I need advice again on this delima yall helped with
Date: Fri, 01/11/2008 - 08:53
Have a look at this place: giovelawofficeexposed.com/burgess.htm
Have a look at this place: giovelawofficeexposed.com/burgess.htm
Than start recording every phone call:
http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com/phone/
If they haven't sent you satisfactory proof (obviously they haven't), send a copy of your receipt for your registered mail, a copy of the first letter you sent and a statement that they have not complied with the fdcpa and are now in violation of the Act. Tell them they need to immediately remove the collection listing from your credit report or you are going to file a lawsuit because they are in violation of the FDCPA, section 809(b).
Wait 15-20 days to hear back after this second letter to the collection agency. They will either remove it or not respond.
If they do provide a contract with a signature from the original creditor showing that you owe the debt, there is one more thing you can try: see if they are legally licensed to collect the debt in your state. Here is a good site to begin your search.
Not all states require licensing, however.
If you believe that they are not licensed, and licensing is required in your state, write them another letter and tell them they are in violation of your state's collection laws and are subject to prosecution and fines. Cite your state's fines and procedures in the letter. This is a last ditch effort, but works sometimes.
Hopefully that's all you'll have to do, as most collection agencies send you a letter agreeing to remove the listing. Then all you have to do is send a copy of the letter to the CRAs.
If the collection agency did not agree to remove the listing, then there's no mister nice guy.
File a lawsuit in small claims court against the collection agency on the basis of violating the FDCPA. Have the papers served to the collection agency. (You can find a paper server on the internet for about $25).
In the meantime,
If the collection comes back as "verified" from the credit bureaus, you now have proof of further collection activity from the collection agency. (The assumption is that the credit bureau contacted the collection agency to verify the debt.)
Since the collection agency did not validate the debt, further collection activity is a violation of the FDCPA.
Contact the credit bureaus, and tell them that the creditors did not verify the debts under the FDCPA, and send copies of your proof. Request the method of verification, which is your right under the FCRA.
It is crucial to contact the credit bureaus before filing a lawsuit. Make sure you state that the collection agency did not respond to your request for debt validation.
They may tell you that the request needs to come from the creditor. This is a huge load of crap. If they can't give you reasonable information on how they verified the information and the collection agency has provided you none, you can conclude there was no reasonable investigation performed.
Therefore they must be on the edge of "willful non-compliance" under the FCRA. Tell them so.
File a suit in either small claims, state or federal court. The basis of the lawsuit should be that the credit bureaus could not provide a satisfactory method of verification, or did not conduct a reasonable investigation.
Have the papers served. (You can find a paper server on the internet for about $25).
Notify the bureaus that you are suing them.
The credit bureaus will call the creditors and find out that there is a question about whether the debt is legitimate. They should delete it immediately. If you want more legal ammo, you might also try looking up similar cases to cite.
Hope it helps! :wink:
Your legal ammo reply
Wow I am very very pleased with what you gave me, thank you so very much, I will begin today, I will post the results so all can see and maybe use, as for the law suit should it come to that, how much do I sue for? thanks again....Bamm
The $1,000 is just the tip of the iceberg. You can also sue for
The $1,000 is just the tip of the iceberg. You can also sue for punitive damages (mental anguish, etc.) court costs, attorney fees. You can also forward this information (including the recordings) to your state Attorney General's office as well as theirs, the Federal Trade Commission, and if they are a law office you can send it to their state Bar Association and possibly get them disbarred. If they get disbarred then they cannot practice law. What good is a law office that cannot practice law? NONE!
These jerks have gotten away with this long enough, you are not the first person they have victimized like this, but with the evidence that you have you can help make sure they are the last.
