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Debt - Self Help Center

Our free resources will put you in the driver\'s seat to deal with your debt on your own.
HIGHLIGHTS
  • Pull your credit report regularly to identify any errors.
  • Dispute an inaccurate debt amount with a debt dispute letter.
  • Stop collection calls with a cease and desist letter.

Strategies to Get Debt Free on Your Own

This free Debt Portal has been created to help you solve debt problems, from validation letters to credit repair forms. Bills.com’s "Debt Do It Yourself Center" will put you in the driver’s seat to solve your debt problems on your own for free.

Disputing a Debt with a Collector

Under Federal law, you have the right to request documentation proving that you actually owe the debt being claimed by a collector. If you have any doubts as to the validity of a debt being asked to pay, you can dispute the debt in writing (this process is also called "requesting validation"). Once you have notified the collection agency of your dispute, it is required to cease all collection activity until it has responded to your request by providing documentary evidence, such as a signed credit agreement, demonstrating that you are the person who is responsible for the debt. Below are three letters which you can use to help you in disputing your debt with a collection agency.

Debt Dispute Letter

If you receive a call or letter from a collection agency for a debt that you don’t think you owe, you can send the agency this letter to put it on notice that you dispute the validity of the debt and that you are demanding that the agency provide proof that you are responsible for paying it.

Notice of Insufficient Validation

Frequently, collectors will respond to a request for validation with nothing more than a computer printout of the balance owed. Generally speaking, this is not sufficient proof of the debt. If you receive a response to the first letter which you think is insufficient, you can use this letter to put the creditor on notice that it has not satisfied its obligations to provide proof of the debt.

Failure to Validate Debt

If you do not receive a response to your debt dispute letter within a reasonable time (usually 30-60 days), or if the creditor continues its collection efforts without validating the debt, you can use this letter to notify the collector that it is legally required to stop its collection activity against you. Having sent the debt dispute, and following up with this letter, may put you in a better position if the creditor refuses to stop its collection efforts and you are forced to file a complaint with the FTC, your state Attorney General's office, or even to file a lawsuit against the collector for violation of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA).

Cease and Desist (C&D) Letters

These are letters which you can use if you wish to stop a debt collector from calling you. The first thing to remember is that the federal law (FDCPA) which requires debt collectors to stop calling you if you make such a request in writing, only applies to third-party debt collectors. (Some states have their own version of the FDCPA, which could extend stronger protections than the federal version.) If you owe money to CitiBank, and CitiBank is calling you directly, this letter may not be able to stop those calls. However, some states have passed laws that extend these federal protections to creditors. Also, many creditors will abide by such requests, not because they are legally required to do so in all states, but because they do not want to violate the law in error and want to maintain a positive public image.

Cease Communication Notice

The Cease Communication Demand letter is a more general letter, designed to stop all collection calls.

Work Harassment Letter

This letter is specifically targeted to collectors who are calling you at work, which are a particular problem, as some collectors will make multiple calls to a consumer's workplace in an effort to shame or irritate the consumer into paying the debt. I recommend that you use these letters sparingly and only when needed; there is no need to send a cease communication demand to every collector who calls, but you should know that you have this option if a collector’s calls become harassing or abusive.

Pay for Delete Letter

A "pay for delete" letter is an agreement between you and the creditor or collection agency. You agree to pay a debt that is listed on your credit report in exchange for the creditor or collection agency promising to delete the entry from your credit reports.

Credit Repair - Dispute Listing

We strongly encourage consumers to pull a copy of their credit reports from all three major U.S. credit bureaus — Equifax, Experian, and TransUnion — at least once each year. It is important that you review your credit reports on a regular basis, as credit reports are notoriously inaccurate and often contain derogatory information about accounts that you never opened. This erroneous information can cost you thousands of dollars in the form of higher interest rates and reduced access to lower cost forms of credit. Reviewing your reports will also help you find out if you have been the victim of identity theft, as you will be able to see if any large credit transactions have taken place about which you were unaware. If you find any erroneous information on your credit reports, you have the right under federal law (the Fair Credit Reporting Act) to dispute the debt. This guide, published by the Federal Trade Commission, will help walk you through the process. It also includes a form you can use to order copies of your credit reports, free of charge, through Annual Credit Report

Comments (95)


