Ask me about dealing with/suing/being sued by debt collectors!

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Business, Finance, and Careers > Ask me about dealing with/suing/being sued by debt collectors!

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ohnobugs: Feb 22, 2003

malcriada posted:

She made it seem as though they are still with the original bank by saying that though. Should I cover my rear end and send a DV to my original bank?

If the debt is still with the original creditor, they aren't required to respond to a DV. However Enhanced Recovery Co is definitely not an OC, and some collection companies will try to trip you up. To answer your earlier question, you can definitely send a DV after the first 30 day window, it's just that after that the CC is no longer required to respond before resuming collection activity. And debt collection companies are not bound by that same 30 day window, they can verify within a few days or a few months if they choose. This page has a lot of info on the relevant parts of the FDCPA and debt collection:

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/rebuild/debt_validation.shtml

# ? Apr 25, 2012 04:57

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# ? May 21, 2024 06:31

ebg: Mar 31, 2008

So Capital One/that lovely Michael J. Scott attorney guy "filed a lawsuit" against me in Texas, where I haven't lived since 2010. The only reason I know this is because my mom got a letter in the mail from some attorney trying to help me, and he gave some case number for the Fort Bend County court system. When I looked online at their court system, I didn't see my name or anything. My mom hasn't been served, I certainly haven't been served out here in Tennessee, and I have no idea what on earth to do.

# ? Apr 27, 2012 03:03

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

MAO TSE-TUNGACUNT posted:

So Capital One/that lovely Michael J. Scott attorney guy "filed a lawsuit" against me in Texas, where I haven't lived since 2010. The only reason I know this is because my mom got a letter in the mail from some attorney trying to help me, and he gave some case number for the Fort Bend County court system. When I looked online at their court system, I didn't see my name or anything. My mom hasn't been served, I certainly haven't been served out here in Tennessee, and I have no idea what on earth to do.

I make a living fighting Michael J Scott PC, they are pretty aggressive.

Did you use this site to search for the case number?
http://www.co.fort-bend.tx.us/getsitepage.asp?sitepage=3206

# ? Apr 27, 2012 03:31

ebg: Mar 31, 2008

Roger_Mudd posted:

I make a living fighting Michael J Scott PC, they are pretty aggressive.

Did you use this site to search for the case number?
http://www.co.fort-bend.tx.us/getsitepage.asp?sitepage=3206

Yup, I did! I'm not on there, which is weird since there's a case number. Coincidentally my mom's coming out to visit me tomorrow, so she's bringing the letter she got with her.

e: I checked Harris County, too, which is where I lived. I never officially lived in Ft. Bend County, which is another reason I'm completely floored at them harassing my mother.

ebg fucked around with this message at 03:50 on Apr 27, 2012

# ? Apr 27, 2012 03:47

Bookish: Sep 7, 2006; 80% sexy 20% disgusting

MAO TSE-TUNGACUNT posted:

Yup, I did! I'm not on there, which is weird since there's a case number. Coincidentally my mom's coming out to visit me tomorrow, so she's bringing the letter she got with her.

e: I checked Harris County, too, which is where I lived. I never officially lived in Ft. Bend County, which is another reason I'm completely floored at them harassing my mother.

I would call the courthouse civil division directly, since some files may just not be online. Our civil district court cases are not online in my county so people have to actually call and have us look them up for them.

# ? Apr 28, 2012 16:02

siggy2021: Mar 8, 2010

So the collector I sent a validation request to responded with this.

code:

During a communication with our office, we were advised that you requested verification and/or disputed the balance due on the referenced account. In that regard, please take not of the following:

Current Owner of Account:
Original Creditor(if different): XYZ Bank USA NA
Account Number:                  XXXXXXXXXXXX-1234
Claim Balance Remaining:         $1234.56
Interested Due Remaining:        $12.34
Costs/Disbursements Remaining:   $0.00
Fees Remaining:                  $0.00
Judgement Date(if applicable):
Judgement Amount(if applicable):

Should you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact this office.

Very Truly Yours,
ABC Collections

THIS IS AN ATTEMPT TO COLLECT A DEBT BY A DEBT COLLECTOR. ANY INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE.

There is also a blurb at the bottom that says their client, Asset Acceptance LLC, has requested that we include the following message. With some FDCPA information at the bottom.

Is this a legit Debt Validation. They really didn't tell me much that they haven't already told me. What is my next move?

