When a collector ignores your request to stop
If you tell a debt collector in writing that you want it to stop contacting you, or that you refuse to pay, it must stop communicating with you about that debt. It may contact you only to say it is ending its efforts, or to tell you about a specific remedy such as a lawsuit. Calls, letters, texts or emails after that point can violate the FDCPA.
You can make it stop. The FDCPA gives every consumer the right to end a debt collector's communications with a letter. Once the collector receives a written notice that you want it to stop contacting you, or that you refuse to pay, it must stop communicating with you about that debt, apart from three narrow kinds of notices.
Most collectors honor these letters. When one does not, each call, letter, text or email after the request can be a separate violation.
What it looks like
- The calls keep coming. You mailed a stop letter, it was delivered, and the phone still rings.
- New demand letters. Payment demands or "settlement offers" arrive after the collector received your request.
- A channel switch. You asked them to stop calling, and they started texting or emailing instead, or the reverse.
- A new collector, same debt. The account moves to another collector who starts over. The new collector may not know of your letter, so send it again.
- Ignoring the opt-out. You replied STOP to a text or clicked the opt-out in an email, and messages continue to that number or address.
The law
Under 15 U.S.C. § 1692c(c), if you notify a debt collector in writing that you refuse to pay a debt or that you wish it to cease further communication with you, the collector "shall not communicate further with the consumer with respect to such debt," except to:
- advise you that its further efforts are being terminated;
- notify you that the collector or creditor may invoke specified remedies it ordinarily invokes; or
- where applicable, notify you that the collector or creditor intends to invoke a specified remedy.
Regulation F restates the rule and its exceptions (12 C.F.R. § 1006.6(c)). It adds two tools that work without a full stop. First, a collector "must not communicate or attempt to communicate with a person through a medium of communication if the person has requested that the debt collector not use that medium" (§ 1006.14(h)(1)). You can shut off calls and keep mail. Second, every email or text from a collector must include a clear, simple way to opt out of further electronic messages to that address or number (§ 1006.6(e)).
Contact that continues after a stop request can also be harassment, especially where the calls are frequent (15 U.S.C. § 1692d(5)).
What you have to show
That you sent a debt collector a written request to stop, or a written refusal to pay, that it received it, and that it communicated with you afterward about the debt in a way that does not fit the three exceptions. Proof of delivery and the later contacts make the case.
What you can recover
Under 15 U.S.C. § 1692k(a), a collector that violates the FDCPA is liable for your actual damages plus additional statutory damages of up to $1,000 per lawsuit. The FDCPA requires a company found liable to pay the consumer's reasonable attorney's fees and costs.
In Florida the FCCPA provides statutory damages up to $1,000, actual damages and possible punitive damages (Fla. Stat. § 559.77(2)). In New York, GBL 349 provides actual damages or $50, whichever is greater, increased up to three times actual damages capped at $1,000 for a willful or knowing violation. This site does not estimate what a case is worth.
What to do now
- Send the letter in a way you can prove. Certified mail with return receipt, or the collector's written dispute address or portal if it gives you a confirmation. Keep a copy.
- Keep it short. Your name, the account or reference number, and one sentence: "Stop all communication with me about this debt." You do not have to give a reason.
- Log what comes after. Every call, letter, text and email after the delivery date. The call log helps.
- Save texts and emails, including the opt-out. Screenshot your STOP reply and anything that arrived after it.
- Resend to any new collector. A new collector on the same debt may not have your letter.
A stop letter does not stop a lawsuit
The collector may still sue. If you have been sued, do not ignore the papers. The answer deadline is short. See sued by a debt collector.
The clock
| Claim | Time to sue | Authority |
|---|---|---|
| FDCPA | 1 year from each contact | 15 U.S.C. § 1692k(d) |
| Florida FCCPA | 2 years from the violation | Fla. Stat. § 559.77(4) |
| New York GBL 349 | 3 years | N.Y. CPLR 214(2) |
In New York, New Jersey and Florida
New York. GBL 601(6) bars communication with such frequency, or in such a manner, as can reasonably be expected to abuse or harass, which continued contact after a stop request can show. New York City's DCWP rules at 6 RCNY 5-77 add further limits for collectors working in the City. Consumers usually sue through GBL 349, which lets the court award a prevailing consumer reasonable attorney's fees. See the New York page.
New Jersey. The FDCPA and Regulation F apply in full. See the New Jersey page.
Florida. The FCCPA bars willfully communicating with a debtor with such frequency as can reasonably be expected to harass (Fla. Stat. § 559.72(7)). Continued calls after you asked them to stop can help show that. The FCCPA reaches original creditors as well as collectors, and it requires a company found liable to pay the consumer's reasonable attorney's fees and costs. See the Florida page.
You have a lawyer
Once they know, they must deal with your lawyer, not you.
Contact after a lawyer →Texts and emails
Opt-outs, medium requests, and social media limits.
Texts, emails, social media →Too many calls
More than 7 telephone calls in 7 days about one debt is presumed harassment.
Too many calls →Common questions
Does a stop request make the debt go away?
No. It stops communication, not the debt. The collector or creditor may still sue, and the rule allows the collector to tell you it intends to invoke a specific remedy. Some people prefer to keep a written channel open for that reason. If you are sued, do not ignore the papers.
Can I just tell them on the phone to stop calling?
Saying it on the phone is worth doing, and Regulation F lets you tell a collector not to use a particular medium, such as phone calls, which it must honor. The full cease-communication rule under 15 U.S.C. 1692c(c) requires written notice. Send the letter.
Can I stop only calls and keep getting letters?
Yes. Under 12 C.F.R. 1006.14(h), a collector must not communicate through a medium you have asked it not to use. You can ask it to stop calling, or stop texting, and still receive mail.
They sent one more letter after my request. Is that a violation?
It depends on what the letter says. A letter saying the collector is ending its efforts, or that it or the creditor may invoke specified remedies it ordinarily uses, or intends to invoke a specific remedy, is allowed. A new payment demand is not.
Tell us what they did.
One conversation with an attorney, in your language. We tell you which laws the collector or the credit bureau broke, which deadline runs first, and what to save this week. If it is not a case we can take, we say so and tell you where to go.
(718) 484-7510The FDCPA and the FCRA require a company found liable to pay the consumer’s reasonable attorney’s fees and costs. Our fee arrangement is confirmed in a written retainer before we begin. English, Russian and Spanish in-house; an interpreter for any other language.