is Goggins & Lavintman, PA commiting a fdcpa violation
Date: Tue, 10/10/2006 - 10:11
The federal laws restrict the collectors from calling after rece
The federal laws restrict the collectors from calling after receiving the cease and desist letter from you. Did you send the mail with a return receipt requested? That receipt will be your proof that they have received your letter and must stop contacting you thereafter.
I will be worried of this company because they are not depositing your checks. Do you know why this is happening?
Maybe they did not deposit your checks because they don't accept
Maybe they did not deposit your checks because they don't accept checks to cover a bad check? I can't think of any other reason for them to not accept your checks. Can anyone tell me if the same federal rules apply to returned checks and collecting on those that apply to other debts?
IN technicality, if you have confirmation they received the fax,
IN technicality, if you have confirmation they received the fax, then they are violating. The problem with CMRR, is the recipient can refuse to accent delivery (refuse to sign) for the letter. CMRR this is widely accepted as the way to go in documenting your actions, as even if they refuse to accept the letter it will be returned to you after a while so noted. Another option would be to send it priority first class mail w/ certification of Mailing and delivery confirmation. This is slightly more expensive than CMRR (about fifty cents or so) , but the recipient cannot refuse to accept it, and the USPS has record of the date and time the letter was delivered. AS the delivery confirmation is a service of the US Postal service, and a matter of public record it is self authenticating and indisputable.
Generally, never pay any collection agency or attorney with a personal check. Spend the extra money for money order or cashiers/certified check, and have the piece of mind ( and receipts) to show the payment was actually made.
this is aucally me.. i forgot to log in... well they sent the ch
this is aucally me.. i forgot to log in... well they sent the checks back to me.. u know if they will work with t&c.. should i fax them a letter stating it?
I received a call and letter from this firm last week saying I o
I received a call and letter from this firm last week saying I owe on a check that bounced to a local company. I checked with my bank and it did bounce, but as soon as I found out, I paid it immediately to the company. I also had a sheriff certify that it was taken care of. This company is telling me I still owe them the money even though I have certification from my counties sheriff and the company that everything is fine. I'm pretty sure this company is fraud.
How do we find out if this is a legitimate company. I called and
How do we find out if this is a legitimate company. I called and talked to someone at the office, and asked for explanation of the debt they were trying to collect. The person started yelling at me and then hung up on me. I am very leary about giving them a credit or debit card number over the phone. Please advice
Goggens & Lav - Tom Waters
I got a call from them today at work. they left a cryptic message about a debt. I had talked to them 6 months ago. I called back and "Tom" started out reasonable. I told him that I had talked to someone there before, and had proof of payment for the bad debt. he started yelling at me, saying i never talked to anyone there, and told me to shut up and then he hung up. i called back and was luckily got "Tom" again. All i got to say was "is this Tom?", and he started yelling again. i never got a another word in. he gave me a fax number to send a copy of the proof to, then hung up.
We are getting calls from them but have done some research and w
We are getting calls from them but have done some research and we are forwarding them to a lawyer that has done wonders with collectors that break the fdca law. He is looking into it for us and protecting us from futher harrassment. the messages here make me glad we have this other option.
Plain and simple - if you owe a debt - pay it! Then collectors w
Plain and simple - if you owe a debt - pay it! Then collectors would have nothing to call you about.
Remember that Collectors are people too - its not like they take the job because as children they aim to be one some angry debt collector. Also keep in mind that the job is hard, they spend the majority of their day speaking to people who are mean/rude/vulgar from the minute they pick up the phone. People who are upset at their situation - no money, not able to afford to get by - tend to take it out, even on the nicest of collectors - only because they do not wish to be reminded of present circumstances.
Collectors are just doing their job - albiet some do it unproffesionally, but the point remains the same - if you paid the debt to begin with, it wouldnt make it to a collection agency/attorneys office.
In terms of fake agencies - Google the company name, check out their website, call the BBB (Better Business Bureau) in their state - If they were fake - why would someone waste their time working for them?? I know I wouldn't go to work if I knew the company I worked for was just out to scam someone!
