Received a settlement offer from ARS national - How to deal with it
Date: Sat, 11/03/2007 - 05:56
I have a question regarding a letter I just received from Associated Recovery Systems and I hope someone can help me out with my questions about it.
The letter received from ARS advises me they are collecting on a Dell account with a balance of $2557.43, it is dated 10/26/2007 and this is the first letter I have received from them. The first paragraph advises they are able to offer a "settlement" IAO 1,790.20 if I pay it by 11/30/2007. The second paragraph advises of all the "convenient" ways I can get my money to them. Then in the third paragraph, almost as an afterthought, they advise me of my right to dispute the debt within 30 days.
I also need to point out, this is the 4th letter I have received from CA's attempting to collect on this Dell account since October 2007. The funny thing is, the other 3 letters list the balance of the Dell accounts as 1,790.20, which is the correct amount. Bearing this is mind, it is a given I am sending out a validation letter. I also sent validation letters to the other 3 CA's, and have received no reply from them at this time.
My questions are, and I hope someone can answer some or all of them, as follows:
How many CA's can collect on the same account at any one time? The first 3 letters I received from the other CA's were all dated within the same week, so it's not like there was a month or two delay between them.
Is the wording on this letter misleading? They give me a "settlement" amount that is the actual correct balance of the account, yet lower than the balance they list at the top of the letter, and then give me a 30 day deadline to take advantage of this gracious offer. It just so happens the 30 day deadline is also within the 30 days I am given to dispute the debt.
Has anyone heard of a CA being sued for sending out letters giving a deadline to pay within the 30 day dispute period? I seem to remember reading this somewhere on the internet (and of course I can't find it now) where a CA was sued for this. It seems to me the "least sophisticated consumer" would think they had to pay the "settlement" amount on the letter without realizing the first 30 days was the dispute period.
I hope someone can help me out with these questions.
The letter received from ARS advises me they are collecting on a Dell account with a balance of $2557.43, it is dated 10/26/2007 and this is the first letter I have received from them. The first paragraph advises they are able to offer a "settlement" IAO 1,790.20 if I pay it by 11/30/2007. The second paragraph advises of all the "convenient" ways I can get my money to them. Then in the third paragraph, almost as an afterthought, they advise me of my right to dispute the debt within 30 days.
I also need to point out, this is the 4th letter I have received from CA's attempting to collect on this Dell account since October 2007. The funny thing is, the other 3 letters list the balance of the Dell accounts as 1,790.20, which is the correct amount. Bearing this is mind, it is a given I am sending out a validation letter. I also sent validation letters to the other 3 CA's, and have received no reply from them at this time.
My questions are, and I hope someone can answer some or all of them, as follows:
How many CA's can collect on the same account at any one time? The first 3 letters I received from the other CA's were all dated within the same week, so it's not like there was a month or two delay between them.
Is the wording on this letter misleading? They give me a "settlement" amount that is the actual correct balance of the account, yet lower than the balance they list at the top of the letter, and then give me a 30 day deadline to take advantage of this gracious offer. It just so happens the 30 day deadline is also within the 30 days I am given to dispute the debt.
Has anyone heard of a CA being sued for sending out letters giving a deadline to pay within the 30 day dispute period? I seem to remember reading this somewhere on the internet (and of course I can't find it now) where a CA was sued for this. It seems to me the "least sophisticated consumer" would think they had to pay the "settlement" amount on the letter without realizing the first 30 days was the dispute period.
I hope someone can help me out with these questions.
I'm not really sure, but you could seek a free consultation with
I'm not really sure, but you could seek a free consultation with a attorney that specializes in fdcpa law.
ABOUT DELL ACCOUNT,ARS AND MORE HERE IN THIS FANTASTIC FORUM. h
ABOUT DELL ACCOUNT,ARS AND MORE HERE IN THIS FANTASTIC FORUM.
http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/forums/ars-national.html
