Valentine & Kebartas Collections - Has anybody dealt with them?

Valentine and Kebartas is a collection agency. Their address is:

Valentine and Kebartas, Inc.
15 Union Street
Lawrence, MA 01840
(978)975-0799

What does it mean they Charged Off my accout?

A charge off means that the original creditor has declared your account a loss, and sold the debt to a collection agency.

V&K has lawyers working with them. I have heard some really bad things about their collection tactics, so beware of violations of the federal/state law. The good news is they pay when caught.

Does anyone know anything else about Valentine & Kebartas or had an account with them . They really scard me the other day when they called with things they said. I don want to pay them back but I dont have the money right now. I have already paid them $1000.00 and I owed $3000.00 at the start of all this. Anyone have any advice on how to deal with them?

I just got off the phone with a Ms. Scott at V & K. This is an incredibly foul organization. Three weeks ago I had dealings with another individual that Ms. Scott supervises. We had agreed at that time to settle my account with Dell Financial for $600. It was very clear through the conversation that this would close the account and this individual agreed to send me a payoff letter. This evening, after another employee discussed the account with my wife, Ms. Scott got on the phone and proceeded to instruct my wife that they would be deducting approximately $658 a month for the next three months, until I had payed $2574 (the original $600 had been paid). While I admit my balance was more than the $2574, I NEVER agreed in my original dealing with V&K to pay more than $600.
When I asked to speak with the original individual I was told I couldn't speak with him. It was very clear that Ms. Scott did not approve of the deal my guy had arranged and wanted to bully us into accepting her deal. I want to take these people to court, but I am going to need proof of the original deal (Ms. Scott kept asking if I got the deal in writing. Well of course I didn't, even though I was told I would get a payoff letter, none was forthcoming). One question, don't they record these phone calls, and can't I subpoena the call to prove the original deal?
I apologize for the length of this post, but I am furious.

Calls are not necessarily recorded. If I were a shady collection agency, I wouldn't record calls for the exact reason you had in mind. In the future, get the details of anything to be sent to you prior to sending them money. Also, be aware that if this account was in default for a while, you have just reset the clock on the statute of limitations by making the $600 payment.

collection agencies will not admit to having recorded calls when the recordings work against them. If legal in your state, record the calls. It can be proof of your ageement and collection violations.

Ms. Scott sounds like the Mrs. Scott recently fired from AllianceOne.

These people are criminal. Really... THey are threatening, rude, oh I can go on and on. They can intimidate but I wouldn't stand for it. I paid a visit to them and only then did the stop harassing me.
I owed Dell a few hundred that I refused to pay because the laptop sucked and Dell wouldn't fix it underwarranty so I bought something else and stiffed them. Did it hurt my credit score? No, because V&K had to remove it when I disputed the claim because they did not show satifactory evidence from dell that I owed the money. V&K had NO invoice copies thus no proof. All they had were invoice numbers but no invoices!

I got yet more calls from V&K . They called friday and said for me to call them back right away the the RE-Marketer were going to come after the equiptment and all the paper work had been re-activated. They wanted me to call them right away the guy said there was nothing he could do for me any more but he did give me his info for a Western Union to send him some money or I could over night him a certified check or money order. Has anyone ever heard of Re-Marketer's that go out for Dell and get the computer's?

I think it is time more me to contact a attorney about these phone call and this account with V&K.

And I have asked time afer time to get something in the mail from them and I have still got nothing from them at all.

In the short time when I could make no payments at all (I was very poor at the time) I avoided calls from them. The messages they left were threatening and implied strongly that they were a law firm, not a collection agency and they liked to use the word "Action", as in "this has been referred to our firm, and we're filing an Action against you."
My account went to the other agency I posted about who's now not telling the original creditor I paid.

From 1999 to 2005 Bill Collectors and clerical staff at V&K have been stealing money and leased equipment from people all over the country. The scam was pretty simple. A collector would call the debtor explain that X amount of money was owed. This amount represented the actual bill (principle) and collection charges usually %20. The collector would tell the debtor to pay the principle to V&K and send the collection charges to the phoney agency, Muffucci Collections. V&K would report to the client that the principle was paid in full and the account was "settled in full". The collection charges went right into Ellen Muffucci bank account. The issue is that the account was "paid in full" and the debtor didnt get credit for paying the balance. The debtors credit report would list the account as "Settlement accepted on account" when actually the balanced was paid. If collateral was involved the principle was still paid, client was told account was settled in full and also that the equipment was bought. The debtor was told the account was settled but the equipment had to be sent to Muffucci collection. LOTS OF DELL COMPUTERS WERE STOLEN THIS WAY.

