Just filed with my AG on Allied Interstate

[HMT]

For harassing phone calls. I live in MA and state law 209 CMR 18.14 (1) (d) states that no creditor or collection agency may contact you by telephone at your home more then twice a week. I warned them yesterday that if they called today to speak with me I would do this.

Question is: is this just a state law or is this a state law to clarify a federal law? Don't know if I can file another complaint with the FTC?

I just started to get calls from them and with my state laws I haven't bothered with C&Ds since it's easy to spend a min or 2 talking to them every 7 days but this is the first time I'm seeing a collection agency break state laws!

[treehugger1]

This is your state's law. We have a similar law in Oregon stating that a creditor (or a CA) can only call your work number once per week.

[HMT]

OK. So I won't put a complaint in to the FTC, Thanks Treehugger!

I still haven't gotten the dunning letter but I've spoken to them 4 times and they've called 12 times since Sunday! I have a feeling these guys are going to be a pain in the ___ if I don't head them off and stick up for myself!

[HMT]

You're not cynical it's true laws are put in place to protect people and when they are violated multiple times and it is reported there should be something done! I have Comcast digital voice and it comes with a web based log of all calls missed and answered and the time spent talking so I have proof of the violation. It's not as if I can get proof when a CA is being verbally abusive as in MA you need permission from the other party I can't just arbitrarily start recording because then I'm breaking a law and have 'stooped to their level' so this is the only law breaking that I can prove is happening other than, as you said, and mailings that are sent with illegal verbiage.

See and NCO has 2 of my accounts and never calls more than twice a week, as long as I speak to them both times. If I miss a call because, god forbid, I go out they will call 5 times in a day. But I hardly go out. That's why I haven't done any c&ds. I'm just starting with Allied as I said, but I still don't think SPEAKING to me 4 times in one week before I've even gotten a dunning letter is on the up and up. Once I get the Dunning letter I think I'll send out my first C&D. And tell them to 'pound sand' as has been stated on other threads around here. It was quite empowering to send that off though!

Have a good night,
Heather

[BigJohn]

Complaining to the Attorney General's office is a waste of time. The collection agency know that and so they take advantage of that.

[treehugger1]

I guess the oregon AG's office is more on top of things. They have taken all kinds of actions on my behalf in the past. My biggest complaints have been unregistered CA's. It is state law that every CA must be registered. They generally send them a letter within a few days of my complaint, and I never hear from them again.

[jadams]

The CA doesn't really care. Just like BigBoy2U says, they know even if they are breaking the law, the odds of anything happening are slim.

I live in MA. I had this same problem, among others.

The best was when they would claim "they" didn't call me within the past 7 days (i.e. another agent did) and the law only precluded the same agent from calling me more than twice in 7 days. So as long as they rotated among a couple of agents, they could call as much as they wanted.

Your best bet to get them to follow the law would be to send them a letter that reminds them of it. Yes, you told them on the phone. But they "forget". They're more likely to behave when you create a paper trail. Include something about how you reported them to the state Attorney General, etc.

But if you're going to write a letter anyways, might as well do a DV or C&D.