Know before you go
- Collectors generally may not call before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m. your local time.
- A written dispute within the validation period makes the collector stop until it verifies the debt.
- A written request to stop contact ends most further communication about that debt.
Collection calls are stressful by design, and many people respond the wrong way: they pay something just to make the calls stop, or they ignore everything until a court notice arrives. Federal law, through the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s Regulation F, gives New Jersey residents a set of tools that work much better. Most of them depend on acting in writing and on time.
Who these rules cover
The rules apply to debt collectors: businesses whose main purpose is collecting debts, and anyone who regularly collects debts owed to someone else. A creditor collecting its own debt under its own name is generally not covered, though a creditor that uses a different name to suggest a third party is collecting is treated as a debt collector. Employees of the original lender, government officials acting in their official duties and nonprofit credit counselors are among those excluded.
When and how they can contact you
- Not at unusual or inconvenient times. Unless the collector knows otherwise, before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m. at your location is considered inconvenient.
- Not at a time or place you have told them is inconvenient. Saying a time is inconvenient is enough.
- Not at work if the collector knows or has reason to know your employer prohibits it.
- Not directly if you have a lawyer for the debt and the collector knows the lawyer’s name and address.
- Not by postcard, and not with collection wording on the envelope.
- Every email or text must offer a simple way to opt out of electronic contact at that address or number.
How many calls is too many
Regulation F sets a presumption. A collector is presumed to be harassing if it calls a person about a particular debt more than seven times within seven consecutive days, or calls again within seven days after having a phone conversation with that person about the debt. Calls below those numbers can still be unlawful if the intent is to annoy, abuse or harass.
The validation notice
Within five days of first contacting you, if not in the first communication itself, a collector must give you validation information. It includes the collector’s name and the address where it accepts disputes, the name of the creditor currently owed, an itemization showing interest, fees, payments and credits since a stated itemization date, the current amount, and the date the validation period ends.
The validation period runs until 30 days after you receive the information. The collector may assume you received it five business days after it was sent.
How to dispute a debt
If you dispute the debt, or any part of it, in writing before the validation period ends, the collector must stop collecting the disputed amount until it sends you verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment. You can also ask in writing for the name and address of the original creditor; collection stops until that is provided. During the validation period, the collector may not use tactics that overshadow or contradict your right to dispute.
Tip: Send disputes by a method that gives you proof of delivery, keep a copy, and write down the date you received the validation notice. Missing the window does not erase your rights, but disputing inside it triggers the automatic pause.
How to stop the contact
If you tell a debt collector in writing that you refuse to pay the debt or want it to stop communicating with you, it must stop communicating about that debt. It may still contact you to say it is ending its efforts or to notify you of a specific action it may take, such as a lawsuit. Stopping the calls does not erase the debt, and the creditor may still pursue it through the courts.
What collectors cannot say or do
Among the tactics the rules prohibit:
- Falsely claiming to be a lawyer, a government agency or a credit bureau, or sending papers that look like court documents.
- Misstating the amount or legal status of the debt.
- Threatening arrest or imprisonment, or threatening to seize property or garnish wages when that action is not lawful or not intended.
- Collecting any amount, including fees and interest, not authorized by the agreement or by law.
- Suing or threatening to sue on a debt after the statute of limitations has run out.
- Reporting credit information they know is false, including failing to mark a disputed debt as disputed.
Every communication after the first must also say it comes from a debt collector.
If you are sued
A court summons is different from a letter. Respond to it by the deadline it gives. Many consumer debt cases are heard in the Special Civil Part, and failing to answer can lead to a default judgment. The structure of that court is described in Small Claims Court in New Jersey: Limits, Filing Fees, Where to File and How to Prepare, and free legal aid may be available; see Free Legal Help in New Jersey: Legal Aid, State Agencies and Free Dispute Programs.
Where to complain
The New Jersey Division of Consumer Affairs reports that credit and debt collection problems are among the most common complaints it receives, and it accepts complaints online or at 1-800-242-5846. Federal complaints can go to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau or the Federal Trade Commission. The state’s broader consumer protection law is explained in The New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act in Plain Language: What It Covers and How to Use It.