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Repeated phone calls and letters from debt collectors can be stressful. But there are ways to protect yourself and cope with the pressure.

Regulations have been established by the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act that stipulate how far debt collectors are permitted to go in their efforts to collect on debts. For example, there are only permitted to call between the hours of 8:00 a.m. and 9:00 p.m., and they are not allowed to make idle threats of action that cannot legally be taken. If you instruct them not to call you they cannot continue calling.

As a consequence, you have several options. You can simply refuse to take the call. Most answering machines allow screening your call before picking up and if you have caller ID/call blocking you may be able to filter the call out entirely.

If you choose to pick up, you can insist that you not be contacted any more, and the agency is legally obligated to stop calling - if you’ve sent a ‘cease and desist’ letter. Of course, legal action of that kind can be expensive, so you may want to employ other techniques first.

If at all possible, the most effective way to deal with debt collectors is to pay your debt. After all you did make the debt and your creditor has a right to payment. If you are struggling to meeting the full payment try to negotiate a rate reduction.

If you make a payment arrangement, stick to it. Debt collectors only have a desire to perform the service for which they have been employed. If you show that you are going to stick with your payment arrangement they will stop calling you.

Be sure you keep a diary of any calls made or accepted, and note any terms agreed to. Note if you’ve insisted they stop calling you, especially if you’ve been called at work. You can tape the call if that’s legal in your state. (Sometimes it requires notifying the other party that you are doing so.)

Few debt collectors will make any statement that’s out of line if they know they’re being recorded. That recording or diary can be especially important if you have negotiated a reduction in the debt.

Remember that debt collectors receive their payment based on a percentage of whatever they are able to collect. Therefore, though they may be authorized to accept less than they are demanding, they want you to pay as close to the full amount as possible. If you are persistent they will reduce the amount. They realize that a part of the whole is better than nothing at all.