Credit Card Debt Laws
Monday, June 29th, 2009Credit card debt is a common problem these days. With the falling economy many people are having problems paying off their credit cards. These same people would like to be credit card debt free. This is not always possible and before you get into trouble with your credit cards, you may want to learn the most common credit card debt laws so that you know what your rights and responsibilities are. This will help you keep your credit rating while still paying off your debts.
If you do fall into trouble and you have started being contacted by debt collectors, you should become familiar with some of the Fair Debt Collection laws. Even if you owe a debt, you have rights. Debt collectors are held by certain laws. They have to follow these laws when they are attempting to collect a debt.
One of the most important credit card debt laws is that they must identify who they are and why they are calling. They should also give the mini Miranda when they call. The mini Miranda states that the phone calls are an attempt to collect a debt and that any information obtained will be used for this purpose. They will then state the debt and the amount that you owe. You can work payment arrangements in many instances.
Before they even call you on the phone, they must send you a letter that has the mini Miranda printed on it and an explanation of what you owe and why. You will be given thirty days to respond to this notice. You can either write back and dispute the debt or you can call the company and make arrangements to pay the debt off. You will only have thirty days to dispute the debt and this must be done in writing. The credit card debt laws state that if you do not respond in thirty days in writing that you do not dispute the debt and that you acknowledge that you owe the debt. If you ignore the letter, you can expect a good deal of phone calls from the collection agency.
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