Collection agency called asking to speak to mom, mom passed away in March.

Yes, you do, but you can demand it with more force if you let them get to the point of sending a written letter. Then it would governed under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which requires a 30 day response from the alleged debtor. How you address it is to respond in writing within the 30 days, stating that it is not your debt, and challenge the validity of the debt.

You're very responsible in attempting to address the debt through a phone call, but these people are often aggressive, and their actions border on being illegal because they don't comply with the Fair Debt Collection Practices act.

I've found that they distort conversations, and that saying anything to them just gives them a reason to think that harassing someone will produce results.

So don't talk to them on the phone again. Let them send a letter to your mother. I'm assuming you've had her mail forwarded to you, so you'll get any debt collection letter they send.

You can also demand a copy of a judgment if any was entered when you respond to the 30 day letter, which also would include an assertion on their part that the debt will be assumed to be valid if not challenged in writing w/I 30 days. (Send your response by certified mail so you have a receipt.)

What I would do also is to state the validity of the debt hasn't been established, that no documentation has been provided by the collection agency, and unless/until it does, it will be considered an invalid debt.

I'd have to check the statute again to be sure, but it's my recollection that once you challenge the debt, the agency can't harass you. Not all agencies comply with that provision though.

I wouldn't send them ANY paperwork or documentation on your status until they send you a copy of the alleged invoice/statement, etc.

Stop talking to the collection agency at all.
Never confirm the debt!
After all your hard work, the collection agency will just bundle it up and sell it en masse` to the next collection agency.
You don't need the stress.

Sorry for your loss, and for the added stress of these calls.

When I was in my 20's, back when dinosaurs roamed the earth, I worked for a 3rd party collection agency and yes, we were told about the Fair Debt Collections Act and given our rehearsed speech about "this is an attempt to collect to debt...." but we were also slyly encouraged by our managers to tiptoe outside those boundaries. We'd be on the phone with a debtor and we'd get real low in our chair so no one could hear. Some people would actually practically crawl under their desks to avoid being overheard. I didn't work there long, it wasn't for me, but over the years I have come across legitimate 3rd party collectors who ARE on the up and up and DO want to help someone pay off their debt. But be wary of the ones who seem slippery.

Hubby and I had a similar problem with his mother. MIL was a grifter and a "sueing Sally" - very unscrupulous. At the time she was admitted to a nursing home she was very ill with cancer. MIL had no assets and a ton of debt. Debt collectors called us night and day - actually would tell hubby he was legally responsible for her debt, which is not true - but they'll say anything to get someone to pay. Still my husband choose to pay her debts as he felt it was the right thing to do. All was quiet for some time - but then MIL passed and the phone started ringing again. Since we knew we had paid all MILs "current" legitimate debts - my easygoing hubby got pretty annoyed after a while. So - when we would get the calls hubby would tell them to contact MIL directly and give them a phone number. It was the phone number to the cemetery. Probably wasn't a nice thing to do to the cemetery employees but it gave hubby a small measure of satisfaction- and we never hear from those debt collectors again.

there are freaks out there who steal info and act as collectors for things that arent legit . a collection agency sent me a bill for my mothers last att bill which i know was paid . i wrote them back and told them i needed to see a legitimate billing from att . i never heard back from them again .

There are *many* unscrupulous - and downright illegal - debt collection companies out there now. Your first red flag is when they call and don't give you the "this is an attempt to collect a debt..." speech right off the bat. As Eyerishlass said, that's required by the FDCPA, and any legitimate collection agency will follow it. If they don't give you that speech, you may be dealing with what I call "bottom feeding scum suckers" - they buy up old debts for pennies on the dollar from previous collection agencies and try to collect on them again. These debts may already be paid in full, or they may be out of the statute of limitations for collection (varies from state to state). That's where collection on debts for a deceased person comes into play. These companies are looking to make a quick profit on an uncollectible debt, and they are relying on your ignorance of your loved one's finances (or your own) in order to get it.

Do your due diligence. Demand validation of the debt in writing. Don't pay anything on it or make any agreements to pay by phone until you know 100% the debt is valid.

I was even told by the Clerk of the Court in the county where my mother lived that I did not have to publish a "death notice" since everything is in the trust. Moms will had everything she had listed to be put into the now irrevocable Trust. She missed 1 small matured POD savings bond that was my brothers which caused me have to open a "small estate" with the courthouse which they are not having me publish. If the collection agency was worth it salt they would know to contact the county courthouse and inquire about a will and follow the instructions online how to make a claim against the estate. Am waiting on 3 ambulance bills, and 1 Doctor bill, which I called and asked again for. The only 2 other bills water and electric get paid out of her personal checking account which I had the bank convert to a Trust account so as to keep the same account number and not have to order checks since I still have 100+ blank checks left. I bookmarked your responce so as to refer back to it should they contact us again. Thank you!

RainMom - that's a great idea. If I ever get calls from debt collectors, I'll tell them to call that person at another number. And I'll give them the number to the scam pay day loan places that have been creeping out of the woodwork lately. Or maybe the number for the back brace solicitors, or the medic alert salespeople. Or maybe the FTC.

I just saw that too! Even more so now I will stick to my guns and not pay anybody who calls from a collection agency!

Oh, and BTW, as I recall the permitted hours of calling under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the legal calling hours are between 9 am and 9 pm, not that aggressive debt collectors honor that.