Skip to content
Wheels Accident Advice

Free template

Debt Validation Request Letter

By Serdar Arslan, editor · Last reviewed · How we research

Use this letter when a collection agency contacts you about money it says you owe, for example a subrogation claim for crash damage or a medical bill from your injury. The CFPB says a debt collector generally must give you a validation notice with the amount, the creditor and a dispute deadline, and that if you dispute in writing within 30 days of getting that information, the collector must pause collecting the disputed amount until it has adequately responded. Whether federal debt collection law covers a particular crash damage claim is not settled, so this letter simply asks for validation; it does not depend on any one law applying.

Send it as soon as possible, and within 30 days of receiving the collector's validation information if you can. Use certified mail or another tracked method and keep a copy. Do not pay, promise to pay, or agree that you owe anything on the phone while you wait.

If the account is a medical bill tied to a pending accident claim, the optional paragraph tells the collector so and asks the provider to bill your health insurance, MedPay or PIP. Delete it if it does not apply.

Fill in what applies. Everything stays in your browser. Nothing is sent to us.

[Your full name]
[Your mailing address]
[Your phone number]
[Your email address]

[Date of this letter]

[Collection agency name]
[Collection agency address]

Re: Request for validation
Your account or reference number: [Their account or reference number]
Amount claimed: [Amount they say you owe]

To whom it may concern:

I am responding to your contact of [Date they first contacted you]. I dispute this debt and request validation. This letter is not an acknowledgment that I owe any amount, and it is not a promise to pay.

Please send me in writing:
  1. The name of the original creditor, or the insurance company whose claim you are collecting.
  2. An itemized statement of the amount claimed, showing how it was calculated and any interest, fees or other charges added.
  3. Documents showing that I am responsible for this amount (for a vehicle damage claim, the basis for saying I was at fault; for a medical bill, the provider's itemized bill).
  4. Proof that you are authorized to collect this account.
  5. If you report to credit bureaus, what you have reported and when.

Please stop collection of the disputed amount until you have responded to this request.

[Optional: pending accident claim and insurance to bill]

Please contact me only in writing at the address above. Do not call me at work.

I am keeping a copy of this letter and a record of all contact from your company.

Sincerely,


[Your full name]

Tips

  • Send this within 30 days of receiving the collector's validation information if you can; the CFPB says the dispute window is tied to that date.
  • Use certified mail or another tracked method, and keep the receipt with your copy of the letter.
  • Do not make a payment, even a small one, until you have reviewed what they send.
  • If you were insured on the crash date, also send the demand to your insurer.
  • You can submit a complaint about a debt collector to the CFPB or your state attorney general.

Sources

  1. CFPB: What is a debt validation notice?
  2. Washington OIC: What is subrogation?

Sending it and keeping proof

Keep a copy of everything you send. If a deadline or a response time matters, send letters by a method that gives you proof of delivery, such as certified mail with a return receipt, or email with a read receipt, and note the date in your claim file. Many insurers and agencies also accept uploads through an online portal, so save the confirmation screen or email.

Related on this site

Other templates