They were caught by a client. Ellen Muffucci, the ring leader, was dismissed. No charges were ever filed. NO WAY ELLEN was the only one involved. Fact is someone from the clerical department had to answer a phone call or two. It went on for 7 YEARS !!!

Wanna be a concerned citizen. Contact your congressman. Request an inquiry. All they have to do is review Ellen Muffucci bank records and they will see the depth of this larceny.

Yes i had dealings with Valentine and Kebartas Lawrence MA with a charged off Chase account. they're aggressive, a wee bit nasty and dirty. for i told them for no unknown reason not to call my parents number just call mine and i'd relay the message to my mom who loaned me the money. she use tried to use a check that she was told by her bank that was good. Lo and behold the guy handling my account called both of our numbers three days later telling us we don't take checks. to make other arrangements. my father found out about the incident with upset him very much. we got it paid after i mentioned the deal he told me about when he first called me. then calling him to get an end of obligation letter was a scream i called the collector 5 times getting a your fax isnt working answer my dad called him once and was nasty and the letter was faxed to me 2 hours later. i learned one thing. after this checking accounts for me

Valentine & Kebartas attempts to collect on debts accrued by T-Mobile. T-Mobile extended credit to people who illegally used their employers' ID numbers to open a phone account. Not only is this illegal, but when the individuals default on the account, Valentine and Kebartas Lawrence MA, threaten the employers to try to make them pay. These are small employers who cannot afford to have their credit or their businesses affected. Valentine and Kebartas needs to seriously be investigated by the federal governement for illegal credit practices and mail fraud. I have written to 3 state attorney generals about the T-Mobile incident. Look out, V&K, here I come to get you!

long and short of good advice - when calling them...allow them to leave messages on your answering machine and record them separately for your own records. When calling them back, if you state requires that both parties ona phone need to consent to recording a call then tell them when you call that you are recording the call. That's what I did. Don't be intimidated. Although yu may owe a debt, there are still laws that they are obligated to follow. I have had two contentious conversations with two different representatives from this company. I was denied verbally denied notification in the mail and was threatened that I would be paid a visit from my sheriff to serve me papers. During the second call, after telling a different rep. that I did receive the paper the previous week (after the original call, and that I would be taking a few days to check that with my own records from the original creditor. He tried to pressure/embarras me into not taking the 30 days I am allowed to see if there is a dispute and further told me that there would be no payment plan options...I know this is a lie because I have worked another issue. Be careful and confident with them ...and record your calls(legally).

I just received a collection letter from V&K in the amount of $3.12. I called the number on the letter and was transferred to a man who could not speak english very well. He said the debt was for Cash Transfer and to send a "money order in the mail to the address". I had asked to speak with someone else because of the language issue and he told me "his supervisor said he had been on the phone with me for five minutes and he had to hang up". I had attempted to speak with someone 4 times with no luck. Should I just send them the $3.12 and be done with it? Is this company legite sine he told me to send a money order not a check?

Is it illegal for V&K to threaten your life? If so what can we do?

They are full of hot air. They have been calling us daily for months threatening us. it starts with we are sending the paper work today to garnish wages... if you call us today, we can stop the paperwork. Then, they try to settle on an insane amt. of money in such a short period of time, not even donald trump could make the payments! Then, after one Nasty rude woman speaks to my husband she calls back 20 mins later and when I told her he had left for work, she demands to know where to send the court supena letters to. She accuses me of lying about my husband being at work etc... She tells me that if we aren't retaining a lawyer, we have to represent ourselves etc.. this is all a scare tactic we have heard for months! We have seen nothing in writing etc... Just a repeat of the same old blowing smoke! Just a rude, crude, nasty company!!! Today they called me 4 times in 20 seconds. Yelling in my ear and hanging up on me. I know this has to be illegal. I am going to start recording them and I did call the police for harassment. I have had it with them. We tried to work with them to resolve a debt, but this is ridiculious. No human being deserves to be treated this way. Today, when I told them not to call she yelled in my ear that she would be my Alarm clock! Well, that's an easy fix, my ringer will be off 24/7. Don't let these morons scare any of you! Consider the source of the ungodly who can't get a real compassionate respectable job!!! God Bless Those of us who are having financial difficulties that we will get through this time in our lives and we will prevail! Keep our heads up. Pray Hard. I won't be treated like a low life loser who does not have a job and let them talk to me and treat me the way they have been. I am a hard working Nurse who works hard to take care of others. I could never get away with treating people at work how these rude morons treat me. Best of luck to you all. your good people!

