How to find all your debts

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22 Apr, 2024
Daniel Cohen
7 min
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how to find out all my debts

You could be unaware of your existing debts

Can You Sue for Wrongful Collections by a Company?
1. Check your credit reports
2. Check in with possible creditors
3. Go through your mail in search of old bills

There are some debts you might not be aware of.

As odd as it might sound, you could be indebted to certain persons and be entirely unaware of it. Mails sent to you to communicate the debt could go missing, while other bills could be misplaced. Worse even, due to identity theft and credit fraud, an account opened in your name could have been used to rack up a lot of debt - all without your knowledge.

In fact, you’re never certain as to how much you owe without a bit of digging.

So this post discusses different ways through which you can identify the various debts that you owe.

Can You Sue for Wrongful Collections by a Company?

If you're wondering if can you sue a company for wrongfully sending you to collections, the answer is yes. It's important to know your rights when facing unfair debt collection practices. Gather evidence and document all communications with the company in question. At the end of the process, if you need help, reach out to our legal team. We're here to assist you in resolving any issues and protecting your rights.

1. Check your credit reports

Your first port of call in the bid to find out all your debts is your credit report. Checking your credit reports for debts solves half of your problems because credit reports contain various account types such as credit cards, mortgages, auto loans, personal debts, and much more. 

Keep in mind that the three major credit reporting agencies report debts and other financial activities somewhat differently. So, a debt that will appear on one agency’s report might not show up on another’s.

What to do?

Get your credit report from all three credit bureaus. Thankfully, the law has made the process of obtaining these reports seamless and free; just visit the Annual Credit Report site for free weekly reports. This lasts till April 2022, though.

2. Check in with possible creditors

Life happens. Sometimes, we could be indebted to someone, but not be really sure as to who exactly we owe, or how much we owe them. In this situation, it wouldn’t hurt to contact the possible creditors. This could be the last set of creditors that come to memory.

Find out from them if you owe them for their services, if they own the debt, or sold it off to a debt collector. Whatever the case is, they’ll inform and direct you accordingly.

3. Go through your mail in search of old bills

It’s almost second nature to kick mails aside to tackle more important concerns of daily life. The funny thing is that every now and then, bills come in those mails. By neglecting those mails, we end up inadvertently ignoring the bills. Looking through the pile of mails will usually reveal those long-neglected debts.

Finding all your debts is a useful activity because when you’re aware of what you owe, you can work towards clearing the debts. Debts are harmful to your credit. Utilize these tips to uncover all that you owe, then double your efforts on clearing them!

Daniel Cohen is the Founding Partner of Consumer Attorneys
About the author
Daniel Cohen
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Daniel Cohen is the Founder of Consumer Attorneys. Daniel manages the firm’s branding, marketing, client intake and business development efforts. Since 2017, he is a member of the National Association of Consumer Advocates and the National Consumer Law Center. Mr. Cohen is a nationally-recognized practitioner of consumer protection law. He has a wealth of proven legal experience in the US in: collective claims, representing visually impaired people who believe their rights under the Americans with Disabilities Act have been violated in both the physical and digital environments, corporate governance and dispute resolution. Read more

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