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WalletPrep worksheet · Debt

What are your rights when a debt collector calls?

Name ____________________ Date __________

Key ideas

  1. You get 30 days to dispute in writing. The validation notice shows the end date. A written dispute in that window makes the collector pause until it sends proof.
  2. Calls are limited by time and count. No calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. More than 7 calls in 7 days about one debt is presumed illegal.
  3. A letter can stop all contact. Write that you want no more contact. The debt still exists, and they can still sue, but the calls must stop.

Vocabulary

Collections
When an unpaid debt is handed or sold to a debt collector after missed payments. It can hurt your credit score.
Validation notice
The notice a debt collector must send that names the creditor, itemizes the amount and gives you 30 days to dispute.
Statute of limitations
The deadline, set by each state, for a creditor or collector to sue you over a debt.
Credit report
A record of your credit accounts, payments, balances and some public records, kept by each of the three credit bureaus.
Credit bureau
A company that collects your credit history and sells reports to lenders. The three nationwide bureaus are Equifax, Experian and TransUnion.

Work it out

Jordan gets a call about an old store credit card. The validation notice arrives a week later saying he owes $1,840. He compares it with his bank records.

  1. Balance on itemization date
  2. Interest since then
  3. Fees
  4. Collector says you owe
  5. Payment missing from notice
  6. What Jordan's records show
  7. Days to dispute

Check yourself

  1. A collector's notice says you owe $2,100. Your records show two payments of $150 that it left out. What should the balance be by your records?

    • A. $1,950
    • B. $1,800
    • C. $2,400
    • D. $1,500

  2. What happens if you dispute a debt in writing within the 30-day window?

    • A. The collector must pause collecting the disputed amount until it sends verification
    • B. The debt is erased
    • C. The collector can call you every day instead
    • D. Nothing changes

  3. A collector calls you at 9:30 p.m. on a weeknight. Is that allowed?

    • A. Yes, any time is fine on weekdays
    • B. Yes, if you owe more than $1,000
    • C. Generally no, calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. are not allowed

Your turn

If a collector has contacted you, find the validation notice or ask for one. Check the itemization against your own statements, then write down the dispute end date and put it on your calendar a week early.

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Answer key

What are your rights when a debt collector calls?

Work it out

  1. Balance on itemization date$1,500
  2. Interest since then$260
  3. Fees$80
  4. Collector says you owe= $1,840
  5. Payment missing from notice− $300
  6. What Jordan's records show= $1,540
  7. Days to dispute30
  1. The notice builds the amount as $1,500 + $260 interest + $80 fees = $1,840, with no payments credited.
  2. Jordan's bank statement shows a $300 payment to the store after the itemization date. $1,840 − $300 = $1,540.
  3. He mails a dispute of the $300 with a copy of the statement, by certified mail, before the end date printed on the notice.

Check yourself

  1. B. $1,800 $2,100 − $150 − $150 = $1,800. Dispute the $300 difference in writing and include proof of the payments.
  2. A. The collector must pause collecting the disputed amount until it sends verification A timely written dispute makes the collector stop collecting the disputed part until it answers. The debt is not erased.
  3. C. Generally no, calls before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. are not allowed Collectors generally can't call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. your local time, or at times they know are inconvenient for you.