# ? May 2, 2012 23:37

LOLBBQ: Jan 28, 2009

I just finished reading this thread and need a little advice.

I called up National Recovery Agency yesterday about some BMG debt for $48.00 (I now realize all communication should be in writing) that�s on my report for some reason. The representative couldn�t find the account or any records that they ever owned the account. She told me since no account existed she didn�t have a way to remove the information from my credit report. I didn�t give her any information other than what appears on the credit report (partial account number, my last name, address at the time, OC and amount). I don�t understand how it is on my credit report yet NRA has no records of the debt and how they reported something (last updated on my report 10/11) they have no records of.

Is this a good plan?

� Mail off a DV with a return receipt. I did verify NRA�s address over the phone. It�s the same company that's on my report.
� Wait the 30 days. If they respond with solid proof offer a PFD for a few bucks. If they don�t, dispute with Experian in writing.
� If NRA fails to verify with me but verifies with Experian send them another letter with intent to sue?

So far the other collections accounts I have were pretty easy to deal with, but this is confusing.

# ? May 3, 2012 00:07

DizzyBum: Apr 16, 2007

DizzyBum posted:

I have a few accounts that are past due, and I've seen some collections letters appearing in the mailbox. It's similar to the above poster, where it's apparently not a company that purchased the debt outright, but a collections company that's working directly for the original creditor and "handling" the debt... at least according to the letters we've received. I don't know if that's all a roundabout way of saying "We bought this debt from the original creditor."

Some of these letters I've received in the last 30 days. A couple of them are older than 30 days by now. All of them state that the debt will be assumed as valid if a response isn't sent within 30 days of the receipt of the letter.

What should my first step be? DVs and green cards all around?

Should I do anything special about the ones that are older than 30 days? Can they legally assume the debt is valid just because I don't respond in 30 days?

Should I pay anything towards these accounts right now?

Anyone have any advice? I haven't been able to figure this out yet

# ? May 3, 2012 00:09

ohnobugs: Feb 22, 2003

siggy2021 posted:

So the collector I sent a validation request to responded with this.

...

There is also a blurb at the bottom that says their client, Asset Acceptance LLC, has requested that we include the following message. With some FDCPA information at the bottom.

Is this a legit Debt Validation. They really didn't tell me much that they haven't already told me. What is my next move?

You'll see that blurb at the bottom of all their communications, they're required to include it by law. Congrats, that's not a legit debt validation. The purpose of debt validation basically is to show they purchased/were assigned the debt to collect and are authorized to collect it. A valid debt validation would be something like including copies of statements or a signed credit card agreement, not some info they typed out in notepad.

# ? May 3, 2012 02:44

ohnobugs: Feb 22, 2003

DizzyBum posted:

Anyone have any advice? I haven't been able to figure this out yet

Go ahead and DV all around. You can still DV after 30 days, the collections companies just aren't required to respond. It's still a good idea to send them though, and include a "do not contact except by mail" clause, they will be bound to that. If they're collections companies, for the most part there's no difference in buying and being assigned the debt. The one thing I would look out for is if the collections agency is a law firm contacting you on behalf of the OC, in that case they could be acting on behalf of the OC and would not be required to respond to a DV, they'd be considered the OC and would be under the FCRA instead.

# ? May 3, 2012 02:50

YeahDavidLeeRoth: Sep 23, 2008

YeahDavidLeeRoth posted:

So I got a response from the collection agency. It's just a print out from the hospital showing the charges and what I've paid. It does show the payment that I most recently paid. This brings the total they show to $929.57.

The discrepancy from the statement I received to what they are showing here is sneaky on the hospitals part. When I had these services I was uninsured. They gave me an uninsured patient discount. That was $683.90. They have put that amount back on the bill.

Any thoughts on this? I think it's lovely on the part of the hospital. I owe the money, I know this, but that part rubs me up the wrong way.

Not that any of you bastards gave me any insight on this, but just in case anyone does care. I ended up sending them another letter saying that I'd happily pay the amount shown on the last statement I received (enclosed a copy of statement), but the $683 that got reapplied before being sent to them was not cool and that they must send me the signed agreement that shows I agreed to those terms.

Will have to see what response I get back.

# ? May 9, 2012 20:31

cr0y: Mar 24, 2005

I think it was mentioned before but I can't seem to find it in the thread. If a debt is sold from one collection agency to another does the 30 day clock on a DV letter reset? If they have to verify the debt how does that work since the actual owner of the debt was another company and not the original creditor?

