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Thought this thread might enjoy reading: http://www.ftc.gov/os/2013/01/debtbuyingreport.pdf Bullet points:
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Jan 31, 2013 04:32
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Another validation letter I sent out has come back, stating that the debt has been sent back to the original creditor. However, the collection agency's still reporting the debt on my credit report. Do I send another letter telling them to remove it?
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Jan 31, 2013 14:16
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753951 fucked around with this message at 18:41 on Nov 8, 2013 |
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Jan 31, 2013 19:43
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753951 posted:... Since she basically declared that she would pay for those loans in the divorce agreement, would I have a case to take her to court to receive payment from her in whatever amount they needed so I can pay the collections company myself? Yes, she entered into an agreement to pay despite you being a co-signer, the debt is hers, you being a co-signer is you saying that a second source of money was available to satisfy the debt thereby reducing the risk to the lender. Take her to court to enforce the agreement.
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Feb 1, 2013 00:04
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I'm down to one of my last two outstanding debts, both are medical bills I couldn't pay at the time. The first I ever heard of the collection company that owns the debt now was when I saw it on my credit report. I disputed the debt through credit agencies, and received a collection statement from the original creditor assigning it to the current creditor. I also received a copy of the agreement to pay that I signed. In the agreement, it says I would agree to pay "reasonable collection costs and interest" should it be sent to collections. In my state, the attorney general's current position on interest + collection fees (and has been their position since 1994 when the opinion was written) is that one or the other is ok but charging both is duplicitive and "against public interest". Here's a snippet from the advisory opinion letter: quote:"RE: Addition of Collection Costs to Principal Debt" It goes on to cite court cases and examples, and further states that quote:If the charge collected from the debtor is in the form of a percentage collection fee, the amount of that fee should have some relationship to the cost of the collector in collecting or attempting to collect the debt." I sent a letter to the collection company citing my state attorney general's advisory opinion and provided the full text to them. I told them I was disputing the addition of collection costs while they are charging interest on the principal as well. I requested an itemized list of their expenses which comprise the collection fee. The agreement that I signed doesn't state an amount or percentage that I'm agreeing to, and based on the attorney general's advisory opinion, as they added this flat 30% collection costs fee the very same day they received my account (and I have proof of this), the combination of interest and collection fees is unreasonable and unfair. They sent me back a letter, stating basically that I owe it all (interest, collection fees, original principal debt amount)because the agreement that I signed stated I would pay "reasonable collection fees and interest", no acknowledgement of the request for an itemized list of expenses, no refutement of the backup that I sourced as the reason for my dispute. The entire reason that I disputed the collection fees portion of what they're trying to collect is because that's the only reason they could give me for them existing in our initial phone call Them: well you signed for reasonable fees so you owe them Me: I dispute the fact that they are reasonable, based on this standing advisory opinion from our state attorney general and would like to see proof of how you arrived at the figure which needs to match anticipated expenses incurred in collecting this debt Them: here's another copy of the payment form with "reasonable collection fees" highlighed, see you owe them that's proof Me:  What's my next step here? Aren't they required to report my dispute to the credit agencies? Their letter makes it sound like they've already decided they won the dispute. Who gets to decide that when I send a dispute directly to the collection agency? I thought there was a process in place involving the credit reporting agencies. edit: I think they're breaking FDCPA with the following language too: "I am willing to waive the collection fee as long as the principal balance and interest in the amount of X is paid by certified funds on or before February 15th, 2013, otherwise, after this date this offer will be null and void and the full balance including the collection fee of X will be due and owing." I received the (first communication from them that I've ever received) debt validation proof from them on January 18th, their letter is dated January 16th. For them to receive certified funds by or before Feb 15th, that would mean they are demanding I pay them prior to my 30 day dispute window closing? Initial communication isn't the day I disputed w/ the credit agencies is it, it is when I got the first letter, or talked to them on the phone for the first time? mr. nobody fucked around with this message at 02:52 on Feb 2, 2013 |
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Feb 2, 2013 02:27
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I came home today to find a notice that there was an attempt to deliver a certifed letter to me. The sender is a local collection attorneys office. About two years ago I had to have some pretty major emergency heart surgery that wound up totaling ~$200k. After I was finished making arrangements with everyone I owed for the procedure, the total debt I owed was reduced to about $10k. Ive tried talking to the collection agency over the last couple of years to see about settling the debt, but was never met with anything but hostility. Any payment options they were open to were grossly outside what Im capable of paying. Im pretty sure Im being sued for this $10k now and I have absolutely NO idea what I should be doing. I havent actually signed for this certified letter yet(if that makes any difference). What kind of steps can I be taking in the meantime and what kind of things could happen if I am being sued? I have no assets to be seized nor do I have any kind of savings they could go after. Im in Michigan(seems like pertinent information).
