Hess Kennedy Receivership

Anybody Heard anything new?

Hi Chrys, thanks. We did file ch 13, and that one suspicious account was included on my lawyer's advise to be safe. The next 60 months are going to be tough, but at least I see a light at the end of the tunnel.
Honestly, all I ever got was a letter from a Daniel Stermer, who was the receiver I think it was for Hess/Kennedy, stating that 1 specific cap1 acct had been forgiven, it would be reported as contested for late 08, and forgiven sometime in early 09. I tried email and phone calls, but never got a response, although I understand some folks in this forum seem to have had better luck. Since I own a home, and had 2 auto loans, etc it will be some time before the unsecured creditors see much, been a very painful, but educational process. Thanks all for the support.

-->> link removed - Jason. Please read TOS

Hi Wingnut,

Good to hear from you.

Yes, it is very unfortunate that you are basically ending up paying on an account twice.

But now I understand the 1099 issue, it's because everything got held up in the Hess Kennedy court case. So you should get it next year.

I assume you are on the suit? "http://74.207.205.46/claimstatus.asp" to check your claim status, although the site says that "the debt forgiveness and the tradeline deletion will occur early in 2009" so it is hopefully updated now on your credit report.

Yeah, 5 years is a long time. But at least you come out of it reborn with a clean slate, rather than the sloppy mess your credit report would show after debt settlement.

Yes, Thanks Chrys. There were other benefits for us after the 60 months are up involving 2nd mort I won't go into here. I never really looked into the 'why' part of how we received the forgiveness on 1 card, just figured that Allegro and Hess/Kennedy were somehow intertwined shall we say. Allegro did nothing for us but take our money, and get us sued, so I felt I had to take this route. I will say when I talked to them, they did do what they said they would, but they just wouldn't commit to much. Perhaps another settlement firm would have done better, but I felt for us, it was too late to find out.

Well, that's actually a standard complaint against the debt settlement industry, so while another one may have been better (or worse, for that matter) most likely it would've turned out exactly the same way. The FTC strongly advises the consumer to avoid these companies and do it on their own (watch the video). Perhaps you should file a complaint with the FTC also, as they are presently investigating the industry and suing companies left and right, on top of that many states are enacting debtor protection laws and suing companies that operate in their states - Colorado, for instance. There is no federal regulation of this industry, although there are attempts, especially the Uniform Debt Management Services Act, which is pretty much what the states (11 so far) are enacting. This is mainly because it is largely a new industry, the vast majority of these companies opening within the last 5 years. See also the National Law Center's "An Investigation of Debt Settlement Companies: An Unsettling Business for Consumers".

Eye opening stuff. Especially the chapter entitled "The Industry???s 'Ideal' Customers Are the Least Likely to Benefit". Did you know that, according to an investigative report during FTC's lawsuit against the National Consumer Council (a debt settlement company that the FTC closed - see "http://www.consumeraffairs.com/news04/national_consumer.html") stated that only 1.4% of consumers complete a DS program after enrolling? Most are eventually forced into bankruptcy anyway, and that after their credit report has been ripped to shreds, and after bravely trying to be responsible. Most (of those still on time with their payments) would benefit from Debt Management instead but that makes for a lot less profit for these greedy companies who will happily shoehorn the hapless debtor into a much more expensive (and dangerous) Debt Settlement.

BK 13 is basically debt settlement, but with strong consumer protections attached, and a clean slate when complete. Not to mention, no 1099s! It's easier to build your credit score up from the ground when it's all cleared out than when you have to comb through the wreckage first.

With the non-profits, the IRS has much more power of enforcement than the FTC. The IRS has removed many non-profit statuses from deceptive companies who are for profit in all but name. This is a list of recent non-profit status revocations.

Oh, and that article quoted in the post above is from a debt settlement company. The 30 year spiel is highly deceptive.