Edit: Also, I am in Pennsylvania and it appears that phone calls cannot be recorded without mutual consent. What happens if after the "this call may be recorded..blah blah blah" at the beginning of conversation I saw that I do not consent to being recorded? Is this a technicality that I can use in my favor somehow? If they are recording me am I allowed to record them? Google says that PA is an all-party notification state.

cr0y fucked around with this message at 21:55 on May 11, 2012

# ? May 11, 2012 20:40

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

cr0y posted:

I think it was mentioned before but I can't seem to find it in the thread. If a debt is sold from one collection agency to another does the 30 day clock on a DV letter reset? If they have to verify the debt how does that work since the actual owner of the debt was another company and not the original creditor?

Edit: Also, I am in Pennsylvania and it appears that phone calls cannot be recorded without mutual consent. What happens if after the "this call may be recorded..blah blah blah" at the beginning of conversation I saw that I do not consent to being recorded? Is this a technicality that I can use in my favor somehow? If they are recording me am I allowed to record them? Google says that PA is an all-party notification state.

Off the top of my head, I'd say it resets the clock.

Few quick points regarding recording calls:
1) if they call you and you don't consent, they'll just hang up
2) if you call them and tell them you are going to record them, they'll usually hang up.

This can be helpful if you are being harassed. Tell'em you are recording them even if you aren't.

# ? May 11, 2012 23:23

lizardman: Jun 30, 2007; by R. Guyovich

cr0y posted:

I think it was mentioned before but I can't seem to find it in the thread. If a debt is sold from one collection agency to another does the 30 day clock on a DV letter reset? If they have to verify the debt how does that work since the actual owner of the debt was another company and not the original creditor?

Think of it like this: a DV letter is demanding validation that the collection agency can collect on the debt, so yes, it does reset each time the debt switches hands. They have to furnish documentation that shows the debt has indeed passed over from the previous creditor to them. I mean, how do you know they didn't just look up your credit report and are just claiming they bought the debt?

# ? May 12, 2012 01:51

DarkHorse: Dec 13, 2006; Nap Ghost

Roger_Mudd posted:

Off the top of my head, I'd say it resets the clock.

Few quick points regarding recording calls:
1) if they call you and you don't consent, they'll just hang up
2) if you call them and tell them you are going to record them, they'll usually hang up.

This can be helpful if you are being harassed. Tell'em you are recording them even if you aren't.

Conversely, if they are recording the call then you can record it as well and in most cases you don't have to notify them. Talking on the phone with these guys is a bad idea, but you may be able to get evidence of violations this way.

(not a lawyer or experienced in collecting money from violations)

E: VVV That's what I meant to say explicitly, and forgot. Typing on phones is hard :doh:

DarkHorse fucked around with this message at 15:51 on May 12, 2012

# ? May 12, 2012 14:09

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

DarkHorse posted:

Conversely, if they are recording the call then you can record it as well and in most cases you don't have to notify them. Talking on the phone with these guys is a bad idea, but you may be able to get evidence of violations this way.

(not a lawyer or experienced in collecting money from violations)

The law varies from state to state.

# ? May 12, 2012 15:06

cage-free egghead: Mar 8, 2004

Are there any sort of lawyers or professionals who help with this stuff? I've got 3 debts over $500+ each that I haven't heard from despite sending letters. I have yet to dispute these with the big 3 but I'd just like to get these taken care of and not worry about it anymore.

Edit: I haven't received any mail or calls from any of them for over a month now, so I think I might just send a dispute to my credit agencies to see if they'll wipe it off. I sent mail to two of them and haven't heard back. Calls did stop from one when I told them to only contact me by mail but haven't heard anything from them since.

Is it a bad idea just to send a dispute to all 3 credit agencies or will this get the ball rolling on getting this stuff taken care of?

cage-free egghead fucked around with this message at 20:07 on May 15, 2012

# ? May 15, 2012 19:54

Powdered Toast Man: Jan 25, 2005; TOAST-A-RIFIC!!!

I have received notification (one letter, two phone calls) from Integrity Financial Partners and NCB Management Services. Interestingly, they both contacted me by phone and left me a voicemail before I ever received anything in writing. I was wondering if anyone in this thread had experience dealing with these specific agencies. Both are charged off credit card debts, and they are large amounts. I just got the letter from IFP today and I'm going to send them back the demand for verification tomorrow.