Kelli A.
North Kansas City, MO  |  February 06, 2012
A collector called and asked for me by my maiden name and spoke to my husband not me. he asked if this i was the one that lived at an address we lived at 3 years ago. this debt was from at least 10 years ago.for an online school. no one has tried to contact me by phone or letter for the last 10years about this debt. he also told me i owe over 500 dollars but if i paid it now i could pay half price and be done with it...(huh?) if i owe why would they be asking me for half? my husband told the guy i would call him back but i wanted to find out what to say to him first. i dont recall oweing them i remember telling them i want to cancel and they told me how much i had to finish paying and i thought i did but it was sooo long ago i dont know and i no longer have the inital payment arrangement contract. would the collector have this information and the date the "debt" started so i can try the statute of limitations.
Bills.com
February 06, 2012
Trust your memory. Validate the debt. A debt that cannot be validated may not be reported to the credit reporting agencies, nor be collected.
Kiersten G.
Glendale, AZ  |  February 03, 2012
I received a collection notice on behalf of the County Clerk of Court for a debt that occured in 2003. It is apparently a court fee that was originally deferred. I sent the request for validation today, but I am wondering if a statute of limitation applies to this type of debt. I called the collection agency to dispute that it belongs to me and mentioned SOL. They said it does not pertain to court fees. I couldn't find anything that directly confirmed or disproved that statement. I appreciate any answer you can give.
Bills.com
February 03, 2012
Consult with a lawyer in your state who has civil litigation experience to learn how courts in your state have decided the issue of court fees and statutes of limitation.
Maury C.
Sacramento, CA  |  January 26, 2012
Hi there. I have been dealing with a collections agency since last March. Once I received the first collection letter, I asked for debt validation. However, I never received any type of debt validation and, instead, continued to receive typical collection statements. During this time, I never spoke to anyone on the phone (in fact my preference has been not to), only sent three subsequent letters. Throughout the year, phone calls ensued. Today, I received a message on my phone and, it was weird, the person left a message but it was as if he was speaking to someone at his office. And, done purposefully. The message was something long the lines of "the legal department looked at the account, and they want to sue this debtor." I do understand that under FTC, statements are prohibited involving law suites, etc. What should I do. I can send them another letter...Let me know your thoughts!
Bills.com
January 27, 2012
You should speak with an attorney who specializes in violations of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act. This type of attorney will not charge you a fee, but get his or her fee from the collection agency that is wronging you, if the attorney feels that your case is a winner.
Holly S.
Lumberton, NC  |  January 26, 2012
Bill, I received notice of a delinquent account which was sent to a collection agency on December 15, 2010. I requested debt validation within the 30 day period. They sent me some information (a breakdown of charges and the first page of a contract I signed with the original creditor) which I do not feel is sufficient validation. I did not discover your web site and helpful info until after I requested validation and subsequently paid a portion of the debt. I've since checked my credit report and have found the derogatory report of said account. I sent the CA a request for delete to which they responded saying "To maintain the integrity of those files (credit reports), we do not instruct those agencies to delete account information once an account is paid.". They wrote that they will notify the credit agencies when the account has been paid and then I could write a statement explaining why I paid my account late to be inserted into my credit file. What should my next action be? Should I request debt validation again? -Holly, North Carolina
Javier R.
Miami, FL  |  January 26, 2012
Hi Bill, After some re-search on your site I still have a small doubt I would like to ask.I have 3 collections that I currently have and my concern is that if I do Debt Validation, will it give the collection agency the right to start the debt over again since I am contacting them in writing or use it against me? thank you much for all your help and info you have provided to us consumers, greatly appreciate it.
Bills.com
January 27, 2012
Requesting debt validation in the proper manner does not restart the clock on your debt. You just need to make sure that the letter you send in no way acknowledges your responsibility for the debt.
Barry A.
Jacksonville, FL  |  January 24, 2012
Hello, I just got a call from a collector about a credit card which was closed in 1997. I live in Florida. Should I send a no contact letter.
Bills.com
January 24, 2012
Your first action should be to validate the debt.
Jarod C.
Stratham, NH  |  January 19, 2012
Bill, I have good credit with no collections or any derogatory information. I was contacted through mail from a collection agency stating that I have a past due bill for $200 from the state utility company from 2001. At first I thought it was a fraud attempt because this bill has never been on my credit report and I am very diligent about paying all bills. They then called me and verified a past address that I lived at during that time. I have sent them the above validation letter even though it is not within the 30 day timetable they requested. My understanding is that because this bill is beyond the state of NH SOL and well beyond the 7.5 years that they can report it to my credit report that there is no reason for me to actually pay this debt even if they verify it a valid debt. They are offering me a settlement for $100, based on all my research there is no downside to me sending them a cease and desist letter stating that there is no legal action they can take and reporting this the credit agency is a violation of the FCRA and could result in fines. Do you have any other advice for me on this matter? thank you in advance for any response.
Bills.com
January 20, 2012
Another bit of law may apply here, too — your state's public utilities regulations. You mentioned New Hampshire. Consult with the New Hampshire Public Utilities Commission to learn if there is a time limit on New Hampshire utilities discovering billing errors. My guess, note that word choice, is there is such a limit. I say that because other states have these limits.
Jason F.
January 17, 2012
I have had a debt with a creditor for a few years now. There was a serious problem with the transaction that could not be worked out by corporate. Now a CA is pursing this is a NJ Supreme Court. The original value is only about $1200.00. Probably not worth the problem now. I have some money to pay off the debt but would really loathe to pay the full value on principal. I offered the CA last year to pay half without accepting responsibility for the debt if they removed the credit listing. They did not get back to me with something signed on their letterhead but rather a faxed sheet stating the CA would remove their listing and not the original creditors charge back. The filing is dated 01-06-2012 and it states I can attempt to settle with the listed lawyer. Is there anything I should attempt before calling this lawyer to settle with him. Don't feel I have the time to submit all these anymore before the court date.
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