Like bottom feeder debt buyer firms, these companies rely on consumer ignorance. Many are foreign companies with little to no practical knowledge of US law. Many of them don't really care at all. After all, even if they get closed down and charged fines it will take years for that process and in the meanwhile they would have raked in millions and can just pop up in another guise or with another name and do it all again, like those annoying gophers on your front lawn.

So what to do? Fight! Keep fighting! Arm yourself with the knowledge of law that is required for survival in an ostensibly free country.

----------

"It is the common fate of the indolent to see their rights become a prey to the active. The condition upon which God hath given liberty to man is eternal vigilance; which condition if he break, servitude is at once the consequence of his crime and the punishment of his guilt." - John Philpot Curran

----------

Thanks Chrys. That post above, when I read it the other day, I took it for exactly that, a post from a settlement company. I already know that pretty much the only way it's going to take 30 yrs to pay off a card is if you keep charging it back up again, even if you pay minimum, it will take a long time, and cost you, but not 30 yrs. I may go ahead and file something with the FTC, these companies are running rampant out there, making all kinds of claims, and not delivering much for most people except grief.

Good stuff Chrys, good stuff here that you explained. Found the links and video quite enjoyable.

GREAT post Chrys!!

I am glad the FTC put that page together.

I will disagree on one point.
Chapter 13.

I believe settlement to be a far better option than chapter 13 for the vast majority of people forced to consider the 2 side by side.
The number one reason is flexibility. Chapter 13 provides NONE!

Historically chapter 13 has a 70% failure rate.

Chapter 7 trumps all.

My opinion... mileage may vary

Well....

1) Thanks!

2) It Ain't Necessarily So.... There is more flexibility than you think, it's main purpose is to take every bit of available income and pay down your debt as fast as possible. In fact, I just did a post on it here. Converting a Ch 13 to a 7. Plus, you can go back and forth with the courts to work out a plan by submitting an alternate plan and seeing if they will accept it.

Chapter 7 is hard to get these days, however, many times a Chapter 13 will cause undue hardship (based on large payment amount and limited income) which could sound bad to begin with, but could allow that person to convert to a 7 even if they were not eligible to file for a 7 to begin with.

and 3) Debt Settlement, per the above investigation, has a 98% failure rate, so I will stick with the 13 as the better option. That, combined with the Automatic Stay make it a better option for larger amounts of debt. If you only have a few thousand in debts, then 13 may be overkill, but other than that, is a better option, especially if you have a good chance of being sued. A judgment can stay on your credit report as long - or longer, depending on your state - as bankruptcy. Also, with a judgment, they can garnish your wages and tax refunds. Not to mention, in the first few months after discharge you will get many pre-approved offers for new credit so you can re-build your credit score much faster. Given the choice, it's better to voluntarily mow the lawn than have the state clean up your yard for you.

Chrys,
It appears we will have to agree to disagree. I do wish to further this a tad though.

Chapter 7 numbers nationally have increased year over year since BACPA was enacted in October 05. Chapter 7 is as available as it ever was. It just has a few initial hurdles attached to it now. Dont get me wrong, the changes were a bad idea then, and an even worse idea now (with the current economy). Lobbyists worked hard and spent tons of money to get the changes and misrepresented the need for it through manipulation of survey data etc... Kind of like you did above in your post where you say settlement has a 98% failure rate. Your reference and the citation you provided do not conform to backing up your statement/question (you ended with a ?). I was unable to find that reference in your links and url's. In point 3) of your most recent post in this thread you state 98% failure as fact (or near enough so). My many conversations with regulators, consumer advocates, legislative directors and activists have made it abundantly clear that there is a huge lack of analytics on success rates with settlement as the companies providing the services are not volunteering the data necessary to formulate percentage "guestimates". Anyone publishing data along these lines would fall well short of reliable unless it were perhaps specific to a company. This may indeed be the case with regard to the company referenced above. This company was targeted as a scam so, a poor completion rate would not be surprising. Regardless of my symantics on this, I will agree with you that completion rates at many companies in the industry are poor, just not that poor. In my opinion, the broad brush you used of the industry having a 98% failure rate is sensationalism.

