The most reliable way to stop Portfolio Recovery calls is to send Portfolio Recovery Associates a written cease communication letter by certified mail. Once they receive it, federal law requires them to stop contacting you about the debt, with only a few narrow exceptions.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1692c – Communication in Connection With Debt Collection Blocking numbers on your phone and filing complaints help, but the letter is what carries legal force.
Write a Cease Communication Letter
The letter is short. It needs to identify you, identify the account, and state clearly that you are demanding the company stop all further communication with you about it.
- Your full name and address, exactly as they appear on correspondence from Portfolio Recovery.
- The account number from any letter or notice they have sent you.
- A clear statement that you are requesting the company cease all further communication with you regarding this account.
- Your signature and the date.
Portfolio Recovery Associates accepts correspondence at its corporate office, 120 Corporate Boulevard, Norfolk, VA 23502. For compliance matters such as cease communication requests, the company’s website directs consumers to 150 Corporate Boulevard, Norfolk, VA 23502.2Portfolio Recovery Associates. PRApay by Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC Confirm the mailing address on the most recent letter they sent you, since addresses change.
Send It by Certified Mail
Use USPS Certified Mail with Return Receipt Requested. The return receipt, either a physical green postcard or an emailed signature image, proves Portfolio Recovery received the letter and shows the exact delivery date.3USPS. Certified Mail – The Basics That proof is what lets you enforce the law if the calls continue.
As of January 2026, Certified Mail costs $5.30 per item on top of regular postage. A hard-copy return receipt adds $4.40, and an electronic return receipt costs $2.82. With First-Class postage, expect to pay roughly $9 to $11 total.4USPS. Notice 123 – Price List Keep a photocopy of the letter, the certified mail receipt, and the signed return receipt together.
Email can also satisfy the “in writing” requirement under the federal E-SIGN Act, as clarified by the CFPB’s Regulation F.5eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1006 – Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F) Certified mail is still the safer choice because the delivery record is independently verifiable. If you email, save the sent message and any read receipts.
What the Letter Does and Doesn’t Stop
Once Portfolio Recovery receives the letter, they must stop contacting you about the debt. The law permits only three further communications: a notice that they are ending collection efforts, a notice that they or the original creditor may take a specific action such as filing suit, or a notice that they intend to take a specific action.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1692c – Communication in Connection With Debt Collection Anything else, whether a call, text, email, or routine collection letter, is a potential violation.
A cease letter does not erase the debt. Portfolio Recovery can still report the account to credit bureaus, which will likely lower your credit score. They can also sue you to collect, and they are allowed to notify you of that lawsuit. The letter stops the calls; it does not reduce what you owe and it is not a defense to a suit.
Ways to Cut Down Calls Right Now
A certified letter takes a few days to arrive. In the meantime, two things can bring you some relief.
Tell Them to Stop Calling During a Live Call
Under Regulation F, if you tell a debt collector during a live phone call to stop calling you, they must stop using telephone calls to reach you going forward.5eCFR. 12 CFR Part 1006 – Debt Collection Practices (Regulation F) This is narrower than a written cease letter. A verbal request blocks only phone calls; a written letter stops every form of contact. A verbal request is also harder to prove, so write down the date, time, representative’s name, and what you said immediately after the call, and follow up with the written letter.
Block the Numbers on Your Phone
On an iPhone, open Settings, then Phone, and turn on “Silence Unknown Callers” to send unrecognized numbers to voicemail. Android dialers offer similar spam filtering. You can also add specific numbers from your call history to the phone’s block list. Most cellular carriers run network-level filters that screen known collection numbers before they ring your phone. These tools catch calls that slip through while the legal notice does the heavier work of forcing compliance.
Limits That Apply Even Without a Letter
Portfolio Recovery cannot call you before 8:00 a.m. or after 9:00 p.m. in your local time zone.1Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1692c – Communication in Connection With Debt Collection Calls outside those hours are violations on their own.
The CFPB’s Debt Collection Rule presumes a collector is harassing you if they call more than seven times within a seven-day period about a particular debt, or if they call within seven days after an actual phone conversation with you about that debt.6Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. When and How Often Can a Debt Collector Call Me on the Phone “Presumed” puts the burden on the collector to justify the calls. The FDCPA also broadly prohibits conduct whose natural consequence is to harass, oppress, or abuse, and specifically lists repeatedly or continuously calling with intent to annoy as a violation.7Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1692d – Harassment or Abuse False or misleading statements, such as a threat to keep calling despite your request, are separately prohibited.8Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1692e – False or Misleading Representations
Two Cautions Before You Send Anything
Portfolio Recovery buys delinquent accounts from original creditors and tries to collect the full balance. Wrong balances, wrong consumers, and already-paid debts are common. If you dispute the debt in writing within 30 days of their first written notice, they must stop collection activity until they send you verification.9Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 15 USC 1692g – Validation of Debts If you’re still inside that window, a dispute letter can be a stronger first move than a cease letter, because it forces them to prove the debt exists before they can continue at all.
The second caution is the statute of limitations. Every state sets a time limit on how long a creditor or collector can sue you over a debt, roughly three to ten years for credit card debt depending on the state. Once the window closes, the debt is time-barred.10eCFR. 12 CFR 1006.26 – Collection of Time-Barred Debts In many states, making a partial payment or acknowledging the debt in writing restarts the clock, giving the collector a fresh window to sue.11Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Can Debt Collectors Collect a Debt Thats Several Years Old Never agree to a payment on an old debt during one of these calls without first confirming the statute has not expired. Cutting off the calls through a cease letter removes the pressure where that mistake usually happens.
If the Calls Keep Coming
Start a log. Every call gets the date, time, phone number, and a note on what was said or whether it went to voicemail. Your certified mail receipt proves Portfolio Recovery knew about your request; the log proves they ignored it.
If you answer a call, a recording is strong evidence. Federal law allows you to record a call as long as one party consents, and you count as that party. Roughly a dozen states require all parties to consent. Check your state’s rule before you record, and if you live in an all-party state you can simply tell the representative at the start of the call that you are recording.
File Complaints
The CFPB takes debt collection complaints at consumerfinance.gov/complaint or by phone at (855) 411-2372, Monday through Friday, 8 a.m. to 8 p.m. ET. The agency forwards your complaint to Portfolio Recovery for a response and adds it to a public database.12Consumer Financial Protection Bureau. Learn How the Complaint Process Works The FTC collects reports at ReportFraud.ftc.gov, which feed into the Consumer Sentinel database used by law enforcement to build enforcement cases.13Federal Trade Commission. ReportFraud.ftc.gov Filing with both agencies increases the odds the pattern gets flagged.
Sue Under the FDCPA
If Portfolio Recovery keeps calling after receiving your cease letter, you can sue in federal or state court. The FDCPA allows actual damages plus statutory damages of up to $1,000 per lawsuit, and a prevailing plaintiff is awarded reasonable attorney fees and court costs.14Federal Trade Commission. Fair Debt Collection Practices Act Text – Section 813 That fee-shifting rule is why many consumer rights lawyers take these cases on contingency. You have one year from the violation to file.
If Portfolio Recovery also used an automated dialing system or prerecorded voice to call your cell phone without consent, you can add Telephone Consumer Protection Act claims to the same suit. The TCPA provides $500 per unauthorized call, which a court can increase to $1,500 per call if the violation was willful.15Office of the Law Revision Counsel. 47 USC 227 – Restrictions on Use of Telephone Equipment Your certified mail receipt, return receipt, call log, and any recordings are the core of the case.