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Feb 2, 2013 22:23
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Gray Stormy posted:What kind of steps can I be taking in the meantime and what kind of things could happen if I am being sued? I have no assets to be seized nor do I have any kind of savings they could go after. Im in Michigan(seems like pertinent information). Do you have wages? They can be garnished before you see the money.
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Feb 3, 2013 04:50
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What good is garnishing someone's wages anyways? If they couldn't pay by collection of assets or savings, what makes anyone think that taking 50% out of your check every week will help pay back whatever it is faster?
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Feb 3, 2013 05:04
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GreenBuckanneer posted:What good is garnishing someone's wages anyways? If they couldn't pay by collection of assets or savings, what makes anyone think that taking 50% out of your check every week will help pay back whatever it is faster? ?? From the creditor's point of view, it's the difference between getting paid and not paid. The person strapped for cash would pay zero (or minimal), but the creditor takes 40% of their wages forcibly. To avoid the next garnishment cycle, people enter voluntary payment arrangements. Sometimes it pushes people into bankruptcy, but for a creditor it's a no-brainer unless there's a payment arrangement already.
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Feb 3, 2013 05:35
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woozle wuzzle posted:?? From the creditor's point of view, it's the difference between getting paid and not paid. The person strapped for cash would pay zero (or minimal), but the creditor takes 40% of their wages forcibly. To avoid the next garnishment cycle, people enter voluntary payment arrangements. Sometimes it pushes people into bankruptcy, but for a creditor it's a no-brainer unless there's a payment arrangement already. If I had no other alternative I'd rather choose bankruptcy in that situation. If I couldn't pay you when asked, I couldn't pay you or even live from my wages being garnished. It would be cruel.
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Feb 3, 2013 06:00
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GreenBuckanneer posted:If I had no other alternative I'd rather choose bankruptcy in that situation. If I couldn't pay you when asked, I couldn't pay you or even live from my wages being garnished. It would be cruel. If debt collectors worried about being cruel, they'd go out of business.
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Feb 3, 2013 18:10
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If I file for bankruptcy, is that going to screw over my wife at all? I'll have to do some reading on the subject. Any good places to start?
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Feb 3, 2013 21:13
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Gray Stormy posted:If I file for bankruptcy, is that going to screw over my wife at all? I'll have to do some reading on the subject. Any good places to start? It depends. On any debt you both owe, she'll still be responsible for. (Example: consigned loans, credit cards under same name, mortgages, etc.). Any debt that is under your name only will be discharged (Example: cc's in your name only, most medical debts, a car loan in your name) Also depending on the state (community property v other) you and her assets may be included in the bk estate. Best place to start reading is either something published by Nolo (https://www.nolo.com) or just schedule an appointment with an attorney in your area.
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Feb 3, 2013 23:34
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GreenBuckanneer posted:If I had no other alternative I'd rather choose bankruptcy in that situation. If I couldn't pay you when asked, I couldn't pay you or even live from my wages being garnished. It would be cruel. That's true. I'd say almost a majority of people I see file bankruptcy do it because a garnishment (or threat of a garnishment) forces their hand. But it's still worth it for the creditors to try, they definitely get paid more than they spend on it. Gray Stormy posted:If I file for bankruptcy, is that going to screw over my wife at all? I'll have to do some reading on the subject. Any good places to start? Let's take a co-signed car as an example: one person files, other doesn't. Unless the debt is reaffirmed, the bankrupting person's name will be stripped off the loan but the loan remains just fine for the non-filing person. So if wife keeps up the loan, her credit doesn't have a hair out of place. If she doesn't... then technically she's the only one holding the bag. For a co-signed credit card, I can imagine scenarios where a card in default goes into a worse status on her credit because of your bankruptcy, but mostly because it wakes up the creditor to correctly collect against it and report. So there are potential effects and it depends on your situation, but in general the answer is no. A bankruptcy attorney (which you need to file) can give you a more specific answer once they've seen your assets and debts. woozle wuzzle fucked around with this message at 00:10 on Feb 4, 2013 |
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Feb 3, 2013 23:45
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Long story short... Defaulted on a BoA credit card. Debt went into collection. I demanded verification of said debt with 30 days of receipt of my letter (I have signed verification they received it). 30 days have now past. Debt is now considered not valid, correct? Meaning I can now send them (BoA and DC) to remove the debt from my tradeline?
