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Help:collection agency bullied my wife

Date: Mon, 08/23/2010 - 19:22

Submitted by harborsalesonline
on Mon, 08/23/2010 - 19:22

Posts: 16 Credits: [Donate]

Total Replies: 37


A collection agency (Nelson Watson) called my wife Friday and said they own her cc debt and they want payment NOW. They theatened to sue her, garnish my wages, basicly scared the hell out of her. They told her if she sends a payment (auto withdraw) from our checking account they won't sue. But now it is auto withdraw every month. I called them and offered a settlement but they wanted to settle for 90%. The debt is only $3600

Does anybody have any suggestions as to what I should do? I do not want them to have access to our checking account. Should I go through a settlement company, should I block the auto withdraw, cancel our checking account?

Please help.

Thank you

Mike


Greetings Harborsalesonline/Mike,

Just a couple of tidbits of advice here, others will add more for sure.

1. Never, never, never, never let a collection agency gain electronic access to your funds. And get everything in writing up front.

2. These collection agents aka bottom feeders/scurvy roaches......will tell you that the sun won't rise and the moon will fall into your backyard if you don't pay up!

3. Is the debt legit? And if so....Who is the debt with? How much? How long overdue?

4. This is the fun part.....go to the Shack that sells Radios and buy a cheap pickup device for a cassette recorder and next time the goons call, record it. Tell 'em that you are doing so on the advice of knowledgeble folks.

5. Take a deep breath and smile.....y'all will get through this.

Regards,
King" Kash" Jabba Labba


lrhall41

Submitted by King Jabba Labba on Mon, 08/23/2010 - 19:36

( Posts: 507 | Credits: )


Quote:

Originally Posted by harborsalesonline
Thank you for your reply. They have already taken a payment out of our account, should I stop the auto withdraw with my bank, because now they have access to withdraw from it?



Absolutely!



Go on the federal gov't website to know your rights in dealing with collection agencies.

Its really important to keep your cool in dealing with these folks, don't get emotional with them, although they will try to provoke you.


lrhall41

Submitted by on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 03:34

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You have the right to revoke permission to withdraw funds from your account. I would send the CA a letter or email stating that you are revoking their permission and I would tell them that it is on the grounds that your wife misunderstood the terms of the agreement she was making with them. Tell them you'd like to come to an agreement on payment arrangments so they know you aren't refusing to pay the debt, in case it is valid, and move forward from there. You should also go to your bank and show them the letter/email and let them know you've revoked permission so they won't allow further payments to process. If this is a bottom-feeding CA, you may have to close your account and open a new one in orter to protect your funds as, many of them, will do whatever necessary to get money from you.


lrhall41

Submitted by OhioGal1 on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 05:37

( Posts: 5253 | Credits: )


Quote:

Originally Posted by Anonymous
Don't send them revoke permission to withdraw funds, they will do it anyway, close the account!


You still need to send the revocation so that you can prove to your bank that they have taken money from your account without your authorization. That way, the money can be refunded to you and the fees can be reversed. You do need to close your account, but you need to send that letter/email first so you can take it into your bank when you close the account.


lrhall41

Submitted by OhioGal1 on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 09:00

( Posts: 5253 | Credits: )


After you close your account by following the ways advised by OhioGal and King JL, file a case against this CA with the FTC. They have violated FDCPA rules by threatening to sue your wife. By what you have posted, I don't think they are a legit CA. Please give us the name in full. And are you sure about the debt? How old is it?


lrhall41

Submitted by paulcahill80 on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 09:48

( Posts: 2359 | Credits: )


Yes, as you said, they threatened your wife to sue and garnish your wages, you must file case against them with the FTC. Though they have a good rating with the BBB, in your case, they have clearly violated FDCPA.

Adding to it, close your existing account and open a new one. Fyi, never ever give permssion to CAs to have electronic access to your funds. Did they send you the collection letter after initial contact?


lrhall41

Submitted by paulcahill80 on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 10:38

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This is a gray area and it would depend, 100%, on the words actually said/actually remembered by your wife.

