When I stop paying my bills, how can I prevent collections people from harassing me?

[keepinitreal]

Collection agents are trained to take control of a conversation and intimidate you into opening your wallet.

I didn't want to take the risk of revealing something that could later be used against me, so I didn't talk to any bill collectors.

To each his own.

[jacko]

Exactly. What you divulge can be used against you. I chose to remain silent and has worked for me. I fled Dodge City but kept a PO Box to forward mail, which is re forwarded to me monthly if need be. All utilities have been paid. Have not updated my social site accounts and will never have a land line again. I'm in control and will pull the BK lever at my convenience if need be.

I didn't want to take the risk of revealing something that could later be used against me, so I didn't talk to any bill collectors.

To each his own.

[Bell30656]

I revealed nothing by refusing to discuss the matter with the collection agents, no matter what they said I stuck to my mantra. I confirmed my identity and then told them I will not discuss financial matter over the phone. Have a nice day, followed by a click.

Many JDBs are ruthless. They will go to extremes when you avoid their calls. I ducked calls for years by changing phone numbers, moving, etc. Then one day, I came into work and found that a JDB had called my work leaving messages for me to return their call on twenty or so random extensions. They were all pretty simple calls like, "This message is for Mr. Bell, please call XYZ Recovery at 1-800-XXX-XXXX". That was an eye opener!!!

I had another JDB that called my church pastor to leave a message for me to call him. Did he call every church in this small town? I have no idea but how else would he have known what church I attended? Not too long ago, I and several people on my street received calls for one of our former neighbors, who was foreclosed upon. All attempting to locate him. Imagine the embarrassment that they are going through.

[kel9000]

....but the creditors are completely allowed to make "Attempt to Locate" calls to all of your friends, neighbors and anyone else they wish to contact. Hell, they can call you pastor if they want.

True.

I was infuriated by the phone harassment, and thought to myself, "OK, you want to play that way? It's ON!!!!" Thankfully, I'm a computer geek, and had the time, the willingness, and the spare $50 for the hardware and the software needed to deal with this characters using truly devious means.

I installed a voice modem in my computer along with some software (which I won't name because I am new and it would seem like spamming). Split the phone line so that an extension went to my computer. Turned off my ringer on the phone, and told my computer to play an authentic recording of :: beep boop beep :: "We're sorry, but the number you have dialed has been disconnected or is not in service." to collectors and then hang up. To all other calls, my computer would announce through the speakers whatever the caller ID said. So no phone ringing... pure silence from "blacklisted" callers... never knew they called unless I checked the logs, but an announcement for others and my computer would let it go to my answering machine if I did not pick up. It's a pretty cool set up, actually, and I was rather proud of myself.

Until a collector ended up calling my parents, saying she was "Monique" (the name of my cousin.... coincidence???) and that I no longer lived where I was living (not true) and that her mail kept getting returned (not true) and that my phone was disconnected (well... ). My poor Mom was very worried about me.

How did it all end? I re-assured my mom. And my attorney is putting the finishing touches on my Chap 7 petition, and I should be able to look at it and sign off on it Monday : )

I still have that set up on my computer, though. It is very handy to be able to re-gain control of when, and if, your phone rings. These days, I don't play the "Disconnected" message to collectors, but a message saying that yes, it is moi, and to call me on my cell phone (and I give them that number). My cell has other software, but that's a different story ; )

[tobee43]

True.

I was infuriated by the phone harassment, and thought to myself, "OK, you want to play that way? It's ON!!!!" Thankfully, I'm a computer geek, and had the time, the willingness, and the spare $50 for the hardware and the software needed to deal with this characters using truly devious means.

I installed a voice modem in my computer along with some software (which I won't name because I am new and it would seem like spamming). Split the phone line so that an extension went to my computer. Turned off my ringer on the phone, and told my computer to play an authentic recording of :: beep boop beep :: "We're sorry, but the number you have dialed has been disconnected or is not in service." to collectors and then hang up. To all other calls, my computer would announce through the speakers whatever the caller ID said. So no phone ringing... pure silence from "blacklisted" callers... never knew they called unless I checked the logs, but an announcement for others and my computer would let it go to my answering machine if I did not pick up. It's a pretty cool set up, actually, and I was rather proud of myself.

Until a collector ended up calling my parents, saying she was "Monique" (the name of my cousin.... coincidence???) and that I no longer lived where I was living (not true) and that her mail kept getting returned (not true) and that my phone was disconnected (well... ). My poor Mom was very worried about me.

How did it all end? I re-assured my mom. And my attorney is putting the finishing touches on my Chap 7 petition, and I should be able to look at it and sign off on it Monday : )

I still have that set up on my computer, though. It is very handy to be able to re-gain control of when, and if, your phone rings. These days, I don't play the "Disconnected" message to collectors, but a message saying that yes, it is moi, and to call me on my cell phone (and I give them that number). My cell has other software, but that's a different story ; )

i'm so sorry you are having so many problems with these terrible people calling...maybe this can help a bit.....this is actually from the horses mouth and these are the laws that are appliable. i do have a blog listing them...but here's what a collector can and cannot do:


The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, FDCPA, dictates how debt collectors can act when collecting a debt from you. These are things a debt collector can't do. If you need to reference the law, citations have been provided.