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Feb 4, 2013 14:01
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Tide posted:Long story short... You have a limit of 30 days to request validation. They do not have a limit of 30 days to respond.
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Feb 4, 2013 17:08
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Trillian posted:You have a limit of 30 days to request validation. They do not have a limit of 30 days to respond. That can't be right. Everything I've read indicates the whole purpose of the debt verification letter is to require them to prove they own the debt, obtained it legally, yadda yadda yadda. If they don't validate it, they (the debt collector) can't collect and any further attempts after the 30 day window are in violation of the FDCPA. They can't just sit on it, can they?
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Feb 4, 2013 17:56
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Tide posted:That can't be right. No, they can't continue collection actions until they validate.
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Feb 4, 2013 18:09
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There's a lot of misinformation out there from internet folks on different websites. Original Creditors also have different rules and rights than Debt Collection Agencies. These laws were written to prevent innocent folks from being harassed about debt that isn't theirs, now there are ways to use these laws to your advantage when you have debts and people are coming after you trying to collect. The debt doesn't go away because someone makes a procedural error, or doesn't respond to something in the time frame you read about online. Basically at this point like Trillian said, the DCA can't try to collect from you until they validate. The debt is still valid, BofA can report the negative trade line all day long. You might have some luck getting the collection agency trade line off your credit report. This isn't going to just go away though. BofA will just farm it out to another agency and the dance starts over again.
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Feb 4, 2013 20:22
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In all the internetting I've done over the last month or so about debt collectors/agencies and my rights, this site has had the most amount of, and most accurate information about the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and what you can/have to do and what they have to do and in what time frame, etc: https://www.privacyrights.org/fs/fs27-debtcoll.htm There's an assload of links at the end that are helpful as well.
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Feb 5, 2013 02:26
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Canadian citizen and resident here. Just found out that $2500 of medical debt I incurred in the US had been sent to collections and I didn't know about it. Never received a letter or anything. I called them and they said there was nothing they could do about it and wouldn't do an arrangement to lower the balance since it was sent to collections too long ago. Also, their address on file for me was wrong. I updated it with them because I didn't want to lie to the customer service person. I have no plans of returning to the US to work and I don't care about my US credit rating, but I do plan on travelling to the US occasionally as part of my current job, including the state where I incurred the debt. I don't think anything bad will happen to me if I walk away from my debt, but I'm willing to throw them a bone to get it all over with. Should I bring up the fact that they have basically no leverage on me since I'm Canadian to negotiate a pay-for-delete/settlement, or will that just piss them off?
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Feb 5, 2013 16:44
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Saeku posted:Canadian citizen and resident here. Just found out that $2500 of medical debt I incurred in the US had been sent to collections and I didn't know about it. Never received a letter or anything. I called them and they said there was nothing they could do about it and wouldn't do an arrangement to lower the balance since it was sent to collections too long ago. Also, their address on file for me was wrong. I updated it with them because I didn't want to lie to the customer service person. This is a dumb and totally unrelated question, but I would have guessed the Canadian healthcare system would assist with out-of-country medical emergencies. Do they not?
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Feb 5, 2013 19:17
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Saeku posted:Canadian citizen and resident here. Just found out that $2500 of medical debt I incurred in the US had been sent to collections and I didn't know about it. Never received a letter or anything. I called them and they said there was nothing they could do about it and wouldn't do an arrangement to lower the balance since it was sent to collections too long ago. Also, their address on file for me was wrong. I updated it with them because I didn't want to lie to the customer service person. From my own experience, international collection is an expensive process and they won't do anything about it unless it's still profitable. $2500 ain't enough to bother with.
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Feb 5, 2013 19:22
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Delta-Wye posted:This is a dumb and totally unrelated question, but I would have guessed the Canadian healthcare system would assist with out-of-country medical emergencies. Do they not? They do (with some hassle) if you are a resident of the province at the time. The medical debt was incurred when I was studying in the States and I had an ER visit culminating in a stay in a hospital that wasn't an in-network provider for my insurance.
