My husband has a past debt w/ Sears. The debt was forwarded to allied interstate and my husband and MIL made a payment to Allied and they agreed over the phone to payment arrangements. They even gave them our bank acct info. When I found out they did this, I was upset as you can imagine b/c they didn't get anything in writing. I asked my husband to call them in November to get something in writing stating what we owed and our agreement. Of course, they showed that they didn't have a record of the agreement and that we owe them the full amount. So, I came upon this website which has been EXTREMELY helpful and found a letter posted by "Roxette" (btw, thank you very much! It was a well worded letter) and sent that letter to Allied.

Now just a few days ago, we received a letter from a law office regarding the Sears debt, but the creditor is now LVNV Funding which is now confusing. What happened to Allied? So, my MIL calls this law office and they agree to settle the debt. I told her we need to get something in writing from the law offices as well as a letter when the settlement is PIF.

I just hope this isn't a ripoff since we have already made payments to Allied and the law office said they don't have any type of record of payment.

Any advice? My MIL said she will pay the settlement debt but I don't want to pay all the interest and everything else that has accrued. It's now almost 3 times what the original debt was. Any ideas?

[john]

Desha,

You must be having the bank statements showing the debits made by Allied for this account. This will serve as a proof of your money sent to them. Even if Allied is not willing to send you anything in writing but they have to update your accounts with the bureaus. Otherwise, it will result fraudulent activities and you have the legal rights to take actions against Allied Interstate. You can take the help of your bank and place a dispute with Allied on each of the debit made by them. They will have to verify each of them properly and in writing.

Now, you are suddenly getting calls from LVNV requesting you to pay off the same account. How do you come to know whether they are actually holding your account legitimately? The federal laws give you the legal rights to ask for debt validation from any collection agency attempting collections.

In this debt validation letter, all the details of your account will be properly itemized. All the money that has been paid towards this account through Allied will also come into picture. If you don't find such details, take suitable actions against Allied with the help of your lawyer.

If LVNV has not given you the details of this account correctly, dispute with them on the items. They will verify it with Sears and bring you the corrected info.

You must try a free counseling for professional guidance. The consultants know how to speak the language of the collection agents. The counseling offered to me by this website was very helpful. I hope it's the same for you too.

Don't ever acknowledge debt that is out of the statute of limitations and purchased by "zombie debt" collectors. ALWAYS dispute these debts. The reason has nothing to do with YOUR ethics, but THEIRS. They buy these debts pennies on the dollar and then attempt to get you to acknowledge them as the *legitimate* carrier of the debt. Once you do so, the debt is "re-aged" and the clock on your report starts all over. NEVER acknowledge a zombie collector who purchases a debt as the "new" lender. All you have to do is send a DV letter to bring it to a halt. But ALWAYS dispute the debt - and NEVER acknowledge the debt - with these zombie collectors.

[david]

Expiry of the statute does not restrict the collection agency from attempting collections. It is the consumer who needs to be well aware of the statute laws before making any agreement.

Disputing the debt is very important whenever collectors send you the account details in writing. If you do not respond to their letter, they might take actions against you for not paying the debt. Although this is not legal, but they can file a court case and make you pay the debt legally. I understood this fact after the thread below.

http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com...ollection.html

You were on my credit report and I have no clue why i owe you 2406.00

[john]

Nicole, I guess you are mistaken with the company you are looking for. This is a forum that discusses about various debt issues. What's the name of the company shown in your credit report?

algun latino o alguien que sepa espanol

the payroll clerk in my office called me and said someone had called her and told her they wanted to garnish my wages for a student loan from 14 years ago. she gave me the number to call this man back and it was someone from allied interstate. he said he wouldn't garnish my wages if i would make payment arrangements with him and let him debit the payments out of my checking account. Are they able to garnish my wages. I thought my loan was paid off years ago. Any suggestions?

[good.nelly]

Hi Shari
collection agencies harassing people is nothing new. They can threaten you that they will sue you, sell your property, garnish your wages... the list is endless. Do not be scared just be familiar with your rights. Collection agencies trap people by coercing them to pay. You send allied interstate a debt validation letter via certified mail with a return receipt requested.

[cajunbulldog]

Shari just to add if these are indeed student loans,no judgement is needed to proceed with Admin. garnishment.I would contact the department of education immediately as this type of loan has no sol and cannot be discharged even thru bankruptcy.Once you receive documentation of your loan,request to rehab it.This is the best way to deal with a collector regarding student loans.

You have been adding every month to my CREDIT REPORT, this is ILLIGAL. There has been no desicion on this as yet. I have contacted my attorney, and you MUST remove them and do NOT add any more. Under the Gov. Fair Lending Law.
When the courts make a decision then it will be decided.
Since I'm on a fixed income And youve ran this up so high, I doubt it will be in your favor.

Sharie, you have posted on the wrong forum!