I am not an apologist for the settlement industry. I am in fact, an outspoken critic of it. Not settlement itself, but many of the companies and sales groups associated with it. I also work in the field and have for longer than most. I strongly advocate consumers do as much, if not all settlements themselves. There are instances though, where a consumer would be better served working with an experienced negotiator.

Chapter 13 is a dibilitating experience on many levels. I do agree that the automatic stay would be of benefit, but when being sued as that is what it is pertaining to. If a consumer can get relief in a chapter 13, go for it! As with many things in life, there is no one size fits all answer. Research your options, know the short and long term implications of each and choose the path that best fits your needs.
Chapter 13 is a court enforced belt tightening experience. If a consumer can commit and follow through with a self induced belt tightening, my opinion and experience shows most would be better off.

Chapter 13's do not just get to convert to chapter 7. Unless the dynamics of what forced the use of 13 over 7 change. Loss of income being the norm, where the consumer would then be able to qualify under the means test to convert to a 7.

My opinion. Mileage may vary.

I believe Daniel J. Stermer is helping no one but himself to people hard earned money. He is no better then those crooks (Hess Kenney)

Quote:

heres my story i signed up with hess kennedy for a 36 month debt settlement program.i had 6 credit card accounts in the program and they settled 3 small ones no problem other than every 3 months they would call asking for more money when they got a settlement offer and their was not enough monet in the account to cover the deal.the next thing i know im being told discover is not accepting settlements at all.The constable catches me in the front yard working on my car and serves me papers.i called hess and they said to send them the summons to appear ,so i didnt even make a copy of it after all they are lawyers right? they notify me i will need to appear in court alone and they give me the court date and location. I showed up for court with some bs paperwork they gave me and it turned out they gave me a bogus court date that didnt even exist.the next thing i get is adefault judgement for failure to appear.hess then cut a deal with zwicker and associates the attorney for discover they agreed to accept 24 payments of 344.75 plus 2 down payments of 500.00 to remove they judgement and they would be satisfied.I made the payments and fulfilled the contract and the judgement remains in effect. i had only 6 months left out of the 36 month program when hess kennedy was seized.i am still stuck will 2 accounts in collection that even with me making payments to them are out of control in interest.We are supposed to recieve some money on dec 31 2009 but i doubt it. they owe me 6211.91

Yes I have received everything from Daniel Stermer. I also called HSBC about the credit report thing and they did have it removed.. So far I have no complaints with any of this..Now we are waiting to get some money back but that won't be until the first of the year..

Is anyone having trouble with the website? It will not show up on my computer and I am wondering what is happening. Any help would be appreciated! Thanks!

I was taken by these guys also. Does anyone know how much money is left in the accounts? Also I understand that the reciever did settle some of the card debt? Is anyone watching how much money is going to legsal fees?

Last Thursday Lewis B. Freeman & Partners after having been raided by the FBI 10 days before was placed into receivership to be liquidated.

I put my paper work in 11-08 hope to get my money back soon

So those of us who were approved by the recetvership can expect a whopping 25% of what we got screwed on originally. That means that out of my $7000, I can expect a whopping $1750. Greeeeaaat. I mean, it's better than nothing, but really??? This sucks.

Quote:

how does everyone feel about getting .25 cents on the dollar that they owe you, I paid that bitch over $5000.00 and the mr. stermer gave hsbc $4200.00 0f it, and now Im only getting 25% if whats left back, I think the court system sucks in Miami, and Freeman is getting the rest of our money. I have been waiting since june of 08 for my money and they tell you something different each time you contact them, Its time to investigate them and find out where our money is. I think Mr. Stermer is just as bad as l. Hess. Wake up people we are loosing our money to the Miami Courts.

It really does suck that we are only getting 25%. We are supposed to get another small prorated amount of money also. They are only giving 25% of the 13.5 million. They have in the account 17 Million. I'm not sure what they are doing with the other 3.5 million but we are supposed to see some if it.

