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cedarsmom · Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2006 6:57 pm Subject: Summons from Midland Credit Management

I've posted several times in the past month or so. To sum things up, I pulled 2 credit reports and found many discrepancies and on the Experian report, found when the debts were "scheduled to continue on until..". I haven't sent any disputes to the CRAs yet, although I'll be working on it tomorrow. I'll be disputing the Equifax report since it has N/A on date opened, date of status, date of last payment. No information whatsoever.

I had gotten a letter last month from Holloway & Moxley in Montgomery AL, saying that their client, Midland Credit, referred the past due account to them. It didn't come out and say that they were Midland's attorney, it said that it was an attempt to collect a debt and I had 30 days to dispute it. The debt in question was for a credit card I had gotten in 1999 and quit paying on it in 2000. It's clearly out of the SOL and on the Experian report, scheduled to drop off in March 2007. The original creditor is Associates and had been bought by Midland. On my credit report, it had some weirdness. Actually, I had 2 Associates cards and one is scheduled to drop off this month.

On the Experian report, it has:
Date Opened: 05/2005
Reported Since: 12/2000
Date of Status: 12/2000
Last Reported: 07/2006

The other Associates account is very similar, but with the Reported Since & Date of Status showing 05/2000.

I have asked this question several times in both this forum and the Credit Repair forum- "Why is the Date Opened later than the Date of Status?" That doesn't make a bit of sense. Is Midland trying to re-age them both? Could someone PLEASE answer that for me? Also, how do I go about finding out when my last payments were and when the accounts were opened? Would I have to contact Associates for that information or could I just contact the credit reporting agency?

Back to the problem at hand.

I had gotten the letter (dated July 18th) on July 22nd. I came to this forum and asked some questions and got a lot of great answers. I sent them a validation letter (see my earlier post) and got their receipt on August 16th. A few days later, I had gotten 2 more letters saying that even though the 30 days weren't up yet, they were still trying to collect. They ceased their phone calls and I haven't heard anything from them. No phone calls, no letters, nothing! I haven't gotten a validation yet.

Today, I got 2 letters in the mailbox. One was from American Mediation & Alternative Resolutions, asking me to hire them to represent me in the civil suit filed against me! It named the civil suit number, the county, Midland, and my name. The other letter was from Backus & Associates LLC, wanting me to hire them as well!

I haven't received a summons yet. I haven't received anything from Holloway & Moxley. I'm assuming they're the ones suing me for Midland since they're located in Montgomery AL.

Did I just piss them off asking for validation? I want to know how I can prove that it's out of the SOL. I don't have the actual cards anymore. I've moved 5 times since I've opened those accounts, so the paperwork is history. But, I know I haven't paid anything or agreed to pay anything since 2000. I haven't talked to these Midland people on the phone or by mail. All I have is the credit report, and that shows some discrepancy with the Date Opened and Dates of Status. Could I contact Associates and ask them to send me paperwork showing the dates of last payment and the contract agreement? Do *I* have to prove this or do the creditors? I've asked for validation and haven't gotten anything. In that validation, I asked them to prove that it was still in the SOL period and to send me copies of the original agreement and payment information.

Please give me some answers. I need help badly. Thanks!

Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:17 pm Subject:

okay--after reading your post, what comes to mind is, when you mailed them the request for validation, did you also send them a cease and desist letter? because if you did, then thats why you haven't heard anything. And in this case (saying that you did send a cease and desist), the only time you would hear from them would be them letting you know that they are planning to sue you. also, you asked if you made them mad by asking for validation?? maybe, but thats neither here nor there, that is your LEGAL right to ask for validation. They can't not give it to you cause you maybe ticked them off. They are also suppose to cease collection activities until they do provide you with proper validation. I'm sure others will be along and offer their insights. I just had to ask you about the cease and desist letter. I do find it very strange that you are hearing from lawyers that are wanting to respresent you and you haven't even heard anything in the way of being sued. Makes me wonder if this is a scare tactic??? shirley

cedarsmom · Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2006 7:51 pm Subject:

I think it's all a scare tactic. I mean, the debt isn't that much anyway and why would an attorney/debt collector knowingly obtain or represent a creditor when they have no information about the debt? If they had information, they would clearly see that it's out of the SOL period.

