Telephone calls have no legal weight since there is no record of what was said on a call. Knowing this, credit card debt collectors will say threatening things on the phone and get away with telling their lies. That is why consumer debt collectors choose to use the phone over mail. Debt collectors lose their power when communications are reduced to writing.

Written communications from and to a credit card debt collector are what matter in court. If a consumer is writing to a debt collector it should always be certified return receipt requested.

It is commonly accepted that all credit card debt collectors lie on the telephone. Here are some of the lies they tell over the telephone:

1. They claim you are the target of a lawsuit in your local court and that you’ll get your summons any day.

2. They advise you to make an affordable token payment because they know that if you do this then you are documenting admission to the debt.

3. Debt collectors will threaten to have you arrested. No one can be arrested for a civil matter.

4. They threaten to have your wages garnished.

5. They threaten to have your bank account seized.

Each of these lies is punishable with a $1000 fine with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

On the phone, credit card debt collectors attempt to get you to admit to the debt, confirm the debt’s credit card number and share personal information like your Social Security number, your work place phone number, and your bank account information. According to the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide, at this point you should deny and dispute the debt (whether or not it is yours), tell them they are just a voice on the other end of the line. They could be anyone, and you do not share your personal financial information with strangers. Then hang up.

If you get stuck on the telephone with a debt collector, get them to tell you which debt they are calling about, tell them that you need written notice of it from them, and hang up.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act allows the consumer to instruct the debt collector in writing to stop all collection calls. After that each call is a violation of the law, and subject to a $1000 penalty. Consumers should keep logs of the phone calls and contact a consumer rights attorney, who may agree to sue the credit card debt collector over these violations on a contingency fee basis.