If NW&A said, "If you don't pay we will refer your file to an attorney for litigation" it isn't a violation assuming that if you didn't pay they would really forward their file to an attorney.

If NW&A said, "If you don't pay, we are going to take legal action against you" and the rep stating that wasn't an attorney, it is a violation. It wouldn't matter if they intended to or not, they would be practicing law without a license, etc.


lrhall41

Submitted by nole on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 12:40

( Posts: 58 | Credits: )


Sorry, I disagree.

If you work for a collection agency whose common practice is to refer cases for litigation, it's perfectly acceptable, as a collection agent, to say, "if (you refuse to pay, etc.) we will take legal action."

That is NOT practicing law without a license.

Per the FDCPA, the collector cannot represent that s/he is an attorney if s/he's not and s/he cannot claim legal action will be taken if it legally can't OR if there is no intention to do so.


lrhall41

Submitted by OhioGal1 on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 13:39

( Posts: 5253 | Credits: )


It would depend, 100%, on the words actually said. It is how they say it. There is a difference in saying refer or we will sue you. If the person had a recording of that conversation and they said to pay us or we will sue you - and they weren't an attorney, I have an attorney right now that would take the case.

If NW&A said, "If you don't pay we will refer your file for an attorney for litigation" it isn't a violation assuming that if the client didn't pay they would really forward their file to an attorney.

If NW&A said, "If you don't pay, we are going to take legal action against you" and the rep stating that wasn't an attorney, it is a violation. Paralegals/collection specialists cannot decide whether to sue or not. It's a "Legal decision" that is done by lawyers. If a paralegal wants to state that they CAN make that determination, then they are admitting that they practice law without a license.


lrhall41

Submitted by nole on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 13:56

( Posts: 58 | Credits: )


No we're not but, I'm not going to argue with you about it anymore. It's perfectly fine to say "we will sue you" if they are legally allowed to sue and intend to do so if payment isn't received.

If someone owed you money and you told them, "if you don't pay me back, I'm going to sue you," is that practicing law without a license? NO! It's just stating your intentions, which are perfectly legal.


lrhall41

Submitted by OhioGal1 on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 14:02

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You're right, not worth arguing. There is a difference if you were a person off the street and yelled, hey I am going to sue you -vs. a CA that is not a law firm saying that they are going to sue you. Saying refer you over and we are going to sue you may not seem like a big deal, but it is.


lrhall41

Submitted by nole on Tue, 08/24/2010 - 14:36

( Posts: 58 | Credits: )


The part that's going to be tricky for you, harbor, is the fact that you've already made a payment on the account, which is basically claiming ownership of the debt. I think you need to take the approach with them of "I want to clear this up, but would like to make payment on my terms and would like to first verify the debt, clarify the amount owed, make sure you are legally allowed to collect on the debt and then come to a mutually acceptable settlement agreemnt."

Good luck and keep us posted on yoru progress!


lrhall41

Submitted by OhioGal1 on Wed, 08/25/2010 - 05:49

( Posts: 5253 | Credits: )


Quote:

Originally Posted by OhioGal1
The part that's going to be tricky for you, harbor, is the fact that you've already made a payment on the account, which is basically claiming ownership of the debt. I think you need to take the approach with them of "I want to clear this up, but would like to make payment on my terms and would like to first verify the debt, clarify the amount owed, make sure you are legally allowed to collect on the debt and then come to a mutually acceptable settlement agreemnt."

Good luck and keep us posted on yoru progress!



well let me interject here.

