The Short Answer
You can tell your creditors you're planning to file bankruptcy, but it won't legally stop their calls until your case is actually filed with the court and you have a case number. Once you've hired an attorney, you can give creditors your attorney's contact information and ask them to direct all future communication there. Creditors are technically permitted to continue contacting you until your bankruptcy petition is filed and the automatic stay kicks in. The automatic stay is triggered the moment your case is filed — that's when collection calls, letters, and most other collection actions must legally stop.
When it comes to filing a bankruptcy, one of the most frequently asked questions are “what should I tell my creditor’s after I have decided to file a bankruptcy?” One of the main issues that people with unsecured debt struggle with is the constant and harassing phone calls from creditors. In order to defer some of those phone calls from creditors, clients can inform their creditors of their decision to file a bankruptcy and give them an idea of which chapter (Chapter 7 or Chapter 13) they will be filing.
For a client that has already retained an attorney and provided the attorney with their paperwork, the client may give the creditor their attorney’s contact information. The client should inform the creditor that they have retained an attorney and let the creditor know that they should no longer contact them, but instead, should contact their attorney.
By a client informing a creditor of their bankruptcy filing, the creditor will usually stop all contact with the client and begin contacting the client’s attorney. However, creditors are technically allowed to contact a client regarding the debt owed until the client has been issued a case number after their bankruptcy is filed. A client will not receive their case number until their bankruptcy petition has been filed with the court.
Key Takeaways
- Telling creditors you plan to file bankruptcy is optional, but it can reduce harassing calls before your case is officially submitted to the court.
- Once you've retained a bankruptcy attorney, give your creditors the attorney's contact information and instruct them to stop contacting you directly.
- Creditors are legally allowed to keep contacting you about the debt until your bankruptcy petition is filed and you receive a case number from the court.
- The automatic stay — the legal protection that halts collection calls, lawsuits, and garnishments — is triggered the moment your bankruptcy is filed, not before.
- If a creditor continues contacting you after your case is filed and the automatic stay is in effect, your attorney can take legal action against them for the violation.
- Having an attorney on record often causes creditors to back off on their own, since they know the rules have changed and violations carry real consequences.
Attorney Insight
The mistake I see most often is clients telling their creditors they're "about to file" and then waiting weeks — sometimes months — thinking that conversation bought them protection. It didn't. Creditors can keep calling, keep adding interest, and in some cases keep pursuing legal remedies right up until the moment your petition hits the court docket. What actually silences creditors is your case number, because that's what triggers the automatic stay. Once your bankruptcy is filed and that stay is in place, any creditor who keeps contacting you isn't just being aggressive — they're potentially violating federal law, and we can hold them accountable for it.