Welcome to the forum KJ.
Here is a link to their website with all their contact information:
http://www.vnkinc.com/contact.htm

You should file complaints with your state's attorney general's office as well as the Federal Trade Commission.

If you would like you could also file suit for violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. That would be $1,000 in statutory damages, plus punitive damages, attorney fees, and court costs.

Wow... what a surprise and relief to find all these comments on V&K...I have received NUMEROUS call from them and I too have avoided many... they are very threatening. I would like to know my rights, or what to do... I owe about 2k to dell, from a year ago, and this law firm has threatened to sue me, and garnish my wages up to 75%... Unless I send them $600 now...and when i told then i couldnt pay that, that i could pay $200 a month to get the $600, then arrange for more reasonable payments, they refused my offer...now they call under PRIVATE NUMBER..they have also left messages to contact them ASAP to arrange a time for them to come pick up the equipment.. This morning was the most recent call and the lady was somewhat reasonable, howere, still wont accept less that $350 now, through a checking account over the phone.. I havent made a payment in probably 10 months.. I was under the impression that as long as you paid something they had to leave you alone...then again, I dont want to start the statute of limitations over either.. Do i need an attny?? Looking for some advice...thanks

Well, first of all I would suggest requesting validation of this debt. If they can validate just send them whatever you can afford to pay them, they have to accept it. If they do not accept your payment they will dishonor the contract and null the debt. Also they cannot garnish your wages 75%. Some states do not allow wage garnishment, those that do are set at a maximum garnishment of 25% of your disposable income which is determined in court if they were to sue you and win a judgment.

They have already violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and you could file suit for $1,000 in statutory damages, plus punitive damages, attorney fees, and court costs.

If you would like a template for a debt validation letter you can find one via my signature link. Send it certified mail, return receipt requested.

V & K called me a couple of weeks ago saying that I owed a $438 debt to a doctor, but they could not tell me who the doctor was or anything about it. I think they are in business to scam people by using scare tactics to make them pay a "debt" that does not even exist! The state attorney general of MA should investigate them!

V & K called me a couple of weeks ago saying that I owed a $438 debt to a doctor, but they could not tell me who the doctor was or anything about it. I think they are in business to scam people by using scare tactics to make them pay a "debt" that does not even exist! The state attorney general of MA should investigate them!

Post removed due to it's attacking nature. Flaming the forum is not allowed, please refer to the site TOS for more information

~JCEMT

has anyone ever been sued by this company and can i just send them payments without making a payment arrangement with them? They want 700.00 per month and i just cannot pay them that. they say it will go to litigation if i don't pay the full balance or the 700.00 this week. Does Dell still own the account. the said they would sue me and set up a court date for dell. help me.

k

people need to understand that u owe a debt and its biz not personal....these are excuses to not pay the bill and excuses for owing the bill....they're is nothing sketchy about this office and if u were interested in paying your bill u would find a way to do so instead of complaining

Yahoo, BUZZ OFF SCUMBAG!!!!

Yahoo...the hundreds of complaints filed about this particular outfit state otherwise. The few people that come here to get out of paying their just debts are the minority. All we ask is that we be treated with dignity and respect which V&K don't seem to teach in their fdcpa classes.

i have saved calls from V & K. They call after hours and don't leave messages. They don't even identify who they are. Why would I call someone back? I don't own a Dell nor ever have?! They just put Client Max on my one piece of paper i got from them.....sorry but in the court of law any written documentation will hold up. They keep changing the date when they are going to 'report me'.....HELP!!! I call when I get off work (I travel)- and they are closed due to East Coast time.....am i the only one?

i accually work for a different agency, calls are most always on record. there is a fdca law look it up. u will find all your answers there.!!!!! always and forever the law. hope it helps. best of luck interested.

