Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
15 U.S.C. §§ 1692–1692pThe Fair Debt Collection Practices Act regulates the conduct of third-party debt collectors. It sets the rules for when and how they can call, what they must say, what they must never say, and how a consumer can force them to validate the debt or stop contacting them altogether.
What It Covers
The FDCPA applies to debt collectors, which generally means third parties collecting debts owed to someone else. Original creditors collecting their own debts are usually outside the statute, though they may still be covered by state analogs or federal banking regulations. The FDCPA's core purpose is to eliminate abusive, deceptive, and unfair collection practices and to set baseline rules that apply whether the debt is valid or not.
The statute regulates communications with the consumer directly, communications with third parties such as family members and employers, and the content of what the collector says at every stage. It prohibits harassment, abusive language, and repeated calls intended to annoy. It bars false representations about the debt, the collector, the legal consequences of nonpayment, and the collector's identity. It also prohibits unfair means of collection, including the collection of amounts not authorized by the agreement or permitted by law.
Consumers enforce the FDCPA through a private right of action. A single violation, even without actual damages, entitles the consumer to up to $1,000 in statutory damages, plus attorney's fees and costs. That fee-shifting design is what makes FDCPA enforcement practical for ordinary consumers.
Key Provisions
- § 1692c Rules on communications with consumers, including prohibited times and places and limits on contacting third parties.
- § 1692d Prohibition on harassment and abuse, including repeated calls intended to annoy or abuse.
- § 1692e Prohibition on false, deceptive, or misleading representations in connection with the collection of a debt.
- § 1692e(2)(A) Specifically bars false representation of the character, amount, or legal status of a debt.
- § 1692e(5) Specifically bars the threat to take any action that cannot legally be taken or that is not intended to be taken.
- § 1692f Prohibition on unfair or unconscionable means of collecting or attempting to collect a debt.
- § 1692g Validation of debts, including the initial written notice and the 30-day window during which a consumer can demand verification.
- § 1692k Civil liability: actual damages, up to $1,000 in statutory damages, attorney's fees, and a 1-year statute of limitations.
- 12 C.F.R. § 1006.26 Regulation F: bars suing or threatening to suit on a debt that the collector knows or should know is time-barred.