Can a Debt Collector Contact You If You Have a Lawyer?

You hired a lawyer, or you told the debt collector you have one, and the calls and letters keep coming anyway. That is frustrating, and it may also be illegal. The short answer: once a debt collector knows a lawyer represents you on a debt, and knows or can easily find that lawyer's name and address, it generally has to deal with your lawyer and stop contacting you directly. Federal law and Florida law both say so, and a collector that ignores the rule can owe you damages and your attorney's fees.

This guide explains when the rule applies, the narrow exceptions, how to make sure the collector knows about your lawyer, and what to do if the contact does not stop.

What the law says

Two laws protect you here, and they overlap.

The federal rule: the FDCPA

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act says a debt collector may not communicate with you about a debt if it knows you are represented by an attorney with respect to that debt and knows, or can readily find out, the attorney's name and address (15 U.S.C. § 1692c(a)(2)). The statute names two exceptions tied to your lawyer:

• Your attorney fails to respond within a reasonable period of time to a communication from the collector.

• Your attorney consents to the collector contacting you directly.

Federal law also allows direct contact if you give your consent directly to the collector, or if a court gives permission. The FDCPA covers third-party debt collectors and collection agencies, including law firms that regularly collect debts. It generally does not cover the original creditor collecting its own debt.

The Florida rule: the FCCPA

Florida's Consumer Collection Practices Act has its own version of this protection, and it reaches further. Under Fla. Stat. § 559.72(18), no person collecting a consumer debt may communicate with you if it knows you are represented by an attorney on that debt and knows, or can readily find, the attorney's name and address. Florida spells out three exceptions: your attorney does not respond within 30 days to a communication from the collector, your attorney consents to direct contact, or you start the communication.

The key difference is who has to follow it. The FCCPA applies to "persons" collecting consumer debts, which includes original creditors such as a credit card company, a hospital or a landlord collecting their own debts, not only collection agencies. You can read more about the Florida statute in our guide to the FCCPA, Florida's debt collection law.

How to make sure the collector knows you have a lawyer

The rule turns on what the collector knows. A collector cannot be blamed for contacting you if it had no way of knowing a lawyer was involved, so make the notice clear and easy to prove.

1. Put it in writing. Send the collector a short letter or email saying you are represented by an attorney on this debt. Include the account or reference number the collector uses.

2. Give the lawyer's name and contact details. The rule applies when the collector knows or can readily find your lawyer's name and address, so give both, plus a phone number.

3. Keep proof that it arrived. Certified mail with a return receipt, or an email you keep a copy of, shows the date the collector was told.

4. Let your lawyer send a notice too. Most consumer lawyers send their own letter of representation to the collector, which removes any doubt.

Telling a collector on the phone that you have a lawyer can also count, but a written notice is far easier to prove later.

"I have a lawyer" is not the same as "stop contacting me"

These are two separate protections, and it helps to know which one you are using.

• You have a lawyer. The collector must go through your lawyer instead of you. It can still pursue the debt, just not by contacting you directly.

• You tell the collector to stop. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1692c(c), if you notify a collector in writing that you refuse to pay or want it to stop communicating with you, it must stop, with limited exceptions, such as telling you it is ending its efforts or that it may file a lawsuit. This federal rule binds third-party debt collectors, not an original creditor collecting its own debt.

You can use either one, or both. Our guide to writing a cease and desist letter to a debt collector covers the second in detail.

Neither one erases the debt. A collector can still sue you or report the debt where the law allows. What changes is how it may contact you.

What counts as contacting you

Once the collector knows about your lawyer, watch for any direct contact about the debt, including:

• Phone calls and voicemails to your cell, home or work phone.

• Text messages and emails.

• Collection letters mailed to you instead of your lawyer.

• Messages through social media.

Separate rules limit a collector from discussing your debt with your family, friends or employer. See can debt collectors call your family for those.

What to do if they keep contacting you

1. Do not argue or make promises. Tell the caller you have a lawyer, give the lawyer's name, and end the call.

2. Save everything. Keep every letter and envelope, screenshot texts and call logs so the dates and numbers show, and save voicemails. Our step-by-step guide shows how to save texts, voicemails and call logs as evidence.

3. Write down the details. For each contact, note the date, time, the company name and what was said.

4. Tell your lawyer. Your lawyer can contact the collector and decide whether the contact is a violation worth pursuing.

What you can recover

A collector that keeps contacting you after it knows you have a lawyer may be violating both laws. If it is:

• Under the FDCPA, you can recover your actual damages, additional statutory damages of up to $1,000 per lawsuit (not per violation), and your reasonable attorney's fees and court costs (15 U.S.C. § 1692k).

• Under the FCCPA, you can recover your actual damages, additional statutory damages of up to $1,000, and attorney's fees and costs, and the court may award punitive damages (Fla. Stat. § 559.77(2)).

Both laws let the court order the collector to pay your reasonable attorney's fees if you win. A lawyer will explain any fees and costs before you decide to go ahead. Time matters, though: an FDCPA claim generally has to be filed within one year of the violation, and an FCCPA claim within two years.

When to talk to a consumer lawyer

If a collector contacted you after you told it you have a lawyer, or keeps calling after you told it in writing to stop, it is worth a short conversation with a consumer protection attorney. Bring your notice letter, the proof it was delivered, and the record of every contact since. A lawyer can tell you whether the contact fits one of the exceptions or whether you have a claim. Learn more about how we handle debt collection cases in Florida.

Talk to Consumer Law Florida

If a debt collector is still contacting you after you hired a lawyer or told it to stop, you do not have to sort it out alone. Request a free case review and we will look at what happened and explain your options.