In terms of letters - an agency only needs to notify of the debt being placed with them. When you recieve that letter you have 30 days to dispute the validity of the debt. The letter will tell you the steps you need to take to do so. It will also advise you that if you do not dispute it in that 30 days, than the balance is owed.
Payments over the phone - are you all aware that if you give a company permission to take money from your account on a certain day - and they remove it on a different date - you can sue the agency! Most agencies will tell you they only accept payment over the phone as a means to help you - with that payment set on the account, the client; i.e. The store, the bank, the company you owe, can see that you have intention to take care of it before they move the account further. (Another agency or an Attorneys office) If you do not have an active account or are still not comfortable with it - MoneyGram or Western Union is usually an option - and you can call the collector back with the tracking number as proof you sent it.
Also keep in mind that agencies/offices do keep very good notes. What you say is documented on your account, so if you have been repeatedly rude to collectors at the same company - of course they will have the "harshest" collector there call you next. That is their job - to assist you in finding a way to pay the debt that you owe. It is NOT their fault that you bounced the check, ran up a credit card bill so high that you cant afford to pay it, or terminated phone service and owe an early termination fee. It IS their JOB to collect the money.
Their notes also document things like payments - when to run it & for how much. If there are multiple payments, all are documented in the notes from that conversation. If you set a payment plan with many payments, you will generally recieve a notice in the mail 7-10 days before the payments process's to remind you.
Also keep in mind that just because you havent heard from anyone about a debt in a significant amount of time, does NOT mean it went away. It generally means that the account was moved to another agency/office. Eventually, they WILL find you again. Collectors will utilize what services they need to, to locate a debtor.
All and all - if you dont want to deal with collectors - than pay your bills/fees/accounts/overdrafts and so on - then we would all put collectors out of work! :)
ann i can tell you are one of these scum bag dedt collectors, a
ann
i can tell you are one of these scum bag dedt collectors, a few are decent people and do their jobs CORRECTLY. most don' t, a friend of mine that is a dedt lawyer makes about 3 mill a year prosicuting these people.
my advice is to get a good atterny like Larry p. Smith here is his site
Deleted url per forum TOS - ND
wow, a lot of points to address... first, to the OP, there is
wow, a lot of points to address...
first, to the OP, there is another violation of the FDCPA that I dont see anyone has addressed here. You said that they have spoken to you, and then you said that they still call your parents and your cell phone. This could actually be two separate violations. First, they are NOT permitted by law to contact ANY third party--including your parents--once they know where to contact you directly. That is a direct violation of the FDCPA all day long. The only way that it isnt a violation is if you live in the same house as your parents.
Next, they call your cell phone. Many cell phone plans charge you a certain amount of money for a certain number of minutes, which effectlvely gives you a rate that you pay per minute. It is against the FDCPA for a debt collector to use ANY METHOD OR MEANS to attempt to collect a debt that will cause you to have to pay money for it. A case could be argued that calling your cell phone costs you additional money.
OK, now, let's move on to Ann's post.
Quote:
Plain and simple - if you owe a debt - pay it! Then collectors would have nothing to call you about. |
well, thats really funny....because in this very same thread, two separate people posted how this debt collector called and harassed them illegally over debts that were no longer owed, but had already been paid. So do us a favor, and try getting a new excuse. Matter of fact, I have myself been the victim of identity theft, and have had debt collectors call about supposed debts from states that I didnt even LIVE IN...so again, spare us the tired old crap.
It is completely true that many people owe debts. So what? Where the hell does that make it acceptable for ANY debt collector to act the way they do? Do you ever wonder why people hate dealing with debt collectors so much? It COULDNT be because most of them are acting in a criminal fashion, could it?? Gee, I didnt think so.
