§1692c Communication in connection with debt collection

Summary

Debt collectors must not contact a person about a debt unless that person gives permission directly to the collector or a court allows it. They cannot call at strange or inconvenient times or places. If they do not know otherwise, they should only call after 8:00 a.m. and before 9:00 p.m. local time. They must stop contacting the consumer if the collector knows the consumer has an attorney and the attorney’s name and address, unless the attorney does not reply in a reasonable time or agrees. Collectors must not call someone at work if the employer forbids it. Unless the law says otherwise or a court allows it, collectors may only talk about the debt with the consumer, the consumer’s lawyer, a consumer reporting agency when allowed by law, the creditor, the creditor’s lawyer, or the collector’s lawyer. If a consumer writes that they refuse to pay or want the collector to stop, the collector must stop contacting them about that debt, except to say they have stopped, to warn about usual remedies the creditor might use, or to say they plan to use a specific remedy. "Consumer" here also means the consumer’s spouse, parent (if the consumer is a minor), guardian, executor, or administrator.