The FDCPA/FCCPA generally prohibits the following debt collection behavior:

 

• Acting like a government official (such as the police) when they are not. 

 

• Threatening to lie to others about the status of a disputed debt.

 

• Talking to your employer or boss (with few exceptions).

 

• Telling most other third-parties any information affecting your reputation (with few exceptions).

 

• Discussing a debt known to be disputed without also disclosing the disputed nature of that debt.

 

• Abusing, harassing, or "spamming" you or your family.

 

• Using profanity, obscenity, vulgarity, or willfully abusive language in communicating with you or your family.

 

• Claiming, attempting to claim, or threatening to enforce a debt that they know does not exist against you or that they know can no longer be acted upon (time-barred/statute of limitations debt, for example).

 

• Acting like they are an attorney when they are not an attorney, or crafting communications attempting to give the appearance of official legal or court documents when they are not.

 

• Using any documentation or stationery that would indicate an attorney was involved in its preparation when no attorney was actually involved.

 

• Using oral communications that purport to be coming from an attorney when no attorney is actually involved.

 

• Advertising or threatening to advertise the sale of your debt (with few exceptions).

 

• Publishing, posting, threatening to publish, threatening to post, causing to publish, or causing to post, anyone's name in connection with a debtor list (also called a "deadbeat list"), usually to shame a debtor into paying.

 

• Refusing to identify themselves or their employer when such is requested.

 

• Sending mail with anything on the envelope that would indicate such communication is an attempt to collect a debt, including the use of postcards or addressing communications to, for example, "Deadbeat John Doe."

 

• Calls before 8 A.M. or after 9 P.M. in your time zone, unless you consent to such calls.

 

• Communicating with you if they know you are represented by an attorney (with very few exceptions).

 

• Calling you collect or sending telegrams or other forms of communication whereby you can be charged for their receipt.

 

• And most other threats. If they ever say "if you don't pay this debt, I will do ____" odds are it's not allowed.