What Are Debt Collectors Allowed to Do to Collect Debts?
In general, debt collectors are allowed to make civilized contact with you to make arrangements for payment of the debt. If you fail or refuse to pay a valid debt, debt collectors are legally allowed to use legal process to collect the debt, including obtaining a judgment against you, wage garnishment or attachment of your bank accounts, investment accounts or real estate. Debt collectors are also allowed to credit-report a valid debt to the credit reporting agencies, so long as the credit reporting is accurate. Note throughout the above paragraph the careful and deliberate use of the word valid. Debt collectors are not allowed to collect invalid debts, but it is your responsibility to give the debt collector proof that the alleged debt is invalid. If you have provided this proof and yet the debt collector persists, this of itself may be debt collector abuse.
