Consumer · Arkansas

Can I sue for a debt collector harassing me in Arkansas?

the short answer

A debt collector may not harass, oppress or abuse you to collect a debt — no threats, no obscenity, no publishing your name as someone who will not pay, and no repeated calls meant to annoy. It may not lie about the amount, about who it is, or about what will happen to you. It may not call before 8 in the morning or after 9 at night your time, or at work once you have said your employer forbids it, and once you tell it in writing to stop contacting you it must stop.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

everywhere in the u.s.

governing statute15 U.S.C. § 1692d source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

deadline5 dayssource ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

penaltyYour actual damages, plus additional damages the court may allow up to $1,000, plus the costs of the action and a reasonable attorney's fee (15 U.S.C. § 1692k(a)). The fee shifts on any successful action, which is what makes a small case worth a lawyer's time.source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

limit1 yearsource ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

free routeThe Consumer Financial Protection Bureau takes a complaint about a debt collector online, in any state, for nothing. It forwards the complaint to the company and expects a response, and it publishes the complaint and the response in a public database. That is a national route that runs alongside — not instead of — the state office named below.source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

alsoThe Act reaches debt collectors — third-party agencies, and buyers of debt that was already in default. A creditor collecting its own debt in its own name is usually outside it, and that is the gap the state law below is often there to close. Two more things worth knowing: within five days of first contacting you the collector must put the amount, the creditor's name and your right to dispute in writing, and if you dispute in writing within thirty days it must stop collecting until it sends you verification. Under Regulation F a collector is presumed to be harassing you if it calls more than seven times in seven days about the same debt, or at all within seven days of speaking to you (12 C.F.R. § 1006.14(b)(2)(i)).source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

in this state

Where do you report a debt collector in Arkansas?

free route

Arkansas is one of only two states with an office that does this and nothing else. The State Board of Collection Agencies, inside the Department of Labor and Licensing, says in its own words: if you feel that a collection agency has treated you unfairly or has violated the law, you may file a complaint, and it will review the complaint, contact the collection agency, and try to resolve your problem. It licenses the agencies it hears complaints about, which is the leverage an attorney general's office does not have.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

Which court hears a case like this in Arkansas?

which court

Small claims division of the district court

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

How much can you sue for in Arkansas small claims court?

small claims limit

$5,000

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

exceptions: It cannot be used to contest who owns or may possess real estate. Collection agencies and anyone in the business of lending at interest cannot file here at all.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

What else should you know in Arkansas?

also

The Attorney General's office keeps a separate consumer route for debt and finance complaints, so a collector that is not a licensed agency still has somewhere to go.

source ↗Not yet checked against the statute.

your situation

That is the rule. Whether it is your answer is a different question.

Everything above is the law as it reaches everyone in Arkansas. What it means for you turns on facts only you have. Tell us what happened and we'll ask the same questions a lawyer would — about 90 seconds, free, and anonymous.

This is legal information, not legal advice. Written by an AI model, which can be wrong. Not a lawyer, and not a prediction about your case. Terms · Privacy

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