Has this ever happened to anyone?
Date: Sat, 01/20/2007 - 12:07
Ok. Has anyone ever heard of a debt collector not interested in returning a debtors phone calls? I work for the owner of the company as his bookkeeper/personal assistant. I have left 4 messages with the secretary of the lawyer in charge of this debt. No calls back. I stated in my first conversation that I was the bookkeeper and I needed to validate the debt and requested an itemized statement of charges, as we have NO records indicating an account with his client. He never asked for verification to speak with me, and as I am NOT the debtor, I feel he may have made a boo boo here. Then he continued on to insult me and threaten me and my husband, who does not work with me, took the phone and dished out some verbal abuse of his own. Now, I waited two days for things to calm down and decided to email this person. In the email I apologized for my husbands behavior, restated that all I needed was a statement and we could settle this debt. He replied by telling me whoever gave me his email would be sorry,that if he could get me fired it would be all the better and that I am NEVER to contact him again. I am so confused by his behavior and I cant seem to find a good contact at Yellow Pages, the original creditor, to speak with anyone about this crazy person they hired to collect the debt. Any advice? Has this jerk crossed any lines? Defamation of my character, speaking rudely with me, avoiding 2 attempts to pay the debt? Any adivce?
Get the conversation recorded and consult an attorney dealing wi
Get the conversation recorded and consult an attorney dealing with lawsuits of fdcpa violations. He will figure out from the recording whether any violations were done by the CA. First, you should confirm if your state allows recording of the phone calls secretly or you need to take the permission of the other party.
You may also want to send a dv letter to the attorney's office w
You may also want to send a dv letter to the attorney's office who is holding the debt. Send it certified mail with return receipt. This way you will have proof that they received the letter. They can't take any further action until the debt is validated.
Quote:I dont mean to sound stupid, what is a DV letter? Not s
Quote:
I dont mean to sound stupid, what is a DV letter? |
Not stupid at all - a DV letter is a debt validation letter. Ask the CA to send you verification that the debt is actually yours. There are examples of how to write one on this board.
I've never heard of a CA that wants payment made on a debt but isn't willing to speak to you in order to resolve it. Actually, not having them engage you in verbal communication is a good thing. Force them to put their claim in writing. Send them a cease and desist letter asking that they not communicate with you verbally, but in writing only. Send the letter via certified mail with a return receipt. I've done this several times with complete success.
Well, she can't go back and record the conversation now. Whene
Well, she can't go back and record the conversation now.
Whenever I answer the phone and it's a collection agency, I ask them if they are a debt collector and if they say yes, I tell them hold on one moment while I turn my tape recorder on. Then I have them repeat all information. Get all the pertinent information. Who the original creditor was, who are they, the amount they say you owe. Get an adress and phone number. Also, don't admit or say anything. Just take down the info. You can tell them you are disputing the debt over the phone and will be following up with a debt validation letter.
Here is an example of one strongly worded debt validation letter I use.
Quote:
Collection Agency Address Your address Date: November 15, 2006 RE: Account XXXXXX To Whom It May Concern: This letter is being sent to in response to a notice sent to me on October 16th, 2006 as well as numerous telephone calls to my house and other family members by your firm over an alleged debt. I'm sure you are aware of the provisions in the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (fdcpa), and I am requesting validation of this debt. Be advised that this is not a refusal to pay, but a notice sent pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 USC 1692g Sec. 809 (b) that your claim is disputed and validation is requested. I am requesting proof that I am indeed the party you are asking to pay this debt, and there is some contractual obligation which is binding on me to pay this debt. I request that you stop contacting us and any family members, friends, acquaintances and/or any third parties on the telephone and restrict your contact solely with us in writing, and only when you can provide adequate validation of this alleged debt. To refresh your memory on what constitutes legal validation, I am giving a list of the required documentation: ??????? Complete payment history, the requirement of which has been established via Spears v Brennan 745 N.E.2d 862; 2001 Ind. App. LEXIS 509 and ??????? Agreement that bears the signature of the alleged debtor wherein he agreed to pay the original creditor. ??????? Letter of sale or assignment from the original creditor to your company. (Agreement with your client that grants you the authority to collect on this alleged debt.) Coppola v. arrow financial services, 302CV577, 2002 WL 32173704(D.Conn., Oct. 29, 2002) - Information relating to the purchase of a bad debt is not proprietary or burdensome. Debtor must phrase their request clearly to obtain: The source of a debt and the amount a bad debt buyer paid for plaintiff's debt, how amount sought was calculated, where in issue a list of reports to credit bureaus, and documents conferring authority on defendant to collect debt. ??????? Intimate knowledge of the creation of the debt by you, the collection agency. ??????? What the money you say I owe is for; ??????? Explain and show me how you calculated what you say I owe; ??????? Prove the Statute of Limitations has not expired on this account ??????? Provide me with your license numbers and Registered Agent ??????? Show me that you are licensed to collect in my state I'm sure you know, under FDCPA Section 809 (b), you are not allowed to pursue collection activity until the debt is validated. You should be made aware that in TWYLA BOATLEY, Plaintiff, vs. DIEM CORPORATION, No. CIV 03-0762 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE DISTRICT OF ARIZONA, 2004, the courts ruled that reporting a collection account indeed is considered collection activity. If your offices are able to provide the proper documentation as requested in the following Declaration, I will require at least 30 days to investigate this information and during such time all collection activity must cease and desist. Also during this validation period, if any action is taken which could be considered detrimental to any of my credit reports, I will consult with my legal counsel for suit. This includes any listing any information to a credit reporting repository that could be inaccurate or invalidated or verifying an account as accurate when in fact there is no provided proof that it is. If your offices fail to respond to this validation request within 30 days from the date of your receipt, all references to this account must be deleted and completely removed from my credit file and a copy of such deletion request shall be sent to me immediately. I would also like to request, in writing, that no telephone contact be made by your offices to my home, friends, third parties, family members or to my place of employment. If your offices attempt telephone communication with me, including but not limited to computer generated calls and calls or correspondence sent to or with any third parties, it will be considered harassment and I will have no choice but to file suit. All future communications with me MUST be done in writing and sent to the address noted in this letter by USPS. While I prefer not to litigate, I will use the courts as needed to enforce my rights under the FDCPA. I look forward to an uneventful resolution of this matter. Sincerely, |
Additionally; this person on the phone has me thinking this cat
Additionally; this person on the phone has me thinking this cat is hiding something from his employer.......hmmmmmmmm!