Know the rules. Protect everyone.
When people understand the rules that govern debt collection, everyone's better off — agencies stay compliant, and consumers know their rights. Here's a plain-language map of the federal, state, and local landscape.
This is general information, not legal advice. Debt-collection rules change often and depend on the type of debt and activity. Always confirm current requirements with the appropriate regulator or qualified counsel before acting.
The rules that apply everywhere.
The federal framework sets the floor. Plain-language summaries of the laws that shape every collection operation in the country.
Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
The foundational federal rulebook for how third-party debt collectors may communicate with consumers — and what's off-limits.
- No harassment, no abuse, no misleading statements.
- Consumers can dispute a debt and request validation in writing.
- Contact must stop on a written cease request (with narrow exceptions).
- If a consumer is represented by an attorney, you go through counsel.
Regulation F (CFPB rule under the FDCPA)
The CFPB's modern implementation of the FDCPA — it puts concrete numbers and rules around calls, texts, emails, and required notices.
- Call-frequency limits (commonly summarized as the '7-in-7' rule).
- A model validation notice with a clear itemization of the debt.
- Rules for email and text, including a reasonable way to opt out.
- Limited-content voicemails that aren't treated as a 'communication.'
Telephone Consumer Protection Act
Governs autodialed calls and texts and prerecorded messages — consent, timing, and do-not-call obligations.
- Prior consent rules for certain automated calls and texts.
- Honor do-not-call requests and maintain the records to prove it.
- Time-of-day limits on outreach to consumers.
- Statutory damages per violation make mistakes expensive.
Fair Credit Reporting Act
Sets accuracy and dispute-handling obligations for information reported to the credit bureaus.
- Report accurate, complete information — and fix it when it's wrong.
- Investigate consumer disputes within required timeframes.
- Special, evolving rules apply to medical-debt reporting.
Health Insurance Portability & Accountability Act
Protects patients' health information — which shapes how medical balances can be handled and shared.
- Protected health information must be safeguarded end to end.
- Business-associate obligations extend to billing and collection partners.
- A billing conversation must never become a privacy breach.
No Surprises Act
Protects patients from many surprise out-of-network and emergency bills, and supports good-faith cost estimates.
- Limits balance billing in surprise and emergency situations.
- Supports good-faith estimates for uninsured/self-pay patients.
- Affects what is — and isn't — collectible in the first place.
IRS 501(r) (nonprofit hospitals)
Requires financial-assistance policies and 'reasonable efforts' before extraordinary collection actions.
- Maintain and publicize a financial assistance policy (FAP).
- Observe a notification period before extraordinary collection actions.
- Screen for assistance eligibility before escalating.
Servicemembers Civil Relief Act
Provides protections — including interest-rate caps and court-process safeguards — for active-duty servicemembers.
- Interest-rate caps on certain pre-service obligations.
- Protections around default judgments and legal process.
- Identify and flag servicemember accounts before acting.
Where you work changes what you can do.
Pick a state for commonly-cited statutes of limitation, licensing posture, and contact-hour basics — then verify the current details before you act.
California
General orientation only — not legal advice. Rules change and depend on debt type and activity. Always confirm with the state regulator or counsel.
Don't forget local rules.
Cities and counties can add their own licensing, registration, and contact restrictions on top of state and federal law — and they're easy to miss. Resolvah helps you stay aligned with the rules that apply where each consumer actually lives.
Knowing the rules is half the battle.
Resolvah handles the other half — checking every outbound contact against these rules before it goes out, and keeping the receipts to prove it.
Stay compliant without slowing down.
Let us show you how Resolvah turns this whole rulebook into something your team barely has to think about.