How Can I Stop Creditors From Calling If I Am in the Process of Filing Bankruptcy?

Once you file for bankruptcy, creditors are obligated under the law to cease their attempts to collect on your debts. Normally, creditors will stop their attempts to collect once this happens, because if they fail to do so, they violate the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which can result in the debts becoming invalid. However, you must inform your creditors of your bankruptcy filing promptly to enjoy the protections of the law.

Instructions

1

Make copies of all correspondence related to your bankruptcy filing. The actual document of the filing created by your bankruptcy lawyer may be important in proving to your creditors that they must stop their collection attempts.

2

Look through your records of communications to find the contact information for the relevant collection agencies and creditors. The original creditor or collection agency assigned to each account may not be the same agent that currently owns your debt. If you have trouble tracking down that information, order copies of your credit report from each of the three chief credit-reporting bureaus (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion) to find out current contact information for each debt.

3

Mail copies of your bankruptcy filing and associated information to each of your current creditors using return receipt mail so you know when they have received it. Once they receive it, they should send a confirmation notice. If your bankruptcy filing fails to go through, the creditors are authorized to resume their collection attempts.