I'm pissed for the fact that Chase settled because of my reason (I'm glad most got there debts cleared) but since my debt was moved to CA Chase told me that they can't clear anything off my record. I was like but you removed anything from everybody elses and I'm that boat of being screwed. Shouldn't they remove my deliquency because on my Credit Report it has me as written off to and transfered?

Any reply would be great.

I thought I had read a while back that Dan Stermer had gotton bosted for pocketing the money from clients of Hess Kennedy. I could be wrong. If I'm right I'm wondering if he's related to the mf crooks of Hess Kennedy Allegro. I am one of many suckers of Allegro Law that is now in receivership in Alabama. Louis Colley has been court appointed receiver since July 2009. At least Dan Stermer communicated with clients. Louis Colley ignores all emails and faxes. He has never sent me any information and the website doesn't tell ya shit!! Hasn't even started the claims process. Can attorneys even be trusted anymore? Maybe Colley is related to the dirty bastards of Allegro. I don't expect anything back of the 2500 I paid them because Louis Colley has his thumb either stuck up his ass or his thumb is in too many pies.......

I do not understand why LBF could not have continued settling our Accounts. They have been in charge of the company paying themselves millions for over 16 months.

The Debt Management ("Credit Counseling") is still operating and earning 2.3 million each month. Why can't they use that money and make a payment each month.

Has anyone tried rescentally to contact Receiver Daniel J. Stermer in regarad to the Hess case? I have tried the phone number and lbfmiami.com, with no luck. Get a recording at the phone number to wait for an operator, which never happens and the line goes busy. The website does not come up anymore. I check about a month ago and read about the 25%, but was trying to check when I would get at least a few bucks from the cheats. Now I am afraid we are not going to even get the 25%. ANYONE out there know what is up??????

Here is the website to check your claim status.

www.hesskennedyreceiver.com/home.html

we'll get nothing. the receivership is probably a scam as well. they can all rot in hell.

I am another victim of the credit counseling scheme. But anyway, you can fax your new address to: 954-344-8427 Attention to Claims Department--must include your claim number, new address and phone number. You must do this very, very soon. Checks will be mailed out 12-31-2009.

I am still working on trying to get Capital One and BankofAmerica accounts off my credit. They already reached chargeoff status, which decrease my credit score tremendously.
Happy Holidays

I justs checked the DJS web site and confirmed the amount of refund, which was 500$ less than what they told me in april on the phone. but .... of the 20K I sent Hess, most of debt is done and I will (maybe by Jan 1 2010) get back 2100$ , but still need some vaseline ........ with pain killer. :(

I'm not sure, but their old website has been replaced. Just checked today and their new site is:
http://www.lbfglobal.com/

teamrn

I've received everything from DJS's law firm that they said I would; and NOTHING from Hess-Kennedy that they said I would. I had 5 credit cards with Hess-Kennedy and DJS firm reached settlement agreements with 4. I contacted another and negotiated a settlement with them. I've yet to check my credit report, but was told that all creditors should have reported a $0.00/paid in full account by then.

Guess I have no-one to blame but me for the $$ I lost, but more than $10,000 to Hess-Kennedy and I'm seeing such a small fraction. What do they say? Live and learn and REALLY learn.

team

[QUOTE=Nmaiken3;506607]I am another victim of the credit counseling scheme. But anyway, you can fax your new address to: 954-344-8427 Attention to Claims Department--must include your claim number, new address and phone number. You must do this very, very soon. Checks will be mailed out 12-31-2009.
I am still working on trying to get Capital One and BankofAmerica accounts off my credit. They already reached chargeoff status, which decrease my credit score tremendously.
Happy Holidays[/QUOTE]
I think a settlement agreement was reached with Capital One. I didn't have them, but did have Bank of America, Chase and Target. I did hire an attorney to settle with Bank of America and I'm making manageable monthly payments. Chase settled and I negotiated a settlement with Target without legal representation. The website that talks about Capital One is:
http://www.HessKennedyReceiver.com/narratives2.html about 3/4 of the way down the page

Quote:

For some of us who had money with the Consummer law firm. I just found out that the Hess Kennedy Receiver is paying back only 25% of what was sent. I am afraid this was just a scam!!! How will the court of Miami allow people to receive only 25% of their money? This will hurt some of us here. How can we get our money back? And how will we pay our debts back?

