The job of a collection agency is to get debtors to pay back the debt. As a debtor, you will get mails, phone calls and at times and also summons from the court . However, even you have to agree that a line needs to be drawn between collection agencies contacting and harassing you to pay back the debt. In some situations, it is so bad that a collection agency calls a debtor every 3 hours.
Harassment, of any kind, by a collector agency is uncalled, annoying and outrageous. No one deserves to be called up every 3 hours. It’s not like you can pay back the debt within 3 hours. The idea of harassment by a collector agency is an aggressive strategy to stress you out into paying the money.
The reason the collection agency is able to get away with such abrasive behaviour is because you aren’t aware of your rights. To be specific, there is no legal obligation on your part to talk to the Collection agency. You can avoid the calls, if you are already working on a plan given to you by 4 Pillars consulting.
In this article, I will explain how you can stop or restrict these calls. The collection agencies within Alberta are licensed under the FAIR trading act. There are secret ways you can stop or at least restrict the calls.
1. Under the FAIR trading act, the collection agency calling has to be licensed. So ask them all the questions about their license like name, address etc. If they don’t give the correct information, you can refuse to talk to them.
2. If you have not received any written communication from them, you have a right to ask for that information first before even they call.
3. They cannot call more than three times with 7 consecutive days.
4. They can call between 7:00am – 10:00pm and cannot call on an Statutory holiday or on Sunday.
5. You can claim that you are not the debtor, and in this case now the agency has to now take alternate precautions before they call you again.
6. Let them know not to call you at work and then make alternate arrangements to discuss the debts.
7. Tell the collection agency that you dispute this debt and give it to them in writing. You could also suggest that you are planning to take legal action and are also recording the conversation.
Knowing your rights will put a stop to the harassment you are receiving. Stick with these steps and you’ll find the collection agency will get off your back.
These steps will only work with a collection agency, if the creditor contacts you directly, then you’re in a whole new ball game. If you wish to know more about collection agencies, check out Service Alberta’s website. You can also file a complaint on the Consumer Complaint Form. In addition, if you want further advice, you call always call up 780-427-4088 and talk to one of the information officers there.
