Are Collection Agencies Harassing You? Get Help Today.

There are government restrictions on collections agencies. You have rights and need to know them.

Ontario regulations forbid collection agencies from doing the following:

• Trying to collect a debt without first notifying the debtor in writing, at the debtor’s last known address, that they have been assigned to the account.
• Recommending or initiating legal or court action on the collection of a debt without first notifying the debtor and obtaining the creditor’s written permission.
• Making telephone or personal calls of such a nature or frequency to constitute harassment of the debtor or the debtor’s family.
• Calling to collect a debt on a Sunday, statutory holiday or before 7 a.m. and after 9 p.m.
• Implying or giving false or misleading information to any person that could damage the debtor or debtor’s family.
• Demanding payment of a debt without giving the name and authority of the creditor, the collector and the balance of the money owed.
• Continuing to demand payment from a person who claims not to owe the money, unless the collector has tried every way to ensure the person actually is the debtor.
• Taking over a debt from a creditor without first advising the debtor.

Collectors are not, generally, allowed to contact a debtor’s friends, employer, relatives or neighbours for information other than the debtor’s telephone number or address. The only exceptions are contacting a person about a debt they’ve guaranteed to pay for the debtor or contacting an employer about payment connected with a wage assignment or a court order, or to confirm employment.