// overview
Debt Collector Verification Letter
This verification letter demands detailed sworn answers from a debt collector: the contract, what was loaned, account ledgers, proof of authority, and verification that they are not purchasing evidence of debt. It sets a consulting fee of $10,000 per letter and per phone call for contact without validation.
What this letter demands
- A copy of the contract between you and the collector regarding this debt
- What was loaned — cash, credit, or a debt instrument
- Account and general ledger statements verified by the party who made entries
- Names and addresses of all parties with interest in the debt
- Verification that the collector has not purchased evidence of debt
- Proof from the original creditor that insurance did not reimburse the debt
- Verification that the collector understands adhesion contract limitations
- Verification from the original creditor authorizing the collector to act
- Affidavit validating all answers under penalty of perjury
Letter template
[YOUR DATE] [NAME OF DEBT COLLECTOR OR FIRM] [ADDRESS] [PHONE, FAX] Certified Mail No.: ______________ Re: Your letter dated ___________, your file #________________ Sir or Madam: This is a request for verification as this alleged debt is in dispute. I am not refusing to pay a debt which I lawfully owe, but I need verification of the debt before we can proceed. Please answer the following questions relating to the disputed account and return them to me within thirty (30) days, with your Affidavit which validates the answers. If you need more time, or if you need any question restated, please make your request to me in writing. This letter is your notice under the authority of The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act that contacting me again regarding the above referenced alleged debt, after the verifiable receipt of this notice without providing procedurally proper validation of the debt, establishes that you, [COLLECTOR NAME] have used interstate communications in a scheme of fraud by using threat, intimidation, deception, and enticement to coerce a person to commit some act creating a legal disability where none exists. However, I am willing to communicate with you as a consultant for a fee of $10,000 per letter, and $10,000 per phone call, so if you write or call again, absent the proof required below, it will comprise your contractual agreement to pay my consultation fees. Please state the name, occupation and mailing address of the person answering the following questions. 1. Please furnish a copy of the contract which your company has with me in regard to this alleged debt. 2. Please identify what you loaned to me. Did you loan me cash, credit, or a debt instrument? 3. Please produce the account and general ledger statement showing the full account of the alleged obligation that you are now attempting to collect, verified (sworn true, correct and complete) by the party who made the entries. 4. Please identify by name and address all persons, corporations, associations, or any other parties having an interest in legal proceedings regarding the alleged debt. 5. Please verify under penalty of perjury that as a debt collector, you have not purchased evidence of debt and are proceeding with collection activity in the name of the original creditor. 6. Please obtain verification from the original creditor, under penalty of perjury, that the creditor did not receive reimbursement from its insurance company in an amount exceeding the amount of the alleged debt, as is the customary policy of lenders; or in the case of an alleged criminal "judgment," verify via the court's fiscal office that the court was not reimbursed by an income stream resulting from the sale of bonds in the defendant's name, as is the standard practice of courts. 7. Please verify under penalty of perjury that you know and understand that certain clauses in a contract of adhesion, such as a so-called forum selection clause, are unenforceable unless the party to whom the contract is extended could have rejected the clause with impunity. 8. Please verify under penalty of perjury that you know and understand that credit card contracts are a series of continuing offers to contract and as such are non-transferable. 9. Please provide verification from the original creditor that you are authorized to act for them. 10. Please verify that you know and understand that contacting me again after receipt of this notice without providing procedurally proper validation of the debt constitutes the use of interstate communications in a scheme of fraud by advancing a writing which you know is false with the intention that others rely on the written communication to their detriment. 11. Please verify that you know and understand that contacting me again after receipt of this notice without providing procedurally proper validation of the debt constitutes acceptance of my contract terms to pay me consulting fees of $10,000 per letter and $10,000 per phone call. Disputing the "debt," By __________________________ Agent without recourse Note: A copy of the consumer credit contract is not sufficient to validate the debt. Validation requires presentment of the account and general ledger statement signed and dated by the party responsible for maintaining the account. Pacific Concrete F.C.U. v. Kauanoe, 62 Haw. 334, 614 P.2d 936 (1980); GE Capital Hawaii, Inc. v. Yonenaka, 25 P.3d 807, 96 Hawaii 32 (Hawaii App 2001); Fooks v. Norwich Housing Authority, 28 Conn. L. Rptr. 371 (Conn. Super. 2000); Town of Brookfield v. Candlewood Shores Estates, Inc., 513 A.2d 1218, 201 Conn. 1 (1986); Solon v. Godbole, 163 Ill. App. 3d 845, 114 Ill. Dec. 890, 516 N.E.2d 1045 (3 Dist. 1987). cc: Consumer Response Center Federal Trade Commission Washington, D.C. 20580
Checklist
- Fill in all bracketed fields
- Send via USPS Certified Mail with Return Receipt
- Keep the tracking number and green card
- Send a copy to the FTC Consumer Response Center
- Keep a signed copy for your records
- This is not legal advice — consult an attorney for your situation