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Feb 5, 2013 20:49
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Saeku posted:Should I bring up the fact that they have basically no leverage on me since I'm Canadian to negotiate a pay-for-delete/settlement, or will that just piss them off? Think about it this way: if you do piss them off what's the worst that could happen? Status quo The best that could happen is they realize their position and work with you. Get everything in writing before paying a cent (canadian or US) because any payment could/will reset the clock(s) on a lot of legal/credit related timeframes. Before you think about any of that, research the statute of limitations. In my state after 3 years for (most) contracts, you cannot have legal action taken against you because the debt has become time-barred. Collection action like telephone calls and letters and reporting to credit agencies can happen for 7 years after the last payment on an account. But after X years all they can do is send you letters and call you (unless you've told them to stop in writing) until the 7 years is up after which they can't do anything at all ever again. mr. nobody fucked around with this message at 01:43 on Feb 6, 2013 |
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Feb 6, 2013 01:38
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mr. nazi posted:Think about it this way: if you do piss them off what's the worst that could happen? Status quo Well, technically, the SOL in most cases will be tolled if you're overseas. In practice though, as long as they don't know you're overseas, they will have no idea that it should be tolled and pursued forever. As a Canadian citizen and resident though, fff, they can't do anything that's worth doing over $2500. It's a write-off. Also, feel free to lie to debt collectors, and if they can't find you, that's their problem, not yours.
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Feb 6, 2013 03:34
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Pro-PRC Laowai posted:Also, feel free to lie to debt collectors, Couldn't this could backfire if you end up in court? I'd want to be the credible plaintiff/defendant and show how they are the ones that are to be less believed. edit: generally speaking, not as it relates to mr. canada up there
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Feb 7, 2013 01:42
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Is the info in the OP still valid if the debt is much older than 30 days? My sister lives halfway across the country and we don't talk very often, but she mentioned having some debt in collection that was like a year old. I assume at this point there isn't much to do besides try to get a smaller settlement and make sure they do pay for deletion, right? Or is it still worth sending a letter off for debt validation? edit: Also, just remembered, I'm curious about my own situation as well. I'm not actively in debt anymore, but about a week ago I settled with a collections agency over some $50 bill or another before I knew anything about this thread and all the useful advice within. I just paid it out because, to be honest, all the hassle wasn't worth $50. However, since I didn't specify anything, I'm fairly certain it didn't get deleted, but just marked "paid in full" or whatever. Is it possible to call back and try to get them to delete it, or is too late? Honey Badger fucked around with this message at 06:01 on Feb 7, 2013 |
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Feb 7, 2013 05:43
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Delta-Wye posted:This is a dumb and totally unrelated question, but I would have guessed the Canadian healthcare system would assist with out-of-country medical emergencies. Do they not? I'm in Canada and work in out of country medical claims adjudication - not only does the Canadian healthcare system pay a pittance compared to what the US providers bill, there is also a strict filing deadline (in most cases 1 year following the date of service, in some provinces as little as 6 months).
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Feb 7, 2013 05:50
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Yeah, honestly I can understand why the Canadian government wouldn't pay for an out of country expense, especially when that country is the United States.
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Feb 7, 2013 06:13
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Honey Badger posted:edit: Also, just remembered, I'm curious about my own situation as well. I'm not actively in debt anymore, but about a week ago I settled with a collections agency over some $50 bill or another before I knew anything about this thread and all the useful advice within. I just paid it out because, to be honest, all the hassle wasn't worth $50. However, since I didn't specify anything, I'm fairly certain it didn't get deleted, but just marked "paid in full" or whatever. Is it possible to call back and try to get them to delete it, or is too late? Is it on your credit report? You need to check. If it's there, it's 99% that you can't do anything about it, but if it's not there you have fair odds at it never being there.
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Feb 7, 2013 06:47
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baquerd posted:Is it on your credit report? You need to check. If it's there, it's 99% that you can't do anything about it, but if it's not there you have fair odds at it never being there. Yeah, it's on there. It wasn't a major hit or anything, but it would be nice to take it off since every little bit helps, of course. So once I settle for them without getting deletion in the deal, it's too late? If so, at least I'm glad I know about it for the future.
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Feb 7, 2013 07:03
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Honey Badger posted:Yeah, it's on there. It wasn't a major hit or anything, but it would be nice to take it off since every little bit helps, of course. So once I settle for them without getting deletion in the deal, it's too late? Ask yourself why they would accommodate any requests from you at this point. Unless you are essentially bribing them with more money (which may be (is?) illegal), they benefit most from doing nothing.
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Feb 7, 2013 07:13
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Roger_Mudd posted:*** I'm not your lawyer, probably not licensed to practice law in your state *** I'm being sued by a collector in Collin County TX for a $5K credit card that was charged off a couple of years ago. Are you available for hire or can you recommend a lawyer that would be able to handle this case. I was served last night.