Has anyone else who was taken advantage of by hess and kennedy only receiveing 25% of the original promised amount of money there were supposed to get back? if you are i am persusing a case against them to get the full amount of money i paid them, if you want to join me in my case it would help out a lot.

We should start a case against them to get the full amount we put out to them, you can contact me a deleted...pm[EMAIL="nsearaydude70@if"]if[/EMAIL] you want to persue a case with me against them.

please don't post personal info.

I hate to sound ignorant,but at this point in time I am completely in the dark as to what's happening with this whole situation. The last thing I heard of any of this was when I received the "postcard" with my claim number on it and a letter stating this mess was supposed to go to court in November and if there were anything I was going to be able to recoup, I would receive it sometime at the end of this month. I'm beginning to feel as though I can just kiss my $2,800. plus good-bye, and chalk it up to another life lesson where I was trying to do the right thing and got screwed. I hate to sound bitter, but I'm disabled and live on a minimal S.S. check with no increase in that this year thanks to our Pres. who says our economy wasn't bad enough this past year to warrant one! When it rains it F%*#@ng floods my basement! Appreciate any news anyone can share with me.
Thanx

Quote:

Quote:

[QUOTE=Nmaiken3;506607]I am another victim of the credit counseling scheme. But anyway, you can fax your new address to: 954-344-8427 Attention to Claims Department--must include your claim number, new address and phone number. You must do this very, very soon. Checks will be mailed out 12-31-2009.

I am still working on trying to get Capital One and BankofAmerica accounts off my credit. They already reached chargeoff status, which decrease my credit score tremendously.
Happy Holidays[/QUOTE]
check the site http://www.hesskennedyreceiver.com/narratives2.html . I believe about 3/4 down the page, the Receivership addressed that a settlement had been reached with Capitol One. I didn't have an account with them, but did with Bank of America. Bank of America settled for some 70% of the hefty amount I owed.

However, I contacted Target myself and settled my debt for 30% of what I owed them. Chase bank has agreed to write off the credit card debts and I believe that's what Capitol One did, too.

As far as I know, it takes a few months for 'charged-off' status to change to $0.00 balance on your credit report and then the derogatories on your credit report stay there for some years after that.

teamrn

I think that we may have tried ourselves by putting them into receivership. . from what it looks, a debt settlement plan takes 3 years to complete. . 2010 would have been the third year with the company.

The debt management business is booming if you read the report.

check with your state cosumer agency advocacy group, they may be able to help you for a flat fee sometimes as low as a few hundred. They won't get you the 60% discount that was offered by these a$$hole$, but you'll know it's legit. If your situation is really dismal, I would also LOOK into BK, but know your options and your consequences with taking this route. Best of luck to you.

if there is any way to get the rest of the 75% that is owed, I will gladly join any other type of class action suit, however possible, but I think that once we cash our checks, we may accept the 25% and nothing else. I really don't know FL law that well, and they are screwy down there like in TX.

settlements have been mentioned here, does anyone have any stories of settlements with collection agencies? What are you results, if any, with debt amount percentages that are negotiated?
Unfortunately, all my debts have now gone out as CHARGE OFFS with the banks, and are now will collection agencies. I understand that the collection agencies buy off the debt accounts and pretty much make 100% of what ever they collect. I also understand that they can pursue you for 4 years in the state of CA.
Any help is extremely appreciated!

How do you get your money back from Capital One! I was also screwed by Hess Kennedy and have been paying Capital One through them for the last three years. Please email me

I received my claim number about one year ago but i don"t have more mail .

I keep calling and they say it at the mail center. But the checks Never went anywhere. They are lying .

Quote:

Quote: