Sometimes we get billed for items we didn’t order, items we ordered but didn’t receive, or items we returned. These are bills we do not have to pay, and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) gives us rights as long as we follow certain steps.
Why would we get billed for items we didn’t order or receive? Did you really order $3,800 worth of Self-sealing Stem Bolts to be shipped to a vacant house in New Jersey? You may have been a victim of phishing, the fraudulent attempt to obtain data such as usernames, passwords, credit card numbers, or other protected, private information. You cooperated with an email or phone call from someone representing themselves as being from a government agency or a business you have used to order items. Or maybe some hacker got ahold of your credit card number from a business you have ordered from in the past.
You may not know you’ve “ordered” stem bolts until the charge is on your credit card, or until you’ve been contacted by a collection agency. Obviously you don’t plan to pay for them, so what do you do next? You dispute the debt!
If you have been contacted by a collection agency, send a written request to the debt collector and “dispute” the debt. The first step is to write a request for Notice of the Debt. Within five days the debt collector must send you a letter stating the name of the creditor and the amount of the debt, along with information about what you can do if you think there has been a mistake.
Within 30 days of receiving Notice of the Debt from the debt collector, you can send a letter to the debt collector disputing the debt and requesting the name and contact information of the original creditor. The debt collector must stop all debt collection activities until it can “verify” the debt. You MUST send a LETTER, and you MUST send it within 30 DAYS to protect your legal rights.
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) (consumerfinance.gov) has prepared sample letters you can use to respond to a debt collector who is trying to collect a debt. The letters also include tips on how to use them. The sample letters may help you to get information, set limits or stop any further communication, or protect some of your rights. Make sure your letter is dated. Always keep a copy of your letter for your records.
A debt collector verifies the debt by giving you enough information about the debt so that you can tell whether you actually owe it. In most cases, verification should include the amount of the debt, the date of the debt, and the name and contact information of the original creditor. If you contest the debt on grounds of identity theft or mistaken identity, verification should include a copy of the original signed contract or note.
To dispute a charge on your credit card bill, you should call the card company and let them know about the problem right away. Many cards let you highlight an entry when you access your account online and click on “Dispute this charge.”
In order to protect your rights you should also send a written billing error notice to the card company within 60 calendar days after the charge appeared on your statement. If you already paid the charge that you’re disputing, you can still dispute it. But you probably won’t get the money back until the credit card company has decided that you were right.
If the card company finds you are correct, the charge must be removed from your bill. If the card company says that you are incorrect and the bill is correct, the card company must tell you why in writing.
While the dispute is pending you don’t have to pay the disputed amount and you are not required to pay interest or other charges on the disputed amount. You are still required to repay the undisputed amount by its due date. As long as you pay the undisputed amount of your bill in full, you cannot lose any grace period when you make purchases.
If you dispute the debt, the debt collector cannot report it to a credit reporting agency unless and until it verifies the debt. If the debt collector has already reported the debt before it received your dispute letter, it must notify the credit reporting agencies that the debt is disputed, and your credit score cannot be affected until the dispute has been resolved.
There will be times when you will need to dispute a debt. Remember that you have rights, and that you can find assistance from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.