Explore your options for dealing with credit card debt you're struggling to manage.
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If you are being contacted by creditors, there are steps you can take. This guide explains:
- Who may be contacting you
- What the people contacting you are allowed to do
- How to make people stop contacting you
Who is calling me about debt?
A creditor is a company or person you owe money to. If someone is calling you about a debt you owe, it could be:
- Original creditor: the company you borrowed money from
- Debt collector: the person or company paid to collect on a debt you owe someone else
- Debt buyer: the person or company who purchased your debt
When a debt collector or debt buyer contacts you, they have to send a written notice that tells you how to dispute the debt. Dispute means you are telling the debt collector that you disagree with the debt. You may be saying it is not yours, the amount is wrong, or you already paid it.
Important!
You have 30 days to dispute the debt. The person contacting you about the debt cannot contact you again until they provide an itemized statement. The law that covers this is Colorado Revised Statutes 5-16-109.
Can I make a creditor stop calling me?
You can make a creditor stop calling you by sending them a written notice. Once they get this notice, they have to stop contacting you. They can only send you communication saying they received your notice.
Tip:
If the creditor keeps contacting you, you could have a claim against them and they could be subject to penalties.
What can a debt collector do?
- Contact you by phone, letter, or in person
- Contact neighbors or relatives to find your address or phone number
- Refuse partial payment
- Sue you to collect the debt
- Add interest to your debt if allowed by your contract or by law
- Report the debt to credit reporting agencies
- Add charges to a bounced check
What can't a debt collector do?
- Use abusive or threatening language
- Threaten to garnish wages or take property unless they have a court judgment
- Call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. in your time zone
- Call your workplace if your employer doesn't allow it
- Call repeatedly to harass you
- Lie about how much you owe or the legal status of the debt
- Discuss your debt with someone else
- Contact you after learning you have an attorney
- Send mail that shows it is from a collection agency
- Claim to be an attorney or working for the government when they are not
- Report medical debt on your credit report
- Publish your information anywhere outside the credit reporting agencies
Need more help?
If you are low-income, a senior, or a veteran, you may qualify for free legal help from Colorado Legal Services (CLS). To apply or ask if you might qualify, go to the CLS website and find the office that serves your area. If you call or visit, CLS can help you in your native language.
You can get help from the courts. Every judicial district has staff called “Sherlocks” to help people with their legal questions. To find the Sherlock in your county, visit the Judicial Department’s Sherlock webpage.