Notice before sent to collections by: DebtCollectionAnswers.com
Unfortunately, there is no requirement in the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act that creditors notify you before an account is sent to collections. the problem is that once an account is sent to collections it typically will appear on your credit reports and her your credit scores.
This can be very unfair in situations where you may have disputed a bill or you don't realize that you owe a debt. We hear from quite a few consumers who have had medical bills sent to collections without even realizing they owed them. And we've also gotten quite a few complaints about cell phone companies that send disputed bills to collections.
We don't know enough about your situation to suggest the next step, but we would recommend that you at least Read the first chapter of our e-book, Debt Collection Answers - it's free - and consider filing a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission at FTC.gov.
