Bankruptcy

What Can I Do To Stop Creditors From Contacting Me?

By Adrian Lapas, Eastern North Carolina Bankruptcy At

A sure way to stop creditors from contacting you is to file for bankruptcy protection.  Under the Bankruptcy Code, once you file with the Court, an order called the “automatic stay” goes into effect immediately and without you or your attorney doing anything more than filing your petition.

But, if you are saving your money to pay the attorney’s fees and filing fees for your bankruptcy case or you just do not have the money available at this time to avail yourself of bankruptcy protection, what can you do?

The Federal Trade Commission has a nice “Frequently Asked Questions” (FAQ) detailing what creditors can and cannot do.  A link to this website is included here.   This gives you a broad scenario of what creditors can and cannot do.   While this FAQ is useful and informative, it is written broadly and for a very wide audience.

There are some limitations with this FAQ.  First, the FAQ itself references “debt collectors” and actions and limitations imposed under the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA).  Generally, the FDCPA is limited to “debt collectors” and does not apply to creditors collecting their own debts.  This is a very important distinction to remember.  However, most states have enacted a state law version of the FDCPA and that legislation may apply to creditors collecting their own debts, as in North Carolina.

Most importantly, as set forth in the FAQ, you have the right to write to the creditor and tell them to leave you alone.   The FAQ further advises to mail the letter by certified mail, return receipt requested so that you can document that your letter was actually received by the creditor/collection agency (they will lie and say that they never received it).  When writing your creditor or the collection agency, avoid language that acknowledges the debt–write in generalities about stopping all contacts.  This should stop the collection agency from contacting you.

By doing this, you can gain yourself some breathing room while you get your money together to file bankruptcy.  Also, if the collection agency or creditor continues to hassle you, you may have a claim against the creditor that you can then assert in your bankruptcy case.  How great would it be to have the debt discharged in bankruptcy yet the collection agency pay you some money because they violated the FDCPA.

Full post as published by Bankruptcy Law Network on August 31, 2010 (boomark / email).