Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Virginia

Re: Lost my rights to dispute a debt?

NO... This is one of the screwy areas of Federal law. Surprise, surprise, the U.S. Congress sometimes writes things that make no sense.

Under the rules governing debt collections, you have 30 days to demand verification of the debt and to dispute it. You must do this in writing.

However, what are the consequences of not disputing the debt in writing? Nothing. It is a non-event. The statute says that they can assume that the debt is valid. But this assumption has absolutely no legal significance outside of their own office. In order for them to actually collect the money, they must go to court and they must prove that you owe the money. They have the burden of proof.

So, for their own private purposes they can assume that you owe the money, but this has absolutely no significance outside their own office. Actually, I suppose there is one effect that it could have, and that is that they would not be responsible to give you verification of the debt on request. But they would still have to lay it all out in court to actually collect.

Furthermore, you raise the question of whether the 30 day time period is triggered by only a phone call rather than a written demand. Frankly, I don't remember off the top of my head and I don't have time at the moment to go research the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act which governs these questions.

However, I would guess that they never gave you an address where you COULD send the dispute in writing. I am quite certain that if they never told you WHERE you could write to them, then clearly the 30 day clock has NOT started running. Until you know an address where you can write to them, obviously you cannot write to them.

However, I am not sure if a phone call alone is enough to start the 30 day clock.

Also, you have a right under the FDCPA to demand that they stop calling you and communicate with you only in writing.

You should certainly send them a written dispute regardless of when it happens. If in fact you have already paid, and they know it, and file a lawsuit anyway, you can file for sanctions under 8.01-271.1, saying that they KNEW you don't owe the money (because you told them in writing and you kept a copy of the letter) but they filed suit knowing you don't owe the money. The court can order them to pay you some money. Usually not much, and not always, but it's a try.