# ? May 16, 2012 01:09

Teabag Dome Scandal: Mar 19, 2002

In 2008 I filed for Bankruptcy and included all of my outstanding credit cards and a lease I had on my car. All of my debts were discharged and no one disputed when I went to court. Today I got a letter from a collections agency for $283 that apparently was with my old bank. I'm not sure where this amount is coming from as it is very very low compared to my other debts. When I run a credit report I get "Status: Petition for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy." under that account. Was this debt not properly discharged? I think this may have been my bank account which had a personal line of credit attached to it but that was also included in my bankruptcy.

Whats the best course to get this resolved? I've already gotten a call from them today.

# ? May 19, 2012 21:53

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

Raymn posted:

In 2008 I filed for Bankruptcy and included all of my outstanding credit cards and a lease I had on my car. All of my debts were discharged and no one disputed when I went to court. Today I got a letter from a collections agency for $283 that apparently was with my old bank. I'm not sure where this amount is coming from as it is very very low compared to my other debts. When I run a credit report I get "Status: Petition for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy." under that account. Was this debt not properly discharged? I think this may have been my bank account which had a personal line of credit attached to it but that was also included in my bankruptcy.

Whats the best course to get this resolved? I've already gotten a call from them today.

This is collection activity in violation of your discharge. Take it to your bankruptcy lawyer, should be able to get a few grand from them.

Edit: what ever you do, don't sign anything or offer to make payment on the debt. You don't want to give them an argument that you "reaffirmed" the debt.

# ? May 20, 2012 03:28

Teabag Dome Scandal: Mar 19, 2002

Roger_Mudd posted:

This is collection activity in violation of your discharge. Take it to your bankruptcy lawyer, should be able to get a few grand from them.

Edit: what ever you do, don't sign anything or offer to make payment on the debt. You don't want to give them an argument that you "reaffirmed" the debt.

Would signing anything include sending them anything in writing disputing the debt? The first letter they sent me says I have 30 days to dispute it or they will assume it valid.

# ? May 20, 2012 20:10

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

Raymn posted:

Would signing anything include sending them anything in writing disputing the debt? The first letter they sent me says I have 30 days to dispute it or they will assume it valid.

No that's pretty safe.

# ? May 21, 2012 02:00

Powdered Toast Man: Jan 25, 2005; TOAST-A-RIFIC!!!

Well, sent demands for verification to the fullest extent of the law to both of them certified with return receipt. We shall see.

# ? May 22, 2012 01:28

woozle wuzzle: Mar 10, 2012

Raymn posted:

In 2008 I filed for Bankruptcy and included all of my outstanding credit cards and a lease I had on my car. All of my debts were discharged and no one disputed when I went to court. Today I got a letter from a collections agency for $283 that apparently was with my old bank. I'm not sure where this amount is coming from as it is very very low compared to my other debts. When I run a credit report I get "Status: Petition for Chapter 7 Bankruptcy." under that account. Was this debt not properly discharged? I think this may have been my bank account which had a personal line of credit attached to it but that was also included in my bankruptcy.

Whats the best course to get this resolved? I've already gotten a call from them today.

You are protected from this debt, they're just dumb.

Roger_mudd and I are in different states, so his advice is right for many places. Where I'm at (VA) the creditor basically gets one mistake for free no matter what. My advice for here would be to respond back to the letter with your bankruptcy case number and your attorney's phone number (even if it's just tearing off the bottom part and scribbling that stuff on it). Maybe make a copy of what you send them. If you get a phone call, same thing: tell them your case number and attorney's phone number. If they give you any bullshit about needing any forms or paperwork, tell them you filed bankruptcy and to speak with your attorney. You should never hear from them again. If they do contact you after being told of your bankruptcy information is when an attorney in my area could raise holy hell. (and here the payouts aren't great either in those cases, maybe a few hundred bucks that approaches the time lost. But I know other places are more lucrative to get harrassed, so it depends on where you are).

# ? May 23, 2012 17:25

Zaekkor: May 12, 2010; Oh, let's break it down!

So I had unpaid student loans get me a garnishment because I'm stupid. The total owed amount was $2,056. As of this most recent pay I've had $2199 taken out of my pay, and another $144 from my state refund.

