If you have gotten behind on the bills, debt collectors are probably calling, as well as sending you an ongoing supply of snail mail too. While their efforts may start out as benign, and they may be willing to offer a variety of different settlement plans (as well as sympathy over any reasons for delinquencies), if you don’t pay up quickly their attitudes become increasingly more aggressive.
Struggles with debt can cause a multitude of challenges, and especially if you are experiencing hard times already due to a serious illness, a car accident or other major trauma, stressful family issues, and more. You may have even hit rock bottom after trying to stay afloat despite the burden of crushing student loan debt. The bottom line is that it is impossible to give creditors what they are after if you don’t currently have the necessary income. Although you may feel ashamed of your current predicament and very alone in such financial trials and tribulations, keep in mind that hundreds of thousands of others in the US are going through similar situations.
Along with seeking expert legal advice to find a solution, you can also learn how to deal with debt collectors—and know your rights. One of your first requests upon dealing with a collections agency should be to ask for verification of the debt. If the original creditor is calling, you do not have this right (and of course they should be able to verify everything about the debt easily); however, if a debt collections agency is calling you, they must follow the law requiring them to provide information stating that the debt is correct. Sometimes there may be more detailed data regarding the initial agreement and history of the account.
After you have requested verification in written form—and it must happen with 30 days of your first communication with them—the debt collectors cannot threaten you with action such as a lawsuit or other consequences, although they may keep up general collections activities. Once they have sent the required information, they may resume with actions such as reporting your delinquencies, charging off accounts, or moving to file lawsuits.
Speak with an attorney from Fitzgerald & Campbell, APLC as soon as possible to examine your options. Our attorneys have decades of experience in serving clients as they navigate through challenging financial situations, to include student loan issues, bankruptcy, and other debt management processes. We are here to help! Click here to schedule a free 30-minute consultation, call us at (844) 431-3851, or email us at info@debtorprotectors.com.