A few months ago I had to stop paying credit card bills due to running out of funds to pay them.
Many calls started coming in.
I only responded once each to 3 different creditors; however, it seems that by responding, it is those 3 that call the most now.
The other several cards collection calls are less frequent.
Since I cannot pay any of them, I saw no reason to have a discussion with the others. Whether I have a conversation with those who make collection calls or not, I simply can't pay.
Other than, over time, seeming to get fewer calls from not responding to telephone calls, are the consequences of having or not having conversations going to be any different in the long run?
respond to collection calls
Hi Dunned,
Not attending the calls from the creditors will not be able to solve your problem. If you don't attend the calls, your accounts may get charged off, and you may even get sued. All these will hurt your credit. The charge-offs and the judgments will get listed on your credit report. Later you will have to face great problems while taking a new card or loan.
First pull a copy of your credit report. Check whether or not your accounts has been charged off yet. If it has been, check which collection agency now holds your account. Rather than avoiding the calls, you can try to negotiate a settlement with the creditors and the collection agencies too.
However, as for the collection agencies, you can first send them certified validation letters. You will get a sample validation letter at http://www.creditmagic.org/repair/sampleletter-debtvalidation.html . After they validate your debts, you can try settling the outstanding debt amount. Settlement lowers the outstanding debt amount by 40-60%.
Thanks,
Aaron