Can someone explain why my Garnishment notice said "Total owed $2,056" and yet I've paid over $2300 on it, and it seemingly hasn't yet stopped?

# ? May 24, 2012 09:45

pseudonordic: Aug 31, 2003; The Jack of All Trades

Obscurity posted:

So I had unpaid student loans get me a garnishment because I'm stupid. The total owed amount was $2,056. As of this most recent pay I've had $2199 taken out of my pay, and another $144 from my state refund.

Can someone explain why my Garnishment notice said "Total owed $2,056" and yet I've paid over $2300 on it, and it seemingly hasn't yet stopped?

Just a guess here.

For someone to garnish wages, they have to take you to court and get a judgement and an order against you. You may have had court fees tacked on, as well as any interest that accrued in the interim.

# ? May 24, 2012 14:33

LorneReams: Jun 27, 2003; I'm bizarre

pseudonordic posted:

Just a guess here.

For someone to garnish wages, they have to take you to court and get a judgement and an order against you. You may have had court fees tacked on, as well as any interest that accrued in the interim.

And, yet again, this is why you ALWAYS go to court even if you are 100% no doubt resposible for the debt. In every case you can ask for a fair repayment schedule that dosen't include interest or fees if you can prove you can pay. And you wouldn't get garnished.

# ? May 24, 2012 15:01

Zaekkor: May 12, 2010; Oh, let's break it down!

The notice I was given said 0.00 for court fees.

# ? May 24, 2012 16:12

woozle wuzzle: Mar 10, 2012

The costs for the garnishment itself are tacked on to the top (usually a couple hundred), plus most states have judgment interest. So even if they only garnish you for the original judgment, it's going to be more than the original amount. The $250 garnished over the top seems pretty normal, and it could go a chunk higher depending on interest and costs. You could go to/call your local courthouse and see exactly how much they're garnishing you for if you haven't gotten notice. It's possible for them to over-garnish with a wage assignment and tax refund hitting at the same time (not likely with these amounts, but in general its possible), but the local courthouse would be able to tell you. Any amount taken beyond what they ask for comes back to you after the garnishment hearing set a few months out.

# ? May 24, 2012 17:24

Redfont: Feb 9, 2010; Little Mac(kerel)

I will be scouring this thread more in-depth during the coming days, but I figured I would post my situation on here for some personalized advice while I continue researching.

Basically I am trying to join the air force and need all these open accounts to either be closed or disappear. All of the accounts only appear at various times on different credit reports, mainly TransUnion. Sometimes they appear on credit checks, sometimes they don't, sometimes they are listed as closed, sometimes they aren't. I'm not sure where I stand with them, so as of right now I'm sending out a DV letter to the two prominent companies on my report and seeing if I get a response. It's been about a year or two at this point (at least) and I haven't heard from either agency in ~a year. I don't know if that means there's been enough time for the debt to have been sold off more than once, but I'm going to see what happens. I'm not very good at negotiating, so I don't think calling the companies themselves would be a good tactic for me; regardless, I am going to give it a shot if they return my letters with verification.

Does the company that originally had your debt and then sold it off still have the power to withhold things from you because of that debt? Most of my money is owed to a college because I missed a dropout date and they won't provide me with transcripts because I never paid the tuition, but they've already sold the debt to a collections company. How does that work, exactly?

E: Also half of my debt was a medical bill that has been handed off to a collections company. I've sent an online dispute to get verification of the debts, but what do I actually do if they don't verify it? Will the online process close the account for me, or is it just going to say "yeah that's weird" and wait for the collection agency to do something? I need these accounts to either say "closed" or disappear so I can get my clearance, do I just call them up after 30 days and say "hey if you don't delete this I'm going to sue you?"

Redfont fucked around with this message at 22:12 on May 25, 2012

# ? May 24, 2012 20:40

Redfont: Feb 9, 2010; Little Mac(kerel)

Not that this thread is particularly lively with advice, but I have some updates on my situation.

I gave a call to both of the companies attempting to collect my debt. One of them said that they absolutely did not do settlements and were not willing to negotiate for a pay-for-delete and seemed to have at least a rudimentary understanding of the FDCPA. The second company did not actually buy the debt from the original creditor, it simply had the debt assigned to them, so they don't actually make any profit off of it, so they don't seem to be willing to negotiate, either.