1. Ask you to pay more than you owe
The collector cannot misrepresent the amount you owe. [15 USC 1692e] § 807(2)(a)

2. Ask you to pay interest, fees, or expenses that are not allowed by law
The collector can't add on any extra fees that your original credit or loan agreement doesn't allow. [15 USC 1692f] § 808(1)

3. Call repeatedly or continuously
The FDCPA considers repeat calls as harassment. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(5)

4. Use obscene, profane, or abusive language
Using this kind of language is considered harassment. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(2)

5. Call before 8:00 am or after 9:00 pm
Calls during these times are considered harassment. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(1)

6. Call at times the collector knew or should know are inconvenient
Calls at these times are considered harassment. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(1)

7. Use or threaten to use violence if you don't pay the debt
Collectors can't threaten violence against you. [15 USC 1692d] § 806(1)

8. Threaten action they cannot or will not take
Collectors can't threaten to sue or file charges against you, garnish wages, take property, cause job loss, or ruin your credit when the collector cannot or does not intend to take the action. [15 USC 1692e] § 807(5)

9. Illegally inform a third party about your alleged debt
Unless you have expressly given permision, collectors are not allowed to inform anyone about your debt except:

* your attorney
* the creditor
* the creditor's attorney
* a credit reporting agencyyour spouse
* your parent (if you are a minor)

[15 USC 1692c] § 805(b)

10. Repeatedly call a third party to get your location information
The collector can only contact a third party once unless it has reason to believe the information previously provided is false. [15 USC 1692b] § 804(1)

11. Contact you at work knowing your employer doesn't approve
A collector is not allowed to contact you at work if you’ve let them know your employer doesn’t approve of these calls. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(a)(3)


12. Fail to send a written debt validation notice
Within five days of the collector's initial communication, it must send you a notice include the amount of the debt, name of the creditor, and notice of your right to dispute the debt within 30 days. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(a)

13. Ignore your written request to verify the debt and continue to collect
A collector can't continue to collect on a debt after you've made a written request to verify the debt as long as the request was made within 30 days of the collector's written notice. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(b)

14. Continue to collect on the debt before providing verification
After receiving your written dispute, the collector must stop collecting on the debt until you have receieved verification. [15 USC 1692g] § 809(b)

15. Continue collection attempts after receiving a cease communication notice

If you make a written request for the collector to cease communication, it can only contact you one more time, via mail to let you know one of the following: that further efforts to collect the debt are terminated, that certain actions may be taken by the collector, or that the collector is definitely going to take certain actions. [15 USC 1692c] § 805(c

[AngelinaCatHub]

True.

I was infuriated by the phone harassment, and thought to myself, "OK, you want to play that way? It's ON!!!!" Thankfully, I'm a computer geek, and had the time, the willingness, and the spare $50 for the hardware and the software needed to deal with this characters using truly devious means.

I installed a voice modem in my computer along with some software (which I won't name because I am new and it would seem like spamming). Split the phone line so that an extension went to my computer. Turned off my ringer on the phone, and told my computer to play an authentic recording of :: beep boop beep :: "We're sorry, but the number you have dialed has been disconnected or is not in service." to collectors and then hang up. To all other calls, my computer would announce through the speakers whatever the caller ID said. So no phone ringing... pure silence from "blacklisted" callers... never knew they called unless I checked the logs, but an announcement for others and my computer would let it go to my answering machine if I did not pick up. It's a pretty cool set up, actually, and I was rather proud of myself.

Until a collector ended up calling my parents, saying she was "Monique" (the name of my cousin.... coincidence???) and that I no longer lived where I was living (not true) and that her mail kept getting returned (not true) and that my phone was disconnected (well... ). My poor Mom was very worried about me.

How did it all end? I re-assured my mom. And my attorney is putting the finishing touches on my Chap 7 petition, and I should be able to look at it and sign off on it Monday : )

I still have that set up on my computer, though. It is very handy to be able to re-gain control of when, and if, your phone rings. These days, I don't play the "Disconnected" message to collectors, but a message saying that yes, it is moi, and to call me on my cell phone (and I give them that number). My cell has other software, but that's a different story ; )

Also being a bit of computer geek, here is what I did to aggravating callers. 800 calls are not free. They cost the recipient. I set up my fax modem to an infinite number of calls to the offending number. When they cost me time and aggravation, the least I can do is return the favor, so those calls stopped as the minute the phone is answered by person or machine, Cha-ching to the phone company.

I also had a threatening phone call one time. I returned the call to find a fax machine connected after hours. Soooo.....I faxed the Bible to their machine. I heard later that the fire department put the machine out, and cleaned up several reams of spent paper. I hope they learned a bit about an "eye for an eye" from the manuscripts on the floor. 'Hub

[tobee43]

Also being a bit of computer geek, here is what I did to aggravating callers. 800 calls are not free. They cost the recipient. I set up my fax modem to an infinite number of calls to the offending number. When they cost me time and aggravation, the least I can do is return the favor, so those calls stopped as the minute the phone is answered by person or machine, Cha-ching to the phone company.

I also had a threatening phone call one time. I returned the call to find a fax machine connected after hours. Soooo.....I faxed the Bible to their machine. I heard later that the fire department put the machine out, and cleaned up several reams of spent paper. I hope they learned a bit about an "eye for an eye" from the manuscripts on the floor. 'Hub

LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! I LOVE IT!!!!!! the entire bible......?????? can you give me the website...LOL!!!!

[Bell30656]

That is a great list of rules in the FDCPA. Of course, the FDCPA only applies to Collection Agencies and not the OC or JDB. Thanks to the really powerful banking lobbies that got all the exemptions into the legislation. Further, "Attempt to Locate" calls are perfectly legal. They go something like this; "Please have David Smith call Mr. Jones at NCO Recovery, 1-800-XXX-XXXX". Perfectly legal and haven't violated number 9 on your list. And in 11, how do they know it is against your work's policy until you actually talk to them and let them know?

Most importantly, you didn't have the means to pay the debt... Do you have the means to sue for a violation of the FDCPA? These folks actually budget money to handle this type of litigation expense. I love number 3. When you aren't accepting their calls violating this or just trying to get a hold of you?