hearing, and get the judgment against you. We have members who've been planning their bks for 5-8 months or longer before filing and whose creditors know of their intentions to file - no one that I can recall has found themselves in court yet.

As far as whether you should answer the phone or not, most consumer rights experts say that you should put a message on your answering machine that identifies you so the creditor doesn't go hunting through your family and friends looking for you. The FDCA (Fair Debt Collection Act) forbids doing this unless the collector can't find you (although many shady ones will do it anyway to increase the pressure to pay).

If you do decide to pick up and talk to creditors, provide your name, do not acknowledge the debt is yours, and do not promise payment. Provide your lawyer's name and number if you are using one and he/she gives permission to forward collection calls to them, and then just hang up, even if the collector is still talking. There's no reason to keep listening to the script that's designed precisely to keep you talking so they can upset you enough that you pay them just to stop the calls. You have the power here, not the collector.

Once you've talked to the creditor/collector and confirmed they have reached you, if they continue to call, there's no reason to pick up unless you find sparring with them is a fun game

[GoingDown]

Limited Cease and Desist: "In accordance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, I demand that you cease and desist from any further communication with me by telephone."

Full Cease and Desist: "In accordance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, I demand that you cease and desist from any further communication with me."

It's that simple.

They don't have to be complicated at all.

It has been my experience that for the most part, sending them a C and D does not make them more likely to sue you.

From what I have heard from other debtors, what makes them more likely to sue you is talking to them on the phone, making payment arrangements with them, telling them where you work, how much you get paid, etc. They know they can work you and probably scare you into paying them. You're an easy target for them.

When they get the C and D, most collection agencies will drop your account back to the creditor or the junk debt buyer, who will then assign it to a new collection agency. Because they know that their main weapon against you-- the telephone-- is now useless to them.