My pay to delete tactic has thus far failed, but I have sent them a debt verification letter. The first company seemed to know what was going on and asked if I specifically asked for things like the original contract, breakdown of the charges, etc. (I didn't), so I'm a little worried that they're going to just send me a letter that says "yep it's totally legal" and be done with it.

Apparently I have the bad luck to have been stuck with two rather reputable collections companies. Assuming I give in and pay them their money, what's my best course of action, and how can I convince them to remove the debt from my history entirely instead of just marking it as paid? Neither of them wanted to admit that it was even possible for them to remove the debts from my report.

# ? May 29, 2012 18:35

BonerGhost: Mar 9, 2007

There is no really sound, legal way to get them off your report other than waiting out the SOL, as I understand it. They're in the wrong to not report correctly to the credit reporting agencies even if it's in your favor. The whole point of credit reporting is for lenders to (theoretically) get an accurate picture of the risks of lending to you.

Reputable isn't bad. Sure, it can be a pain in the rear end when you want something to disappear. The bigger pain in the rear end is a company that calls your family even though they have your number, who calls you at work and claims you're refusing to pay when you tell them you can't take calls at work, who threatens your family with bank garnishments and levies it has no authorization to do, and continues to call you at work and refuses to validate. Be glad they're following the law.

In my experience, and this is not advice because I'm not qualified or experienced enough to give advice, the best thing to do is deal with them by mail and request validation including proof of the debt, proof they have the right to collect on it either through purchase or assignation, and if they claim they're attorneys, that they're actually barred in your state. If they don't validate it's time to go after the credit reporting agency if it shows up on your report. If they do validate, payments in a way that you can later prove and not written on your bank account are good. I personally would not write a shady company checks out of my bank account. I don't want them to have the info and I don't trust the bank to keep my money safe from someone who has the info. I would send cashier's checks via a USPS method that can be tracked.

# ? May 31, 2012 01:25

YeahDavidLeeRoth: Sep 23, 2008

YeahDavidLeeRoth posted:

Not that any of you bastards gave me any insight on this, but just in case anyone does care. I ended up sending them another letter saying that I'd happily pay the amount shown on the last statement I received (enclosed a copy of statement), but the $683 that got reapplied before being sent to them was not cool and that they must send me the signed agreement that shows I agreed to those terms.

Will have to see what response I get back.

The response I got was a just another standard form letter saying "due to you not paying we are reviewing your case further. Pay immediately."

Idiots.

# ? Jun 5, 2012 15:25

Powdered Toast Man: Jan 25, 2005; TOAST-A-RIFIC!!!

My two collectors have less than ten days to respond to my challenge letters, now. Should I celebrate yet? :v:

Also, assuming that I am successful in getting them to drop it, what measures should I take to make sure that it actually does get deleted off my credit report? How long does that take, and how long are they allowed to drag their feet doing it?

# ? Jun 10, 2012 19:57

disaster pastor: May 1, 2007

Powdered Toast Man posted:

My two collectors have less than ten days to respond to my challenge letters, now. Should I celebrate yet?

Also, assuming that I am successful in getting them to drop it, what measures should I take to make sure that it actually does get deleted off my credit report? How long does that take, and how long are they allowed to drag their feet doing it?

They don't actively delete it. As I understand the general procedure (I've never had to do this), if they are obligated, but fail, to verify your debts to you, you challenge the debts on your credit reports. Since they couldn't verify them to you, they shouldn't be able to verify them to the credit agencies. If they fail to verify to you, but then do verify to the credit agencies when challenged, they're violating the FDCPA.

# ? Jun 10, 2012 20:32

Hail Mr. Satan!: Oct 3, 2009; by zen death robot

So the guy/company I posted about earlier called my mother yesterday and left a message claiming to be with the "U.S. Check Agency."
Today he called my work. The operator let him through. As soon as he started his poo poo, I told him he should choose his words very carefully. He replied with "I'm not a debt collector, I'm a process server." Then he proceeded to start going on about check fraud and how I owe $700 but he'd "let it go" for $380. I told him I wasn't playing his games and hung up.
He then proceeded to call 3-4 more times. The operator refused to put him through. He threatened he would come to my job to serve me (to her, a completely unrelated third party.) Luckily, she was cool and told me it wasn't her first time to the rodeo with employees dealing with this type of scam.
So here's the situation as it stands: this guy/company has called my mother once, leaving a voicemail accusing me of check fraud and misrepresenting himself. Called a close friend at least 3 times doing the same. Called my work at least 4 times, misrepresenting himself each time to a third party. Called me today denying he was a debt collector, then offering to "let me off" with a payment.
How do I nail this guy/company to the wall? That's close to 10 violations above. All I have to go on is a phone number (1-877-407-7498) which I can't link to an address or entity online. How should I proceed?