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Feb 7, 2013 20:51
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What happens if you've never been served? I have a few things that showed up on my credit history that are old medical bills I didn't realize I owed - all the contact information was hosed up and I never received the original bills and when they went to collections I never received notice. Should I send a verification request via mail? Oh how I don't want to deal with creditors and as long as they have the wrong contact info I don't really have to :P I would like to pay for delete and never have to think about it again, but I'm not sure what the first step should be.
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Feb 7, 2013 21:25
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Just pulled my credit report - I have two negative bylines that drop off the report in six months - both for an unpaid credit card I racked up when I was like, 20 and never paid off. The first is from the actual issuer and the second is from the debt collector they sold it too (hmmm, isn't that funny that a credit card with a $400 limit is suddenly somehow a debt of over $2,000? Oh, you silly silly debt collectors.) I don't have any major purchases coming up but I will be filling out a FAFSA and potentially applying for student loans this month. Am I better off contesting or just letting it fall off? Another weird one, a collection for $184 from my current credit union from two years ago... except I've maintained an account with them the whole time, dont have any lines of credit through them or anything... very strange. I'm going to investigate that one. That's so low I'd even just pay for delete, its just odd.
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Feb 7, 2013 21:31
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MAKE NO BABBYS posted:Just pulled my credit report - I have two negative bylines that drop off the report in six months - both for an unpaid credit card I racked up when I was like, 20 and never paid off. The first is from the actual issuer and the second is from the debt collector they sold it too (hmmm, isn't that funny that a credit card with a $400 limit is suddenly somehow a debt of over $2,000? Oh, you silly silly debt collectors.) I don't have any major purchases coming up but I will be filling out a FAFSA and potentially applying for student loans this month. Am I better off contesting or just letting it fall off? I can not and will not address your question but you might consider keeping proof of the date of that debt as currently reported. In case something changes.
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Feb 7, 2013 22:51
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Are general questions about bankruptcy OK ITT? If so... I've already made the decision to declare personal bankruptcy, and since I have no assets to speak of that could be seized, I would like to try for Chapter 7. I'm a bit confused by this whole 'means test' thing, though. I did a preliminary consultation with a bankruptcy mill firm (don't think I'll be using them for a few different reasons) and they were getting actual expense figures from me to measure against my household income. However, I've read elsewhere that the means test is based on 'allowances' that are arbitrary, not what you are actually paying for rent, utilities, food, etc...all of your expenses. If those allowances (which are apparently based on your locality) total to a larger amount than your net income, you pass the means test and can file for Chapter 7. If not, you must file for Chapter 13 and pay back a portion of your total debt over time. I'm finding conflicting information about the means test. Can anyone tell me how it really works and how I can determine whether I should try for Chapter 7?
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Feb 8, 2013 04:41
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Powdered Toast Man posted:Are general questions about bankruptcy OK ITT? If so... The allowances are based on IRS figures. The important and preliminary concern should be your yearly income. If its under the median income for your area, your done. If its over, you gotta mess with the expenses part. Good over view: http://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/chapter-7-bankruptcy-means-test-eligibility-29907.html
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Feb 8, 2013 05:22
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If you're not wildly passing or failing the means test, then only an attorney can tell you if you qualify. If you're gross taxable is clearly under, you clearly pass (this varies by state, in VA the minimum is around $54k for an individual, $92k for family of 4). If you make over around $150k net you will probably fail no matter what. If you're in between, only a bankruptcy lawyer can read the tea leaves. I don't say that to make lawyers sound like wizards, but there are exceptions on top of exceptions and you will almost guaranteed be way off in any calculations. The law is exceptionally twisted, almost to intentionally make it so anyone above the poverty line needs an attorney. As roger_mudd says, it's a 2 part test. First you examine whether you're under the IRS threshold. If so, you pass, end of test. If not, then you examine the monthly disposable income and there are a ton of exemptions. But what counts as income for the first part is not simple, nor is determining the threshold in some cases. For the second part, calculating your disposable monthly income basically not possible for you. You could spend a week researching it, and you'll still be off. Just have a bankruptcy attorney run it. Find another one that you're more comfortable with. They don't want to file a case and have it fail... there's a strong incentive for them to get it right. woozle wuzzle fucked around with this message at 05:51 on Feb 8, 2013 |
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Feb 8, 2013 05:31
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