A debt collector: • cannot call you at inconvenient times, such as before 8 AM or after 9 PM, or call repeatedly to harass you
• cannot use or threaten to use violence or other criminal means • cannot tell anyone other than your spouse about the debt • cannot call you at work, if you tell him not to do so.
Credit Cards
If you don’t have credit cards now, you probably will soon. There are a few things you should know about their use.
If you lose ’em. If you lose your credit card, the law limits the maximum amount you may have to pay for any unauthorized uses of your card to $50. For example, if someone finds your lost card and runs up $300 worth of charges, you are only responsible for $50. If you immediately notify the bank or company issuing the card that it was lost, you will not be responsible for any charges that are made with your card after that point. It’s always a good idea, therefore, to keep handy your card numbers and the phone numbers of the issuers, so you can immediately notify them if your cards are lost or stolen. One way to do this is to make a photocopy of your credit cards and keep it in a safe place besides your wallet.
Billing errors with credit cards. Under the federal Fair Credit Billing Act you have the right to prompt correction or explanation of apparent billing errors. The law applies to open-end credit accounts like credit cards, revolving charge accounts at stores and credit-line checking accounts at banks. The law does not apply to a loan or a credit sale where you have a fixed payment schedule until the entire amount is paid back (like a car loan). While you may be able to quickly resolve your problem by calling the company or bank directly, to use your rights under this law you must notify the creditor in writing of the billing error. Your letter must reach the creditor within 60 days of the date the first bill containing the error was mailed to you. Your letter should include your name, address and account number and why you think there’s an error. Your letter must be acknowledged by the creditor in writing within 30 days of receipt unless the problem is cleared up before that. The creditor then has two billing cycles, but no more than 90 days total, to correct the problem or explain why the bill is correct. You may refuse to pay the amount in dispute, including any finance charges, until the problem is resolved. Until it is resolved, the creditor may not threaten to damage your credit rating, report you as delinquent to anyone, restrict your credit card account, or charge you interest on the amount in dispute.
On Your Own, 2008 Edition 49
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