I used the sample validation letter that's on this website. At the end of it, it had a request to stop all phone calls and to only communicate in writing.

I'm wondering if they sent the letters and at the same time, filed a court judgement. I know they got the validation letter because I have the receipt and they've stopped calling me. I know they can pursue court action within the 30 days of sending the first notice while waiting for me to dispute it. I haven't heard anything about the summons officially though. If they were going to file it, wouldn't it have been done after they receieved the validation letter? And if they filed it after they received a letter, would it be a violation since it'd be considered collection activity?

Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2006 8:11 pm Subject:

well, no, once they get your validation request, they are suppose to cease all collection efforts until they provide you with the validation. I mean, I re-read your post, you got the letter from them and they gave you 30 days to dispute, which you did during that time. The ball is in their park now. In my understanding, Sueing you, would be continued efforts to collect, which they are suppose to cease during that 30 day period. anyone want to jump in here with a thought?

Posted: Fri Aug 25, 2006 8:34 pm Subject:

OH **Snap**!!!
gez, my best friends mother just died and I'm a little out of it. But I am also dealing with Midland over an old fingerhut account. Actually they had the account first, then sent it out to Philips & Cohen. I was making monthly payments to them, every month--on time--things were going great. It started off at about $800. Then when it got below $100--I get a letter from another collection agency saying they have the account now. ONLY I had just mailed a payment to phillips and cohen. SO I call them up and ask what the deal was (me thinking someone else is trying to get money for the same debt). They said the account was pulled by midland and was sold to this other collection agnecy. Then they told me that they were going to send the payment over to them. well, I wrote them, told them that I had sent the payment to phillips & Cohen and they were going to forward it. BUT ALSO, even after they apply that payment, they're still showing that I owe $20 more than what my records show. (Phillips and cohen do send out monthly statements). so, after that, I get ANOTHER letter, only from Midland this time, saying they now have the account. They're still showing the same balance. so far, the payment that I sent to phillips hasn't been applied to my account. I wrote midland, explained the WHOLE story to them. told them that when they get the payment from phillips, to then send me a statement showing that the amount has been applied. also explain to me why its about $21 more. I haven't heard one thing. They're trying to cut me a settlement deal, but its more than what I actually owe!!!
so in the meantime, I am still waiting to hear back from them. nothing so far. shirley

Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 12:35 pm Subject:

If this lawsuit is filed in the legal way and the company is not using it as a scare tactic, the expiry of the SOL period is still valid. Before you go for the court hearing, send a letter to the CA and the OC about the expiry of the SOL. Show the receipt to the judge about the matter being taken care of. The case will be ruled out when you show all the documents to the judge.

cedarsmom · Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 1:30 pm Subject:

Anthony-

So what you're saying is, I should send a letter to Holloway & Moxley about the expired SOL and send one to Midland as well?

Should I contact Associates about the date of last payment before I send those letters, so I can send a copy of the proof? I intend on writing Associates instead of calling. If I ask for the info, will they send it to me?

Shirley-

From the frame of time, I'm going to assume that they filed a lawsuit AFTER they received the validation letter. If that's the case, I'm like you, I believe that it's a violation because it's a collection effort. I ran it across my husband last night (who is a law school student and has been in hog heaven looking at the huge court case database) and he seems to think that H & M thought I wouldn't send them anything disputing the debt (I'd been ignoring letters from Midland) and when I did, they *KNEW* that they didn't have a leg to stand on because they didn't have any validation *TO* send to me. I mean, their initial letter didn't even have a real account number on there. There was no way to tell that I owed that debt at all. So, they decided to sue me to make me scared enough to pay them as a last-ditch effort.

I still haven't gotten anything legal about the lawsuit. So, I don't know if H & M is just a collector or actually an attorney Midland hired. On those letters from those other law offices begging me to hire them, it didn't mention H & M at all.

I don't understand how those other companies can send me stuff, begging me to hire them when I don't even have the papers served yet.

