What do you tell the creditors that are calling 24/7?

[adviceplease]

I am so fed up that I tell them I am looking for a lawyer and I will let them know what I am doing after that, hubby tells them that he will try to pay in a couple of weeks. Which is the best way to go about it for less hassle later? They are calling my home and cell phone constantly.

We have a CC through HSBC and the keep breathing into the voicemail and the last time the lady said "oh please" and hung up. Sigh. Leave a message of who you are so I can call you back. I do not know who the random number belongs to especially when I call it back and it says card services.

[backtoschool]

Get google voice, and screen your calls.

It is not doing you any good to talk to them, they are just trying to get you to commit to something. They figure the longer they keep you on the phone, the better chance they have of finding out some info that they can use against you.

Change your phone number if you can, and then mask that number behind a service like google voice or something. This way, the creditors will never even be getting to your real phone.

[kenshirley]

Be aware that if you change your number that they will call whoever you listed on your credit application as nearest relative or friends.
That is the only reason that they ask for that information.

[backtoschool]

Be aware that if you change your number that they will call whoever you listed on your credit application as nearest relative or friends.
That is the only reason that they ask for that information.

Very true! They did this to me, but I had given my family and friends a heads up, and they just told them they had no info. They are only allowed to speak to a family member or friend once.

[kenshirley]

State laws do vary.
Here in AZ if a reference or relative tells them not to call again I am told they cannot call.
But they have to know enough to tell them not to call.

[adviceplease]

So do you think telling them I am talking to a lawyer or that we will pay them when we can will give them something to use against us? I was thinking if I went the lawyer way they may try to sue us sooner or if we say we will pay when we can they will say later that we had said we would pay and make it so it can not be discharged.

We are just having a huge problem with them blowing up dh's phone while he is working because he works at a job where he may become distracted and get hurt but he needs to keep the phone on him in case someone has an emergency.

[whipster1]

Some attorneys will take a retainer and send "Do not contact" letters to your creditors.

The best way is to ignore them and change numbers.

[Pizza]

We got cable internet as a stand-alone, got rid of the land line, and got a cell phone. Quiet as can be around here now... other than the 'aww come on, pay us, you valued customer you' letters have picked up a bit.

[OhioFiler]

Tell them you've retained an attorney to handle this matter and then give them a phone number to a pizza joint as a contact. Tell them your attorney's name is Pete Zahut.

[backtoschool]

Tell them you've retained an attorney to handle this matter and then give them a phone number to a pizza joint as a contact. Tell them your attorney's name is Pete Zahut.

hilarious. Totally my sense of humor.

[lrprn]

Tell them you've retained an attorney to handle this matter and then give them a phone number to a pizza joint as a contact. Tell them your attorney's name is Pete Zahut.

C'mon, OF - at least put a smiley or [wink, wink] here so the OP knows you are joking.

Or.....maybe you aren't???

There's no need to lie - just acknowledge they've reached the right person, politely say "I have to go now", and hang up, even if they are in the middle of a sentence.

No matter what is said or not said, the original creditor has every right to continue to call right up until they hear the magic words, "My bankruptcy case number is...." or they get the magic letter from the court with the same info. Same for collectors unless they get a 'cease and desist' letter....but even then some will continue to call anyway until they get the magic number.

[adviceplease]

I took the pizza hut as a joke, but since a lot of the calls seem to be from other countries this may work...lol.

[Stilltheone]

We unplugged our phone until we filed. We used our cell phones only. Our lawyer advised us NOT to tell anyone we planned on filing, only tell the creditors AFTER we filed so it was done and they couldn't go after us.

It was quite weird to be without a regular phone for about a month and it was even weirder to plug it back in! I still remember my first call was from Chase within an hour after plugging it in. It felt so great to say "I filed bankruptcy. Here's my case number!"

Good luck!

[mindblown]

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre18.shtm

Attn: Collection Department

09-01-2009



To whom it may concern,

As of today I'm requesting that you comply with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. As of today I request that you provide a validation letter to me of the debt you say is owed and proof that I incurred each charge.

I also ask that you not contact me by phone or any other means other than in writing at the address listed above in compliance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. I plan to move out of state soon and will provide a permanent forwarding address once it has been established. Please send any and all future correspondence to the PO Box listed above.

[mindblown]

The letter above is a sample letter that I drafted as a favor to a friend. It is not legal advice. Read the link and decide what avenue best fits your situation if at all. When I went through it and they were calling several times daily this worked in every situation for me. There were numerous creditors.

Every now and then I would get calls when 1 collector sold the debt to another. When they would start I would simply ask if they were aware they were violating my rights under te Fair Debt Collection Practices Act? I would then explain that I had disputed the validity of the debt with the original creditor and there was never any response. I also explained that I asked that I not be contacted other than in writing about this debt. I furhter explained to them that I will be sending them a copy of the request and will file a complaint with the FTC if I'm contacted again. I would usually try to get a fax number from them to get relief right away and then send the letter by certified mail to follow up according with the requirements listed in the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collections Practices Act). When I found this out and sent this letter by fax my phone went from ringng off the hook to nothing. I wondered if my phone had been turned off it worked so fast.

I personally would not ever file bk unless I was aware a suit had been filed against me. Even then I would probably wait until I was served and play duck the subpoena man for a while. I mean they may file suit but the clerk subpoena person is only going to make so much of an effort. I question how many of these creditors would go through the additional process of hiring a PI or speical process server? I would file BK before I let any of them secure judgment but I would never go BK until they at least served me with a suit in my OPINION. My state has prescription that says if there has been no activity on an account or they have not been active on their suit in 3 years then it has run its time and they can no longer pursue you with legal action. That means the worst they can do is stay on your credit report for 7 years as there will be no further legal action. You can dispute to have them removed to attempt to clean your credit up. It does not happen over night but is another option.

From someone who has been through it before I can honestly say that unless I had equity in my house or it was worth keeping to reaffirm or a situation like that then I would not file unless I was about to have a judgment placed against me. If you give your car or house back without a fight they will usually sign allowing an even trade for the debt for surrender of the property. This saves them time and more legal expenses. It saves you another judgment and having to be forced into filing.