What debt collectors can and can’t do in Colorado
Your rights under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and Colorado’s collection law: when collectors can contact you, what they can never do, how to stop them, and what a violation can be worth.
Owing money doesn’t give anyone the right to harass, threaten, or deceive you. Federal and Colorado law set clear rules for debt collectors, and collectors who break them can be held responsible for damages and your attorney fees.
Who the law covers
The federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) mainly covers third-party debt collectors: collection agencies, debt buyers, and law firms that regularly collect debts for others. It usually doesn’t cover the original lender collecting its own debt. Colorado has its own collection law, which also requires collection agencies and debt buyers to be licensed in Colorado.
What debt collectors can do
- Contact you by phone, mail, email, or text, within limits
- Call between 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. your local time
- Contact other people only to find out where you live or work, without saying you owe a debt
- Sue you on a valid debt within the time limit, and if they win, garnish wages or bank accounts as the law allows
- Report the debt to the credit bureaus, accurately
What debt collectors can’t do
Prohibited
- ✕Call repeatedly to harass you, such as more than seven times in seven days about one debt
- ✕Threaten arrest, jail, or violence, or use obscene language
- ✕Lie about the amount owed, add unauthorized fees, or pretend to be a lawyer or government agency
- ✕Threaten a lawsuit they don’t intend to file, or sue on a debt that’s too old
- ✕Tell your employer, family, or neighbors about your debt
- ✕Call you at work after you tell them your employer doesn’t allow it
- ✕Keep contacting you directly after they know you have an attorney
Your rights
- ✓Receive a validation notice explaining the debt and your rights
- ✓Dispute the debt in writing within the validation period
- ✓Tell the collector in writing to stop contacting you
- ✓Opt out of emails and texts
- ✓Sue for damages and attorney fees if the law is broken
Has a debt collector crossed the line?
Check anything that has happened to you. Nothing you check is saved or sent.
A general guide only. Whether conduct violates the law depends on the facts, who the collector is, and the evidence.
How to stop collection calls
- Ask for validation. If you don’t recognize the debt or the amount, dispute it in writing within the time stated in the collector’s validation notice. The collector must pause collection until it verifies the debt.
- Send a written stop letter. Tell the collector in writing to stop contacting you. After that, it can generally only contact you to confirm it’s stopping or to tell you about a specific action, like a lawsuit.
- Keep records. Save letters, voicemails, texts, and a log of calls with dates and times. Records are the key to any claim.
- Don’t ignore a lawsuit. Stopping calls doesn’t stop a lawsuit. If you’re served, respond by the deadline.
- Consider your bigger picture. If you have many debts, bankruptcy stops all collection at once.
Think a collector broke the law? These claims often cost you nothing out of pocket, because the law can make the collector pay your attorney fees.
If a debt collector breaks the law
- Federal law (FDCPA): your actual damages, additional statutory damages of up to $1,000, and your attorney fees and costs. Claims generally must be filed within one year of the violation.
- Colorado law: provides similar remedies against collection agencies and debt buyers.
- Robocalls and autodialed calls (TCPA): calls or texts to your cell phone without consent can carry $500 to $1,500 per call.
- Credit reporting errors (FCRA): inaccurate reporting that isn’t corrected after a dispute can support a separate claim.
Because deadlines are short, contact an attorney soon after the conduct happens. More about consumer protection claims.
Debt collectors and bankruptcy
Once you file bankruptcy, the automatic stay requires all creditors and collectors to stop collecting, including calls, letters, lawsuits, and garnishments. After your discharge, they can never try to collect a discharged debt from you.
Collectors who ignore the stay or the discharge can be held in contempt and ordered to pay damages and attorney fees. If that’s happening to you, save everything and call me. Stay and discharge violations.
Frequently asked questions
Can a debt collector have me arrested?
No. You can’t be arrested for owing a consumer debt. A collector that threatens arrest is breaking the law. (Ignoring a court order, such as a subpoena, is a different matter.)
Does the FDCPA apply to my credit card company?
Usually not, when the card company collects its own debt. It does apply to a collection agency or debt buyer collecting for or from the card company. Other laws may still apply to the card company.
Can a collector garnish my wages without suing me?
For most consumer debts, no. A creditor must first get a court judgment. Federal student loans and taxes are exceptions. Wage garnishment in Colorado.
Can a collector sue me for a very old debt?
Collectors aren’t allowed to sue or threaten to sue on debts past the statute of limitations. Time limits on old debts.
Will it cost me anything to bring a claim?
Often not, because these laws can make the collector pay your attorney fees if you win. I’ll explain the arrangement before you decide.
Know your rights, and use them
Whether you need collection to stop or a collector to pay for breaking the law, your first consultation is free.
