A Debt Collector attempts to convert your erstwhile debt that had long been dead, into the one that he is conceiving to give birth to. He is apparently counting on the fact that you are ignorant of your collection rights and he is zeroing in on you to take you to a very long ride.

When Creditors/lending institution decide to write-off an account, they take a tax credit, based not only on the alleged transfers for the goods/services, but also on the interest and fees accrued. They, then sell the Rights of Collection to a third-party debt collector for a fraction of the actual value of the debt. The real price be would be around 10-20 cents per dollar. The third party debt collector now employs many strategies that have been perfected to an art form to extract money from the alleged debtor. Their initial contact is by telephone. When a telephone is answered it is deemed an invitation for the other party to speak. If it is a debt collector calling, speaking to him would deem it consent to getting into business with him. In fact there is no law, code, or statute that can make you enter into any conversation/agreement that you do not consent to.

JUST HANG-UP, if you decide against getting into a conversation with the caller.

Now that the debt caller had failed to make contact with you at home he will try to call you at your place of work.

This way he intends to condition you to enter this supposedly new scheme by embarrassing and intimidating you at which point most people break and contact the Debt collector.

Once this contact is made or an offer is accepted for a so called reduced balance or rate of interest, the birth of a new debt is complete.

This is all because you were not aware of your collection rights.

Should the debt collector fail to make contact by telephone within a week or two he would send “The Letter”.

This is an attempt to show that the law/system is on his side so that he can convert a debt that no longer does exist, into a fresh one.

In his letter he would say that:
• This is an attempt to collect a debt, and any information will be used for that purpose.
• The letter is from a debt collector.
• You have 30 days to dispute the validity of the debt, or any part of it.
• If such dispute, demand for validation, or request for information on the original creditor is not made the debt will be considered valid.
• When a demand/request in writing is made within 30 days, for verification, or a copy of a judgment it will be provided.
  The next/sixth warning is usually found at the bottom or on the back of the letter.
  It is sometimes in microscopic print or in a light unreadable shade of gray that discourages you from reading it.
• The name and address of the original creditor will be given, if the name is different from the current creditor.

The debt collector is silently praying that you would never get to know the relevance or the true meaning of what he wrote.

• "That this is an attempt to collect a debt”, in fact means despite the fact that you and he are total strangers and you owe him nothing, he intends to extract money from you. He also means that you should take it as an advance warning and he would leave nothing to chance in squeezing money out of you and make your life miserable.
• Actually you must be able to recognize that:
  • The sender of the letter does not have a valid claim
  • It is an indirect admission that there is no bona fide evidence
  • The original debt was written off/charged-off
  • These collectors want to bring this non existent debt back to life so they can make an exaggerated return on their money
  • If they have the right to try you too you have the right to say no
  By "Any information will be used for that purpose", he means that
  • Any communication will be recorded or transcribed to be used against you
  • This is the only way the debt collector could build a case against you should you contest his claims
  • You can never say no to him
  • Without your compliance/consent he could do nothing against you
• "This communication is from a debt collector."
  • He is desperately willing you to believe you owed him the debt
  • Since he is notorious for ruthlessness, fraud, deceit, intimidation, stalking, and harassment, laws were passed to protect you from his beguiling practices through the "fair debt collection practices act" i.e., FDCPA
  • FDCPA shields you from anything that he would attempt to do to harass you
  • The original alleged creditor is nowhere in the scene
  • The debt has been written-off by the original alleged creditor and it no longer exists
  • "That you have 30 days to notify his office that you dispute the validity of the debt, or any part/portion of it." actually means that:
  • If he had sent you a letter accusing you of owing a debt, you have 30 days to dispute its validity
  • This is an effort to appear that he is conducting himself decently and giving you a chance
  • If he had his way he would be allow no time for you
  • If he did he was afraid that you would use it to exert your rights
  • You will be polite and generally non-combative if they allow you less time for rational thinking
  • This ploy can be foiled if you read between the lines.
He does not want you to understand that Should the debt collector succeed in collecting, it would be deemed collected twice because it had already been claimed by the original alleged creditor for tax and other reliefs.
• "That if such dispute, demands for validation, or request for information on the original creditor is not made the debt will be considered valid."
  • The only reason you are being told this is because he had to tell you
  • You have no agreement/contract with him in any way
  • In case of a demand for a verification, he must stop all collection attempts until it is provided
  • It is impossible for him to verify any of his alleged claims
  • He is sure that you do not know how to use your rights against him
You must understand this as: If you do not deny the allegation/charge within 30 days, you are in fact allowing it to stand uncontested, adding to its validity in the eyes of the court.

If you question him about this alleged creditor, and the relevance of the information these debt collector would disappear into the thin air.

• By the time it arrives at your house he would be praying that you would not:
  • Call his bluff
  • Pay attention to his guile
  • Reject him as legitimate debt collector
  • Fail to recognize him to be willing to defend his claim
  • Ask him in writing of any proof of the claim
If you really ask for proof or facts, he must provide it or else the claim against you would be void.
• "That the name and address of the original creditor will be given, if the name is different from the current creditor."
  • If you do not follow his diktats or should you claim validation or a pay-off balance from the wrong party he would stop at nothing to trouble you
  • Should you be willing to do the payment in full, the alleged creditor must provide full disclosure of facts in writing
  • If the alleged creditor had added fees and interest to the balance in question, delays would cost the alleged debtor
  • It is amazing that these six simple items imply so much meaning and implications could be uncovered. An entire array of alternatives can be perceived for umpteen options.
  • Ignore the letter
  • Pay the debt
  • Fight/dispute the validity of the alleged debt
Understand it as: You have three basic options to choose from: A debt collector hugely relies on the ignorance of your collection rights, and is confident that the intimidation and harassment would be enough to make you scurry to your friends/family to raise money to pay the alleged debt.