How to Stop Creditors Calling and Relieve Financial Stress

How to Get Creditors to Stop Calling

Debt Help and Illness

Often when we have to take time off work or had to quit or job we find ourselves in financial situations we never thought we would be in. Trying to adjust our lifestyle and budget can time and as a result it is possible to end up in financial difficulty; we cannot pay bills on time, fall behind and the nest thing is we have creditors calling daily making demands that we are unable to fulfill. This then adds to the incredible stress of daily life we are trying to cope with.

Do here are a few tips to hold creditors at bay while we work towards getting our financial life in order.

• Demand all pertinent information about your debt from creditors you to be sent to you in writing, including all of the details; name of the creditor, the full amount of principal, interest and penalties.
• If you feel that any debt is not yours or sounds erroneous dispute it immediately, in writing send a copy to the creditor and collection agency and always keep a copy for yourself. Always send letters by registered mail to ensure receipt. The goal is for you is to prove the agency has a legitimate claim as there are so many scams out there and even legitimate agencies do make mistakes.
• Hang up on harassing collectors if they call you after 9 p.m. or before 8 a.m. If that doesn’t stop them, you can threaten legal action–and do follow up with action, especially if they make threats against you or use abusive language. You do not have to take this and this behaviour is never acceptable.
• If you legitimately owe money, work out a manageable payment plan with the collector to eliminate it. Make sure that you can keep the payment schedule that you agree to, so that no further contact is necessary. If you default on this plan, the creditor may have the right to sue you or garnish your wages.
• If you are being unfairly harassed contact the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) or your local ombudsman or councillor and ask for advocacy. You may also be able to get an advocate from the Arthritis Society to assist with such calls or letters.. The Attorney General’s office in your state can also help. They have the authority to take action against unscrupulous creditors and shut them down.
• Creditors aren’t the only ones who can sue, you have the right to take harassing creditors to court, and sue for up to $1,000 of statutory damages, plus your actual damages and legal costs. It may be possible to take your case to a lawyer on a contingency basis or to get assistance with legal aid due to your health and financial circumstances.
• Our next plan os to hand off our credit to a credit bureau for assitance or to consolidate our finances to make more managable. We will cover this in the next article.