West Asset Mgmt-What debtors think and how you should deal with the CA

By Good Nelly

Ask Nelly

West Asset Management, Inc. is a third party collection agency that purchases junk debts from creditors and collects payment on the accounts. It is a subsidiary of West Corporation. West Asset Management, Inc. is based in Georgia.

Debtors' feedback on West Asset Mgmt

Debtors dealing with West Asset Mgmt have talked about their experiences with the CA in our forums. Read through their experiences and get an idea as to whether the company is good to deal with.

• Not validating debt: According to debtors, West Asset Management collection agency may not validate debt and disclose any information on the dues even after repeated requests. They may call you for payments on accounts that have already been disputed with the original creditors.
  
  One consumer requested the CA to provide a bill which would mention the services for which the CA required him to pay. But West Asset Mgmt repeatedly denied to hand over any statement of the balance owed. Instead, they asked the consumer to prove that he didn't owe the money.
• Suspected scam: Some consumers have received calls from West Asset Mgmt regarding dues which they didn't owe at all. Some of them had no credit card balances and they were current on their bills. They didn't even face identity theft. So, consumers suspect West Asset Mgmt may be involved in scams.
  
  One consumer claims that West Asset Management had called her relatives just to find out who was handling her deceased husband's estate. Neither the consumer nor her deceased husband owed money to any creditor/CA. It was surprising as to how the CA got the contact details of the relatives whose names were not referred on any of the applications. When the consumer tried calling the company, his call was put on hold repeatedly and he didn't get any response in this regard.
• Offensive messages: Some consumers have complained about West Asset Management, saying that the CA calls at odd hours of the day and sends offensive text messages.
• Threatening calls: Consumers have reportedly received threatening calls from West Asset Mgmt for past due accounts. The CA has threatened to pull out consumers' credit reports and withdraw money from their accounts without authorization.
• Harassing calls and rude behavior: One consumer has reported that West Asset Management harassed him for an account which was being paid through another program. The CA claimed that they have received this debt only a few days ago and that they've begun their procedures to collect it.
  
  The consumer said that the bill was already settled and that they've started paying under another program. The CA didn't like it and behaved rudely and in an unprofessional manner. They stated that the consumer should make payments to the CA only. This meant that the consumer should pay off the debt twice. The consumer simply denied making payments to the CA as a result of which the latter threatened to pull out their credit reports and find out if at all the debt was resolved.
• Calling the wrong person for payments: According to one consumer, West Asset Management collection agency had been calling on his contact number that belonged to someone else formerly. The CA harassed him repeatedly for someone else's debt. The consumer requested them to quit calling. But every time he made such a request, the CA hung up on him.

How to deal with West Asset Management

If West Asset Management collection agency harasses you for payments, and you're not sure whether you owe the money, then request them for a validation of debt. If they can prove that you owe the debt, then check the Statute of Limitation (SOL) in your state. If your account has exceeded the SOL, then you should not start payments again. This is because the SOL will be renewed and CA may get a chance to sue you in case you're in payment problem.

If the SOL isn't over yet, negotiate a repayment plan with West Asset Mgmt. You may also request a settlement of your debt in case you can't pay off the balance in full. If you don't feel free to negotiate with the CA, you may seek help from debt settlement companies who'll do it on your behalf.

In case the debt is already paid back, and West Asset Mgmt keeps harassing you for payments, send a Cease and Desist letter to the CA. Let them know that you're well aware of the FDCPA laws and they should stop all communication with you since the account is already paid off. You'll need the contact details as given below:

West Asset Management, Inc.
2253 Northwest Pkwy SE
Marietta, GA 30067-8764
Phone: (888) 433-2886
Fax: (770) 618-3742

If you can't get rid of harassment by the CA, file a complaint with the FTC or State Attorney General. You can get contact details of the State Attorney General from a listing available in the website of National Association of Attorneys General ("http://www.naag.org/").