What Can the Collection Agency Do to Try to Get the Money From You?

Telephone Calls

No matter how distressing or embarrassing collection calls are, the collection agency has the right to contact you by telephone unless you previously notified the company in writing that such contact was inconvenient. Debt collectors can call you at home, at work and on your cell phone demanding payment.

While collectors have the right to call you in order to discuss your financial obligations, they do not have the right to call you at odd hours. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) defines odd hours as before 8 a.m. and after 9 p.m. No law requires debt collectors to be pleasant and businesslike when they call, but they cannot threaten you with violence or use obscene language.

While the FDCPA prohibits certain types of threats, others are perfectly legal, and collection agencies use these threats to their advantage. Collection agents often threaten to send nonproductive accounts to an attorney or report the debt to the credit bureaus -- damaging your credit. Provided the company possesses the legal right to do so in your state, debt collectors can even threaten to seize your assets.

If you are employed, a collection agency can intercept a portion of your wages before you receive them through wage garnishment. The company then applies the seized amount to your total debt obligation. The collection agency must have previously sued you in court and obtained a judgment before garnishing your wages. The garnishment continues until you pay off the delinquent debt. A collection agency can file a new garnishment claim against you should you switch employers before paying off the debt.

In certain situations, a collection agency can seize your assets. Like garnishment, asset seizure requires the company to win a court judgment against you. Collection agencies seize assets by placing a lien against property you own and using the lien to seize the property if the debt goes unpaid. The company then sells the property and applies the proceeds from the sale to your debt load. This process most often occurs with vehicles, but collection agencies also occasionally seize real estate. Each state maintains differing laws governing the asset seizure process for creditors.