Pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, a debtor has 30 days after the first written communication from a debt collector to request validation of the debt. This form letter is a convenient form for requesting validation of the debt (PDF link). The form is a simple, fill-in-the-blank form. Keep a copy for yourself and send a copy via certified mail, return receipt requested (just to be safe) to the debt collector.
There are more legal forms in PDF format on the Legal Info page of Samuel J. Glover & Associates, LLC.
To find a consumer or bankruptcy lawyer, use the Caveat Emptor Consumer & Bankruptcy Lawyer Directory.
{ 4 comments… read them below or add one }
I am an attorney in Massachusetts with a client that had a settlement agreement with Discover. The agreement provided that Discover would close her account. They gave her a release. Later they sent her account (same one) to a collection agency. Discover signed the agreement. Have you seen this before? Just wondering how often this happens. Naturally Discover is trying to hang the attorney that sused her in the first place, saying it was their fault!
Yup. You can read about many examples of this sort of behavior doing a bit of looking online.
Mr. Glover,
Is it legal to deliver a summons to someone for a debt/civil action, requiring a response within 20 days, on what appears to be a county court document (Benton county here in MN), when it has not been filed at the courthouse? I received one, tried to file an answer and was told that the summons had not ever been filed. I’m not looking for any legal advice really, rather is the delivery of such a “summons” in violation of federal law (delivered to my house at 6pm on a weekday by some unidentified man? Thanks whether or not you can answer this.
I guess I have one more comment/question:
In the FDCPA, does the statement “the debt collector sends out a collection letter that simulates a court order or some other court document.” mean that the appearance of a court document, like a summons, is only in violation if the debt collector never intends to go ahead with the request for judgement?