I have been contacted by this company as a result of a dental bill from Dental Care Alliance. The crazy thing isthat I have been paying the debt and sending the checks to DCA, however I get this strange call from VKI saying that DCA sent my account to them, although my account has not been sent to collectioins or been placed on my credit report according to them. They however, were contacting me to settle the rest of the account and make payment arrangements. I only have a few hundred left on the account so they were willing to cut that in half which was fine. The problem came when I reqeusted for the agreement to be sent to me in writing prior to me giving them my information. I did and do not feel comfortable giving them my banking information. The guy Gary offered to email me the agreement three separate times, I have yet to receive the agreement yet they call me every other day. I am trying to research this company with Dental Care Alliance, they however are not responding to my calls or letters. Please advise.

Don't give them any of your financial information! If you do get a settlement in writing (which I doubt), send them a money order or cashiers check.

What happens when you go to court for not paying credit card debt?

I have been dealing with them for almost six months. I am tired of the threatening, the demoraltizing, and not to mention just plain rude attitudes that I get when I do answer my phone. It got to the point I stopped answering.
Now today, I got a phone call from them asking who my lawyer was. I haven't heard from them since the middle of september of this year, now they are going to sue me.
It is not my fault that they won't work with me. I made an offer to make payments in an amount that I know I could afford and still be able to keep a roof over my head and food in my stomach. My offer was not good enough for them. So they 'refused' to work with me.
If this whole thing does go to trail, I am thinking that the judge is going to laugh at someone and it is not going to be me. I have dates, times, names, and most of the conversation written down. They are not lawyers and they also have to get lawyers, which if I lose my case, I have to pay for. What?
But, I believe that the judge will side with me only because of how my situation came about. It hasn't gotten any better financially either. Sue me, the only thing that you are going to get is a laugh in the face. Harrassing phone calls several times of the day. And some of them before the time that is set forth by law. *Should have been there. It was funny when I told the agent that he called me too early per the laws of collection practices. It shut him up right away. HAHA dude, caught ya

Actually Krs, if it does go to court you will probably just have a judgement placed against you. You need to get proactive and take those facts to a NACA attorney and sue them first.

Dont deal with these people, they are currently in non compliance with me regarding a contractual payment plan, They are suppose to deduct a certain amount out of my account each paycheck, instead they double dipped leaving me with nothing and will not return my phone calls! I blocked them from being able to take out any more money (bet they will call then) and am reporting them to the BBB

When a collector takes on an account, they are required by law to send you notice within 5 business days. They are also forbidden by law from contacting family members or employers.

After they call the first time, send them a letter requesting validation of the debt and a cease and desist from calling you. There are numerous samples of validation and C&D letters available on the web that you can use. They are required by law to respond within 30 days to your request, and they have to prove that you agreed to pay them money (which you didn't), that they are licensed to practice collection in your state, and more. Naturally, they will fail to validate the debt. So if they call again or again attempt to collect, send them another letter telling them that they have violated the law and that they need to not only stop attempting to collect from you but that they need to remove and derogs that they may have reported to the credit bureaus. (The credit bureaus violate the law, too, and if they have derogs on your report, they need to prove to you that the collector or creditor has validated the debt, which they usually cannot do).

Tell the collector, too, that you are filing a complaint with the Federal Trade Commission, your state attorney general, and the American Collectors Association, and do so. This will definitely stop them without you ever engaging with them or paying them a penny.

There are so many things wrong with this that I don't know where to begin:

Quote:

My boyfriend had a phone account with US Cellular that was pretty old. Valentine and Kebartas began calling to make arrangements, explaining that US Cellular sold the account as a charge off to them. My boyfriend made arrangments with them, and paid the balance off months ago. Today we got a message from US Cellular offering 60% off the balance to settle the account. I'm trying to figure out if this is somehow an honest mistake, or if Valentine and Kebartas are really criminals that mislead us into paying them what they were not owed. Anyone have any advice on how to prove that we paid the balance if US Cellular further insists that we owe it??

