Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), debt validation allows consumers 30 days to request verification of the debt after receiving the initial collection letter. Upon receipt of the verification request, the debt collector must cease collecting the debt until verification is provided to the consumer. However, the FDCPA does not set forth a time period during which the debt collector must provide verification. The debt collector can choose not to provide verification and is then prohibited from undertaking any further collection efforts.

Aside from continuing to wait for verification, you may have two options. If the debt is being reported to consumer reporting agencies (CRAs) and appears on your consumer report, the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) allows you to dispute the debt with the CRA and directly with the party reporting the debt. Upon receipt of your written dispute, the party reporting the dispute has 30 days to investigate the debt and respond.

The FCRA allows you to obtain a free copy of your credit report once each year. To obtain your free copy, please visit https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp. This is the Web site established by Experian, Equifax and TransUnion.

Secondly, if the debt collector is a member of ACA International, the Association of Credit and Collection Professionals, you can make a written request to the debt collector requesting a letter stating the debt collector will no longer collect on the debt and has returned the debt to the creditor. For information about this option, please visit www.acainternational.org/ethics.