# ? Jun 13, 2012 01:32

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

A Fancy Bloke posted:

How do I nail this guy/company to the wall? That's close to 10 violations above. All I have to go on is a phone number (1-877-407-7498) which I can't link to an address or entity online. How should I proceed?

Two steps: 1) contact your state Attorney General's office. Give them the number and what you are dealing with.

2) next time he calls talk with him, try to get as much location information from him as possible so you can sue him. Say something like "I don't do things over the phone, if I want to pay, where should I send the check?"

# ? Jun 13, 2012 01:39

Alereon: Feb 6, 2004; Dehumanize yourself and face to Trumpshed; College Slice

I have a debt collector trying to "unaccept" a settlement, is this legal? Over two months ago I sent them a letter via registered mail with a settlement offer and a check. The settlement offer letter clearly stated that this was an offer for settlement in full, that depositing the check constituted acceptance of the offer, and to return the check if they did not agree to the settlement. The memo field of the check also read that depositing the check constituted settlement in full. They deposited the check but applied it as a payment to the balance rather than a settlement, as I learned when they mailed me a new statement the next month. I called them and they requested that I mail them copies of everything I sent, which I did. About two weeks after I received the receipt confirmation I called them and they had still not figured things out. Today, they advised that they had decided that they didn't want to accept the terms of the settlement and had electronically posted a refund to my checking account, though it has not appeared yet.

When they told me this over the phone today, I replied that if they didn't want to accept the settlement terms the time to decide that would have been before they deposited the check, and that it was not at all reasonable to decide over two months later that they want to undo this. I have a call tomorrow with the Director of Operations for the collection agency. Can they actually "unaccept" the settlement and force me to accept a refund this late in the game?

Edit: Thanks! I'm in Washington State.

Alereon fucked around with this message at 03:10 on Jun 13, 2012

# ? Jun 13, 2012 02:05

Roger_Mudd: Jul 18, 2003; Buglord

Alereon posted:

When they told me this over the phone today, I replied that if they didn't want to accept the settlement terms the time to decide that would have been before they deposited the check, and that it was not at all reasonable to decide over two months later that they want to undo this. I have a call tomorrow with the Director of Operations for the collection agency. Can they actually "unaccept" the settlement and force me to accept a refund this late in the game?

I don't know the state your in, or it's laws but you want to research "Accord and Satisfaction" in your state. I would argue that by accepting the check they agreed to settle the account. Once they accepted that check, any obligation you had to them was extinguished.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accord_and_satisfaction

To get around screw ups like this many lenders now have special addresses that you have to send "payment in full" checks to. This is to prevent them from automatically processing checks like yours. Ask if A) they have a separate address and B) if you sent it to the right address.

# ? Jun 13, 2012 03:07

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# ? May 21, 2024 06:31

Alereon: Feb 6, 2004; Dehumanize yourself and face to Trumpshed; College Slice

Roger_Mudd posted:

I don't know the state your in, or it's laws but you want to research "Accord and Satisfaction" in your state. I would argue that by accepting the check they agreed to settle the account. Once they accepted that check, any obligation you had to them was extinguished.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Accord_and_satisfaction

To get around screw ups like this many lenders now have special addresses that you have to send "payment in full" checks to. This is to prevent them from automatically processing checks like yours. Ask if A) they have a separate address and B) if you sent it to the right address.

Thanks a lot! I live in Washington State, and I found RCW 62A.3-311, which makes it look like I'm golden. I think I sent them a "conspicuous" letter because it was sent via registered mail and the letter and check clearly identified it as a settlement offer, and I definitely sent to the address they specified in their previous settlement offer letter. I know they received it since they cashed the check. This seems to me to nullify their right under (2) to refund the money within 90 days, as that section is meant to cover the case where I sent it to an inappropriate address so it doesn't get processed correctly.

Alereon fucked around with this message at 03:48 on Jun 13, 2012

# ? Jun 13, 2012 03:42

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Ask/Tell > Business, Finance, and Careers > Ask me about dealing with/suing/being sued by debt collectors!

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