If we have contacted you

We will treat you fairly

Being contacted about a debt is stressful, and a lot of people expect the worst from a collection agency. That is not how this office operates. We will not threaten you, we will not lie to you about what we can do, and we will not contact you in ways the law does not permit.

If the balance is legitimate, we would much rather work out an arrangement you can actually keep than push you into one you cannot. If the balance is not legitimate, tell us and we will investigate it.

Your rights

You are protected by the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and, in California, by the Rosenthal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Among other things, those laws give you the following rights.

• The right to written validation. Within five days of our first contact, we must send you a written notice stating the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor, and your right to dispute it.
• The right to dispute the debt. If you notify us in writing within 30 days that you dispute all or part of the debt, we must stop collection until we obtain verification and mail it to you.
• The right to know the original creditor. Ask us in writing within that same 30 days and we will provide the name and address of the original creditor if it differs from the current one.
• The right to limit contact. We may not contact you at unusual times or places, and not before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. in your local time, unless you agree to it.
• The right to stop contact at your workplace. If you tell us your employer prohibits these calls, we must stop calling you there.
• The right to have us stop contacting you. Write to us and tell us to stop, and we will — except to confirm that we are stopping or to tell you of a specific action being taken.
• The right to be free from abuse. We may not harass you, use obscene language, threaten violence, publish your name as a debtor, or misrepresent the amount or legal status of the debt.
• The right to be free from false threats. We may not threaten any action that is not lawful or that we do not actually intend to take.
• The right to representation. If you are represented by an attorney regarding this debt, tell us and we will communicate with your attorney instead of with you.
• Protection on old debt. We may not sue you, or threaten to sue you, on a debt that is past the statute of limitations. In California that is generally four years on a written contract and two years on an oral one.

How to dispute a debt

Send your dispute in writing. Include your name, the reference number from your letter, and a short explanation of what you believe is wrong — the amount, the identity of the debtor, whether it was already paid, or whether you believe it is not yours at all. Attach anything that supports it.

Mail it to PO Box 211, Oceano, CA 93475 or email it to mcewencarson@gmail.com. We recommend sending mail in a way you can track. Once we receive a written dispute within the 30-day window, we stop collection activity until we have verified the debt and sent you that verification.

Identity theft

If this account is the result of identity theft, tell us immediately. File a report at IdentityTheft.gov and send us a copy along with your written statement. We will cease collection while the claim is investigated.

If you have a complaint about us

Tell us first — most problems are a misunderstanding we can fix in one call. If we do not resolve it to your satisfaction, you may file a complaint with either of the following regulators, and doing so will not affect how we handle your account.

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. consumerfinance.gov/complaint or (855) 411-2372.
• California Department of Financial Protection and Innovation. dfpi.ca.gov/file-a-complaint or (866) 275-2677.
• Federal Trade Commission. reportfraud.ftc.gov.
• California Attorney General. oag.ca.gov.

If you are deaf, hard of hearing, or have a speech disability, reach us through the California Relay Service by dialing 711.