Legal
What debt collectors may and may not do
Federal law sets limits on how a third-party collector behaves, and gives you a written-verification right most people never use.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act governs third-party collectors — agencies collecting for somebody else, and buyers of defaulted debt. It restricts when and where you may be contacted, prohibits harassment and misrepresentation, and limits discussing the debt with other people.
The most useful provision is verification. If you dispute a debt in writing within the window stated in the collector's first notice, collection must stop until the collector sends verification of the debt. Debt that has changed hands several times is not always verifiable, and this is where that shows.
You may also require in writing that a collector stop contacting you, after which it may only tell you what it intends to do next. That stops the contact without affecting whether the debt is owed, so it is a communication tool rather than a solution.
State law frequently adds further restrictions, and separate rules apply to a creditor collecting its own debt. Complaints go to the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, the Federal Trade Commission or a state attorney general.
What to do next. Send a written dispute inside the window on the collector's first notice, by a method that proves delivery.
studentaid.gov outranks this page. Rules, figures and dates change
between academic years. This is written to help you read the official sources, not to
stand in front of them. Start there.
Nothing here is a determination. We cannot tell you what you qualify
for, and no website can. The programme and the office that runs it decide that, after
you apply.
Still have a question?
Describe what you are trying to work out and a member of the team will answer, or direct you to the office that makes the decision.