I've talked to Valentine & Kebartas, Inc. I don't think they are attorneys. They never told me they were.

One Catherine Seidman hungup on me while talking to me. Another one said, "Send the Money Now", these people treat you like if you were a worthless sack of money pooohhh.. I just hope that one day, just one day, the tides turn against them and they will regret the day they started their unethical business practices and service. Nevertheless, I'm monitoring any unlawful tactics on their behalf while negotiating so that I can sue their unscrupulous assssssss'.

I have also had issues with V&K. I recently disputed the amount I owed which they said was $2500, which was not true. When I had my computer sent to me I signed up for a 1 year no intrest plan, they charged my interest 5 months before they were suppose to. I send a letter stating the mistake and on the back of the dell statements it says while they investigate the claim they cannon report you as delinquent which they did anyway. I'm not denying that I owe them I do $645. I made them a $690 payment when I got my taxes back. I did have a payment arrangement set up for the 20th and then they call me today and say it declined. So I check my back account, what liars! I had over $400 and the payment was for $300. I then call my bank to see if they really did try to pull it and they didn't!! Now they are saying that I owe over $1800, because my payment declined and they didn't even really try to pull it. I asked if I could mail in the $300 and they said no, so does that null and void the debt?

I think V&K is a horrible agency, although we all legally owe our debts i think they need to lighten up and treat us like human beings, if they were actually polite about it maybe we would want to set something up for repayment. The way they operate will not get a dime from me

I don't owe them any money. Someone in my office does. I am sort of the gatekeeper of phones.

Usually, when i pass a phone call, I ask for their name, company if any, and why they're calling. He gives me a valid excuse of "personal business matter". I tell him, unfortunately, without knowing more on your "personal business matter", I can't forward you to him. This guy then got real angry and asked me how old i was and that this guy NEEDS to talk to him. He then asks me how old I am and if i understand that he legally can't tell me. I retorted that I totally understand his legal standpoint, and that's not my problem. My problem is that my guy wont' talk to anyone unless he knows why they're calling. I get a lot of solicitations and won't waste his time with the caller. He calls me an idiot and someone who doesn't know what they're doing and that since i work for a law firm, I should know the law. Well, he's right. I do know a LOT about the law. And i know enough how to piss him off which was exactly what i did. Next time, I'm going to bait him and see if he violates the FDCPA.

I did a little digging. These guys work on commission. They are not a law firm, but they insinuate that they are. They get paid on how much they bring in. Unfortunately, most don't know the rules and cross the line. Little does he know that my law firm...DOES collections and I intimately know what he can and cannot do. So i know he's trying to abide by the FDCPA and I'm frustrating the heck out of him by not letting him do his job. And because they're that rude to begin with, the longer he stays on the phone with me. The less money he makes, because, I don't owe him jack and i'm not even the guy he wants to talk to.

These guys also prey on the uninformed. They prey on your fears of your debt. Do not let them intimidate you.

Yes, V&K are very rude to people and try to scare you into paying big payments.

They called constantly and I finally decided to speak with them. One person at V & K, COLE, gave me 4 different payment options that would work to payoff the account. I called my wife to discuss what would be the best option for us. When she called them back, the guy denied that 4 options were given and that I was lying about the 4th option given. They are full of crap and I am going to call them back to make sure we receive in writing the payment agreement or I am going to stop payment before they try to withdraw the money. They bully and try to intimidate you into paying more than you are able to. Beware and stand up to these bullying assholes!!!

I had a $5,000 account charged off on my credit report in 2006. Now a man called me on my job this past Thursday and was told I couldn't get calls but he was very threatening to my supervisor and she gave me the call. We both were under the impression he was a lawyer or working in a law office and had me so scared that I gave him $50 on a debt card which I needed. I live with 2 grandchildren I support. This man acted like he got a phone call and told us it was the judge. I was supposed to call him back today with the rest of the money Lump Sum I told him I did not know if I could even find this money. I live from paycheck to paycheck. I don't want to lose my home but I can't afford payments either. I can't met my living needs sometimes. Do you have any suggestions? Help.

don't pay

if you dont have money to pay... they can't force you.. also tell them to send you a copy of your debt and have them validate it..