Consumer Rights (FDCPA and Regulation F)

The FDCPA is the primary federal statute that governs third-party debt collectors like State Entity Recovery Group LLC. Regulation F is the CFPB rule that clarifies and modernizes the FDCPA, including communication frequency limits and required disclosures. Together they define what a collector must tell you, what a collector must not do, and what you can do if you disagree with what you are being told.

Some states provide additional rights that go further than the FDCPA. Where a state law provides greater protection, that law governs. See our State Licensing Disclosures for state-specific notices.

Within five days after our first communication with you about a debt, we are required to send you a written notice — the "validation notice" — that includes, at a minimum:

• The name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed.
• An itemization date and the amount of the debt as of that date.
• An itemization of interest, fees, payments, and credits that changed the balance since the itemization date.
• The current amount of the debt.
• Information about your right to dispute the debt.
• Instructions for how to respond, including tear-off dispute prompts and a mailing address.

You may request additional information about the account at any time by contacting us in writing. See "How to exercise each right" below.

The validation notice describes a 30-day period, beginning after you receive the notice, during which you have specific dispute rights. During this window:

• If you notify us in writing that you dispute the debt, or any portion of it, we must stop collection of the disputed portion until we have obtained verification and mailed it to you.
• If you request in writing the name and address of the original creditor (if different from the current creditor), we must stop collection until we mail that information to you.
• If you do not dispute the debt within 30 days, that alone does not mean the debt is valid — you retain other legal rights and defenses.

You may also dispute a debt after the 30-day period ends, but the automatic pause on collection activity is a specific protection that applies during the 30-day window.

Regulation F places specific limits on how a debt collector may contact you:

• Call frequency. A collector generally may not call you more than seven times within a seven-day period about a particular debt, or within seven days after a telephone conversation about that debt.
• Inconvenient time or place. Unless you agree otherwise, a collector generally may not contact you before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. in your time zone, or at any place they know is inconvenient.
• At work. If we know or should know that your employer prohibits such communications, we may not contact you at work.
• Third parties. Except in limited circumstances (such as reaching an attorney, or making a location call in accordance with the FDCPA), a collector may not tell third parties about the debt.
• Electronic communications. When we contact you by email or text message, we are required to include a reasonable and simple method for you to opt out of that channel.

You have the right to tell us in writing to stop contacting you about a debt. Once we receive your written notice, we may communicate with you only to:

• Confirm that no further communications will be sent.
• Notify you of a specific action that we or the creditor may take (such as terminating collection efforts or invoking a specific remedy).
• Notify you that we or the creditor intends to invoke a specific remedy that is ordinarily invoked.

A cease-communication instruction does not eliminate the underlying debt. It restricts our contact with you, but the account may still be pursued through other lawful means. You may also limit the channel or time of contact without ceasing all communication — for example, requesting no calls before or after a certain hour, or requesting mail only.

If you are represented by an attorney with respect to the debt, and we have the attorney's name and contact information (or can readily ascertain it), we are required to communicate with your attorney rather than with you, unless your attorney fails to respond within a reasonable period or consents to our direct contact with you.

The FDCPA prohibits a debt collector from, among other things:

• Using threats of violence or criminal prosecution.
• Using obscene, profane, or abusive language.
• Publishing lists of consumers who allegedly refuse to pay debts (other than reporting to a consumer reporting agency).
• Repeatedly or continuously placing calls with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass.
• Placing calls without meaningfully disclosing the caller's identity.
• Falsely representing the character, amount, or legal status of a debt.
• Falsely representing that a communication is from a government agency, attorney, court, or law enforcement.
• Threatening to take an action that cannot legally be taken or that is not intended to be taken.
• Communicating credit information that is known or should be known to be false, including failing to note a disputed status.
• Using unfair or unconscionable means to collect a debt, including collecting amounts not authorized by the agreement or by law.
• Depositing a post-dated check before its date, or soliciting a post-dated check for use to threaten criminal prosecution.

Our Company Disclosure describes what SERG is and is not authorized to do.

You can exercise the rights above by:

• Requesting validation or additional information. Submit our Dispute an Account form and select "Request validation or documentation," or write to the mailing address on your validation notice.
• Disputing all or part of a debt. Submit our Dispute an Account form and select "Dispute this debt," or write to the mailing address on your validation notice. During the 30-day window, a written dispute pauses collection on the disputed portion.
• Ceasing or limiting communication. Submit our Communication Preferences page or write to the mailing address on your validation notice. Keep a copy of your request.
• Reporting attorney representation. Provide your attorney's name, firm, and contact information through the dispute form or by writing to us.
• Reporting a prohibited practice. File a complaint through our Complaints and Feedback page.

Many states impose additional requirements on debt collectors, and some states require specific notices to be delivered to their residents. Please see our State Licensing Disclosures page for the notices applicable to your state.

You may also want to review the following independent resources:

• Consumer Financial Protection Bureau — consumerfinance.gov/consumer-tools/debt-collection
• Federal Trade Commission — consumer.ftc.gov/articles/debt-collection-faqs
• Your state attorney general's consumer protection office.