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Collectcorp collection agency - Are they known for FDCPA violation?

Submitted by on Tue, 09/20/2005 - 21:27
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Hi all,
I have been having an ongoing issue with this agency. It started with my AmEx account being misused. Someone somehow used my account in PA while I was here in Texas. If I'd know of this earlier I am sure it could have been settled. But because this was a card I used only twice (at most), I'd forgotten it existed. Also, the statements were going to my old residence, another reason I had no idea. When I moved back to my home city, I was given a ton of old mail and noticed the charge. By this time, the account had been sent to Collectcorp collections. After trying to prove that I hadn't used the card in PA, I finally gave in and paid the money because I didn't want a bad mark on my credit, which up until now had been clean. I paid by the date on the letter sent to me, in full.
Now they claim I owe another $6 because despite having a 0 balance at the due date, they are saying interest accrued before the payment, or some bull. My real concern here is that during this whole ordeal, CollectCorp has been rude even when I was just trying to figure out what this charge was and how it got there. The collectcorp phone numbers are rarely working, and they don't answer the phone if you call more than once. When I asked them to send a receipt of my payment by phone they sent me a letter for a payment plan instead - after I'd paid the entire thing. And now they are sneaking charges in on me. I don't know what to do. I don't want the deliquency on my record in the first place because I never made the charge(and I have proof that I couldn't have made the purchase because I bought groceries in TX that very same day with my bank card) so I sure as heck don't want to be their endless supply of pocket change.
So I guess my questions are:
1. Is there anyway I can't get this removed from my report although I paid it? I have proof that I didn't make the purchase. If I can't how will the delinquency affect me? The last person I spoke to said that 30 days after I paid it off and they reported it to the bureaus it will clear. Is that true?
2. How can I ensure that what I pay them will actually end all of this since they keep bring up new charges and excuses everytime I think I am paid off? What's the best action to take?
3. Is there anyone or any place I can report them for their horrible treatment? It almost as if they don't want me to pay them the way they send me from person to person, and hang up on me for asking a simple question!
I apologize for making this so long, but thank you for hearing me out as well as for any help you can give.
Thanks,
Adra


Hi Adra
Welcome to the forums. The first thing that you should do is to contact Amex and close the said account. Otherwise, possibilities are there that it might keep rolling with some other charges which you will have to pay in order to maintain your financial identity. Get it in writing that the account has been successfully closed.
Regarding the present transaction, request CollectCorp to send the complete information of the debt in order to prove that they are legally responsible to collect it.
Once the payment is made, the account information will be updated with the credit bureaus and you will have a clean report. Otherwise, the negative marking of unpaid debt will keep hurting you at regular intervals.
You can lodge your consumer complaints about any agency practicing illegal collections at the FTC, BBB and the consumer protection office in your state. Many of the consumers have filed their complaints about specific companies and necessary actions have been taken against them.
Do let us know if you have any of your queries unsolved.
Regards
Roxette


Submitted by roxette on Wed, 09/21/2005 - 11:59

roxette

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Thanks for you advice and quick response! I plan to put this into action immediately.


Submitted by on Sat, 09/24/2005 - 19:48

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Interest? Amex?? Huh?? Unless you have a Amex Blue card, amex doesen't charge interest, just hefty late fees assessedbased on balance in lump sums.


Submitted by LCW on Mon, 09/26/2005 - 05:56

LCW

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look aned print out the Fair Debt Collection act

do away with the middleman...deal directly with the

creditor....period


Submitted by on Mon, 12/17/2007 - 15:22

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Collectcorp collection agency is just rude in general. I called tonight and the lady laughed at me over the phone. I wrote an E-mail to the president!


Submitted by on Tue, 12/18/2007 - 18:29

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collection agencies don't have to be polite. It would be wonderful if all collection agents were but it isn't going to happen because they don't have to care about customer service or loseing their jobs for being a jerk.
I tend to take the Golden Rule to heart when I deal with people but I know many who don't.


Submitted by FYI on Tue, 12/18/2007 - 20:12

FYI

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I was reading your commnts on Collectcorp collection agency and other agencies. I see where you guys are coming from, but look at it in their shoes. On a daily basis, they get people calling in and telling them off, just for doing there job!
Now I'm not saying that they are innocent, that's for sure, but in a job like that, they have to be a little hard. There are millions upon millions of people out there who are in collections, and there is only a small percentage of those people who, like Adra, never intended to accumulate a debt; things happened where there was miscommunication or had not recived notice what so ever.
BUT....
There is a bigger percentage of people who KNOW they are in collections and instead of dealing with there matter, the simple take it out on other people...like the collectors.
I was a collector once, and I went into that job, nice as can be, using my "Please" and "Thank you's"; and my "Ma'am" and "Sir". I even had a handful of people that said "You're one of the nicest collectors i ever talked to,". But there were also tons and tons of people who simple hung up the phone on me as soon as they knew my intention of calling, or told me where to go and how to get there. It's these "classic debtors" that make collectors the way they are sometimes...


Submitted by on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 17:50

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Doesn't matter, there are still certain things they are not allowed to do, using abusive language is one of them as all it takes is one little F-bomb for the FCC to levy a $1 million penalty. Also being rude to a person because they have a question about their account is uncalled for. Sure they don't have to be nice but what about common professionalism, or does that not apply in an industry where people claim to be professionals?