Quote:
Remember that Collectors are people too - its not like they take the job because as children they aim to be one some angry debt collector. Also keep in mind that the job is hard, they spend the majority of their day speaking to people who are mean/rude/vulgar from the minute they pick up the phone. People who are upset at their situation - no money, not able to afford to get by - tend to take it out, even on the nicest of collectors - only because they do not wish to be reminded of present circumstances. |
Here's a shocker for you--more than half of all debt collection employees in this country have bad credit themselves, and owe debts themselves. SO LET ME ASK YOU A SIMPLE, SERIOUS QUESTION--why the hell are so many debt collectors pretending that they are entitled to act like heartless pricks, even going as far as to repeatedly BREAK LAWS, when they themselves are at the same time on the receiving end of debt collectors in their own finances? DONT YOU THINK that the old adage "you get more bees with honey" could actually work?
But hey, what do I know? I'm just a guy that has a background in bail enforcement. And in my experience, when someone willfully and repeatedly chooses to ignore the laws in favor of their own personal benefit, there's a name for them......we call them CRIMINALS. They are called CRIMINALS in every other facet of our society.....except for two places. Politics, and debt collectors.....try using a little gray matter on that for a while.
Quote:
Collectors are just doing their job - albiet some do it unproffesionally, but the point remains the same - if you paid the debt to begin with, it wouldnt make it to a collection agency/attorneys office. |
See above, once again this old excuse has been worn out a LONG time ago. You just read in thsi thread two cases where a debt was already paid, not at all still owed, and yet it DID make it to the CA. Thanks for playing.
Quote:
In terms of letters - an agency only needs to notify of the debt being placed with them. When you recieve that letter you have 30 days to dispute the validity of the debt. The letter will tell you the steps you need to take to do so. It will also advise you that if you do not dispute it in that 30 days, than the balance is owed. |
That is 100% false. They do NOT only need to notify that they have the debt. FDCPA strictly requires that within 5 days of initial communication, they must provide written notice to the consumer that contains two things:
1--a description of the debt in question.
2--a full disclosure of the consumer's rights under federal law.
It is NOT enough to say "we have the account in our office for collection." And many debt collectors do not even send that initial dunning letter to begin with. The average consumer that has debts in collection has never been made aware of their rights under the law....
One final tidbit on this point--the law, namely the FDCPA, makes it clear that if a consumer does not dispute the debt within the first 30 days, that the debt CANNOT BE ASSUMED TO BE VALID. In other words, if pushed by the consumer later on, especially if that consumer is sued by the debt collector, then the proof must be provided.
Quote:
Also keep in mind that agencies/offices do keep very good notes. What you say is documented on your account, so if you have been repeatedly rude to collectors at the same company - of course they will have the "harshest" collector there call you next. That is their job - to assist you in finding a way to pay the debt that you owe. It is NOT their fault that you bounced the check, ran up a credit card bill so high that you cant afford to pay it, or terminated phone service and owe an early termination fee. It IS their JOB to collect the money. |
Some CAs keep good notes. Some of the ones I dealt with couldnt possibly fall into that category. Example, I was dealing with one of the largest CAs in the country, on a debt they claimed my wife opened. It was a credit card account, and they claimed she opened it after we were married. One dmall problem, they claimed it was opened in her maiden name, a name that at the time they claimed she was using it, was no longer even on her driver's licensed or SSN card. I recorded every phone call, and when one of their "supervisors" claimed that a conversation I was telling him about had never taken place, I played part of the tape for him. He had NO notes that the call had even taken place, let alone anything that was said on that call. Luckily for me, I had all the recorded evidence I needed. That debt collector never called again, because I had enough to prove multiple FDCPA violations and they couldnt even produce as much as one supposed monthly statement on this "credit card account". I told him where they could go, and said that they were about to get sued if they didnt seek life elsewhere. Havent heard from them since.
then again, the whole tactic you just described about using the "harshest collector" is blatant harassment and therefore illegal. I would love to see you try that one when calling my house.
I wonder how they get the information....i have 2 different "law
I wonder how they get the information....i have 2 different "law offices" calling me about the same check. They have just enough information to possible be true. It has been 3 years since i cancelled a check they say they are collecting on.