What can I do if I am being sued by Palisades collection agency?

Ok, So I received a letter from W&A on behalf of Pallisades on 11/18/2006. I never received a final bill from AT&T so I understood that I did indeed owe money. The letter I received made reference to a website where I could go to setup monthly payments. I immediately went to the computer and set up a one time payment of $125.00 to be withdrawn on 1/22/2007 and monthly payments of $250.00 until paid in full. I awoke Saturday to find out that I was being served by Pallisades. They included a nice little note that I could call to make scheduled payments to avoid the law suit. I called them this afternoon and told them not only what day I set up online payments but the time. They replied that they had no notes of this. They also stated that W&A was no longer handling it... it was back in there control? Well I checked my account today and there it was... a web payment to W&A for $125.00. It seems to me that W&A would have known I set up a payment schedule using their website and would have reported it to Pallisades. Pallisades is now telling me that I have to have payment arrangements with them too??? It was also my understading that if the debt was listed by AT&T on your credit report, that CA's could not list it again. Also, Isn't it illegal for a CA to portray themselves as attorneys? Sorry so long winded but I'm not really sure what my rights are here.

Did you set it up that all future payments are also withdrawn automatically?If you did I would definitley notify your bank to stop all future transactions until you get this straightenend out.

Next send out DV letters to both W&A, and Palasides to see if either actually has your account.

Did you actually get a summons or did they just state that they were going to sue you? You can check your local court clerks office to see if a suit was actually filed.

As for the credit report it can be listed twice as long as the original is listed closed/sold with a zero balance.

Also on the web where you paid W&A were you able to print anything out for your records, if so definitley keep them .

Hope this helps some!

I did set up all future payments to be withdrawn automatically. I was served by the County S.O. early Saturday morning. Also the amount on the summons differs from the amount on the paperwork from W&A/Palisades by about $900.00. Palisades says the 900$ they had on the paperwork from the 18th of november includes court fees and back interest. But how could it include court fees if they hadn't filed ANYTHING with the court until AFTER 12-4-06 and the court papers are 900$ less? Forgive my ignorance, but what is DV?

DV means debt validation.ITS a letter you send certified mail to the collector asking for complete details of the account. You can ask them for a complete breakdown of fees and things.You can go to the Do It Yourself section here and get sample letters.Or I'm sure someone will come along soon and post alink to one.I'M not real sure how to do the link things yet.

My summons actually went up by about 1600.00. It included attorney fees(W&A)
and the filing fee at the local magistrate.The only thing I could figure out why yours would be less is if the Palasides is doing it on their own now it is minus the fees for W&A.

Do you happen to know how old this account is?

Atleast 2 and a half years old

When is your hearing set for? Also as I said before send them out a dv letter as soon as possible. Send it out certified mail/return receipt as soon as possible that way you have proof that they signed for it and received it. They still have to prove their case if it gets to court. And from what your saying you were trying to resolve it.Keep everything you have,payments, etc as proof of your efforts if it gets to court.

Hopefully it all works out for you and hope some of what I said helped you.

it is set for 3-15-07.

Do anyone know the different companies that Palisades collect for. I understand Chase is one, Washington Mutual is another one, is there any others ones.

Hello everyone,

I'm a NJ resident, went trow a very ugly divorce that ripped me off..

How long that is usually take for collectors to sue from the date of my last credit card payment?

I actually was trying to do this ("when I am ready financially, and that could take up to 2 years!") after some told me I can make a deal with them and come to an agreement, example: if my debt it's 80,000 it could be cut to 70 to 40%

Is filling bankrupt is a good idea?

Thank You For All The Help

It depends on how agressively they litigate. Some are naturally more willing to work with you than others. If you use the google search built into the website and search for your collectors, you might get an idea of how frequently they persue debts through lawsuits.

It should be your last resort--it can be a difficult process, and will cause some damage to your credit report. I recommend you sign up with this site and give your phone number. A credit counselor will call you shortly afterward, and go over your financial picture. They'll help you explore your options, you might have a better idea of how to proceed. You don't have to use their services, and if you choose a company to help you get through your sitch, make sure you check them out thoroughly (BBB, this website, FTC, your state's AG, etc...).

I am also dealing with Palisades. I wrote them and asked them for verification and what they sent me back was not true verification. I will write to them again. What happens if your case makes it to court and you are unemployed, unable to work and on social security?

American express

Palisades sold my account to an attorney's office locally in San Diego, CA. It's worth $4,900. I was never actually served. Anyway, I worked out a payment plan with them but they refuse to remove the $70 summons fee despite me never having been served. How can they charge me for something like that? It's like charging me for the paper and ink toner they used to print out notes on my case.