Also, on this fair debt collection website written by a guy that actually lives about 30 minutes away from me, it had an FAQ that asked: "What do I do when I sent a validation letter to the CA and they responded with a summons to appear in court?" From what I'm gathering, pretty much all that will be done would be showing the judge that I sent the validation letter within the 30 days and Holloway didn't send a validation in return. Is that right?

Posted: Sat Aug 26, 2006 2:04 pm Subject:

well, it won't hurt if you keep the companies informed about the facts which they should have given to you in the first place. You are doing what is right for you at this stage. My personal take is to go ahead and send the letter and keep the companies informed about your actions. Keep in mind that your communication should not let them feel that you are trying to avoid the case. Do not make any sort of payment agreement, it can renew the SOL from the beginning and a small payment will also do the same. Be aware of your legal rights while writing the dispute letter. If you hear about a court date, face it confidently. You have covered your basis by that time. Send the letters through certified mail with return receipt requested. Keep copies of everything in your folder for proof.

cedarsmom · Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 2:01 pm Subject:

I still haven't heard anything legally about the summons or lawsuit...

I'm going to write to Associates to try to get them to send me the account opening dates and the dates of last payment.

I believe they were bought out by Citibank.

Anyone have an address or even a phone number??

Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 5:05 pm Subject:

Midland Credit Management, Inc.
8875 Aero Dr. Ste 200
San Diego, California 92123-2255
Phone: (858) 309-6970
Fax: (858) 309-6977

Posted: Wed Aug 30, 2006 5:08 pm Subject:

Most agencies don't get mad about a cease and desist letter. They usualy laugh at how it is copied and pasted from the internet and send it back to the client who will then forward it to another collection agency unless they bought the debt that they will sell for slightly less than they bought it for.

Guest · Posted: Thu Aug 31, 2006 7:28 am Subject:

Yeah... I need Associate's address or phone number. They're the original creditor that would have all of my information.. Not Midland. But thanks!

And I didn't send a cease and desist letter. I sent a validation letter than had one sentence about how they should cease all phone calls and go through mail to communicate with me.

But thanks.

cedarsmom · Posted: Fri Sep 08, 2006 7:16 pm Subject:

I called the circuit clerk today because I still haven't received papers or a summons. She said that they had filed on August 22 and I should get papers any day now. They received my request for validation letter on Aug 16th. I have the receipt. I still haven't gotten any sort of validation.

Now, the debt is clearly out of the SOL. But, all I have to prove that is the Date of Status of 2000 on my credit report and the statement that it will fall off of my report in March 2007. I haven't been able to find any contact info for Associates since they've merged with Citibank to see if they'd send me some account info.

Will a copy of that item on my credit report, a copy of the request for validation letter I sent, and the receipt showing that Holloway & Moxley got it be enough to throw this out?

I'm wondering if it's Holloway & Moxley doing this as Midland's attorney? I didn't send a validation letter to Midland. But, the H & M letter referenced that Midland was their client. So, I'm going to assume that I just needed to send a validation letter to H & M.

Also, since they filed a lawsuit AFTER they received my validation request, it's a blatant disregard to the fair debt collection act? I'm tempted to hire a lawyer and sue them. Of course, I would just get enough money to pay the lawyer. But.. OH! the satisfaction of it.

Once again, do any of you know where I can get any contact information for Associates?? Thanks!

Bones · Posted: Mon Oct 23, 2006 10:28 pm Subject:

cedarsmom,

I am in exatly the same situation as you. I have not taken any action but to ignore their phone calls. They tried to reach me 10 times last week and 3 times today.I think my debt was also from associates and then sold to citybank. Given what you have gone through should I just surrender and pay those gangsters? Is it worth the battle?

The GA of Virgina made MCM drop 3.5 Milions in claims for some 3500 happy Virginians. I wish we such a GA in CA! In Texas 2001 MCM was caught with forgery.

Posted: Sun May 27, 2007 4:50 pm Subject:

I have to go to court on 6/12/07, I got that summons last saturday. Today I got the letter from american mediation and alternative resolution. I just come on here to search and see if there was any post about them, guess I will go search the web. Anyone had any dealings with them?

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