1)if harbor never got anything in writing about this agreement then they should be able to stop or cancel that payment they already made.making the payment moot.
2)to settle the issue about the lawsuit threat.even if a place has the means to sue they can't just threaten it.per the FDCPA if a place theatens legal action,but doesn't take it in 30 days of stating such is a violation that can be sued on by the person threatened.
3)again if they got nothing in writing technically they could have the payment returned to them.i doubt this place would use a tape full of illegal threats as evidence at all.

in closing i would advise that harbor try to recoup what they paid,and try to recall when the threat of a lawsuit was made.then when the scuzz calls again inform them you made a note of when you were threatened and if nothing is done in 30 days from that.you will look into your legal options.i mean this place won't sue and the supposed conversation is full of them threatening.do what you must to get your money back.this place won't do squat.


lrhall41

Submitted by paulmergel on Wed, 08/25/2010 - 06:33

( Posts: 15514 | Credits: )


It depends. If the CA doesn't actually own the debt - doesn't matter. If the CA can't verify the debt, doesn't matter. If they do own it and can verify it then the only thing it might do is make them more stubborn in the negotiating process. Either way, I don't think it matters much :)


lrhall41

Submitted by OhioGal1 on Wed, 08/25/2010 - 12:51

( Posts: 5253 | Credits: )


Quote:

Originally Posted by harborsalesonline
The original creditor was Capital One. We tried to talk to them about this and they just gave the phone # for the CA. Should I try to have the payment refunded by my bank because my wife never got anything in writing or will that just make things harder with the CA?


sorry but cap one sold it to these losers.yes have the money returned.there was nothing in writing,and they won't dare sue on that because if they did in fact record the call then all the threats and strongarming will be on there too.i agree with ohiogal1.it won't matter.this is a JDB,and they already showed their colors.get that payment back,and cancel the method you used.then have them send something in writing before you even talk further.demand nothing less.


lrhall41

Submitted by paulmergel on Wed, 08/25/2010 - 17:40

( Posts: 15514 | Credits: )


[SIZE=3]Nelson Watson and Associates had a debt in my name in late 2007 early 2008. They wanted around $10,000. I DV???d them with a cease and desist. They provided a garbage response. They never sued. Eventually they sold the debt to a different collector. [/SIZE]

They tried to use a number of very shady collection tactics with me. One of them was they claimed they had my cable company on the phone line and they verified that I owned the debt on the credit card because a charge was made to pay a few cable bills. I said fine put the cable company on three way and I will verify with them while you are on the phone. The cable company conveniently hung up before we could speak according to the collector. Anyway I told them I was not going to put up with their BS and I verbally CD???d them and followed up with a letter. I informed them if they ever called me again that I would consider it harassment and I would have my attorney work it out with them in court. I never heard from them again after that day.


lrhall41

Submitted by DOLLARSandSINCE on Thu, 08/26/2010 - 10:37

( Posts: 1078 | Credits: )


[SIZE=3]I don???t think disputing the charge would make it any harder to negotiate. At this point they aren???t negotiating at all and have no motivation to negotiate. Just inform them that you will not settle without an agreement in writing and you had to dispute the charge with the bank because of the lack of an agreement. If they get mouthy then hang up on them. Another tactic I use is when one of them tries to talk over me I come back and talk over them. It is a showcase of dominance and who is in charge of the conversation and the collection process. You will get a much better settlement offer if you go this route. If you roll over and do nothing and continue to let them debit your account then you will end up paying much more than you ever owed probably. [/SIZE]


lrhall41

Submitted by DOLLARSandSINCE on Thu, 08/26/2010 - 10:46

( Posts: 1078 | Credits: )


Well we just got a letter from the collection agency today saying we owe the debt. This is after they called 8 days ago. Should I still send the validation of debt letter along with the letter stating we revoke the authorization to debit our account and to only contact us via USMail?

Thanks again for all the advice.


lrhall41

Submitted by harborsalesonline on Sat, 08/28/2010 - 15:39

( Posts: 16 | Credits: )


Quote:

Originally Posted by harborsalesonline
Well we just got a letter from the collection agency today saying we owe the debt. This is after they called 8 days ago. Should I still send the validation of debt letter along with the letter stating we revoke the authorization to debit our account and to only contact us via USMail?

Thanks again for all the advice.


yes send it.that is the letter they should have sent before strong arming payment.send the letter certtified mail return receipt.also i would close that account,or block them first.do not do a stop payment.see the manager for this.then send the letter.


lrhall41

Submitted by paulmergel on Mon, 08/30/2010 - 06:53

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