Submitted by JCEMT on Thu, 09/25/2008 - 17:58

JCEMT

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Does anyone have collectcorp address or a fax number and/or email address for them? I recently settled a debt with them which was withdrawn 1 week earlier than I had asked and am now being assessed with over $300 in bank fees that in my opinion Collectcorp collection agency should be responsible for.


Submitted by on Mon, 11/17/2008 - 16:47

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After receiving calls for a same named person, I started answering the phone and telling the debt collectors that "she committed suicide because of the debt collectors harassing her to death" ... then I hung up ... it worked as my calls have been cut in half


Submitted by on Wed, 06/03/2009 - 11:39

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I used to manage for CollectCorp collections in Phoenix.
They lost their contract with the Department of Ed, they lost a truckload of collectors in Phoenix due to really bad executives making terrible decisions. Right after I left, and my friend and co-manager left, their Amex Portfolio went to hell in a hand basket. Most of their 3rd party collectors (the good ones) left. They lost market share on their in house portfolio and no doubt by now they have lost market share on their 3rd party portfolio.
Here is what I would do.
1. I would call Amex and file a formal complaint. Make sure that you put your request in writing (fax it or mail it to them).
2. Pay Amex directly, don't pay Collect Corp. Collect Corp. doesn't assign interest, Amex reports it to them. If you pay Collect Corp, you may be stuck in the same situation next month. if you call Amex and explain the situation to them, and tell them you want to pay it to a zero balance right now and you want a letter in writing, they will give you that.
3. Amex is VERY VERY VERY complaint sensitive, Intellirisk lost their contract with Amex due to a recorded call with a collector threatning legal action. So any problems with any of Amex's collection agencies, 1 call could do it all.
4. Don't even bother going through Collect Corp. they are a joke. They have a formal complaint process, to fine or fire managers and collectors for complaints. But they really don't do much and if you call them all you are going to get is pacification. If you're going to take action hit them where it hurts, go right to their client!
5. If you believe that they or any collection agency has voilated your rights, I would file a complaint with your State Attorney General, The FTC and the BBB.
File a complaint with the Office
Of the Inspector General (FTC):
By Mail:
Consumer Response Center
600 Pennsylvania Ave N.W.
Washington DC 20580
By Web:
https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/
By Phone:
General complaints: 1-877-382-4357
Identity Theft: 1-877-438-4338
kNOw Fraud: 1-877-987-3728
Spanish (en Espanol): 1-877-382-4357
6. You can also go to the RipOffReport (http://www.ripoffreport.com) and post your complaints there also.
If you have any other questions, PM me, I will elaborate more.


Submitted by Clay Bowden on Sun, 10/18/2009 - 18:30

Clay Bowden

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I used to be in the bsuiness. I bought tens of millions of dollars of debt and collected on a small fraction of it. Its a very togh business. Now that I am not in the business, I will tell you this. Once your credit card, or any debt for that matter as gone to collections, DONT PAY IT - EVER. Once you have a "Charge Off" on your credit report, the only thing tat will make it go away is time. There is ZERO difference between a "PAID CHARGOFF" and a "CHARGEOFF". Once the creditor has charged it off, your credit score will suffer until time heals the bad mark. So, despite what the Collection agency tells you, it will remain on your report and be reflected in your FICO score. Negotiate DIRECLY with the Company that you owe the debt too. Have them send you a notorized letter stipulating that if you pay off he debt, that they will remove all negative information from all THREE credit reporting bureaus, and that they will not post any additional information concerning te specific debt. This is the ONLY way to repair your credit. Period.


Submitted by on Tue, 10/20/2009 - 15:40

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I have been getting calls from CollectCorp collection agency on an old student loan that was defaulted by the US Government not paying it under my military contract. I have disputed this for years. I have told collect corp several times and they do nothing about the dispute. they only say "I see that dispute but when are you going to pay?" I told them they are calling the wrong guy. Now the loan went from $7k to $22k and up $2k from just two days ago. Today I aked for the fax number and got put on hold forever. They also say everytime that they have a wage garnishment on their desk to process. I tell them go ahead and that I would like to see that trick since I am a self employed private detective.


Submitted by on Fri, 10/30/2009 - 08:56

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Anonymous
If I verbally agreed to payment to Collect Corp but found out he misrepresented the amount owed, how can I stop the payment?


Hi Bookie when you say verbally, do you mean check by phone? if so, that depends on the date you set up the check. If you set it up for that day then there isn't anything you can do. However if you postdated it call them back and tell them that you have to cancel the payment. You don't have to give them a reason why just tell them you had "another obligation." 1; record the call, 2; make sure that they call in the cancelation to the recorded line that was initally called, 3; get the address to cease and desist them from further communication. Contact the origional creditor to make the arrangments and tell the original creditor that you do NOT want to deal with collect corp and tell them why. I hope this help, if you have any other questions let me know.


Submitted by on Sat, 11/07/2009 - 09:24

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Anonymous
I have been calls from Collect Corp on an old student loan that was defaulted by the US Government not paying it under my military contract. I have disputed this for years. I have told collect corp several times and they do nothing about the dispute. they only say "I see that dispute but when are you going to pay?" I told them they are calling the wrong guy. Now the loan went from $7k to $22k and up $2k from just two days ago. Today I aked for the fax number and got put on hold forever. They also say everytime that they have a wage garnishment on their desk to process. I tell them go ahead and that I would like to see that trick since I am a self employed private detective.


Why are you the wrong guy? You owe the student loan....it is not up to them to resolve your dispute, that is not their job, it is yours. Eventually it will catch up with you....you need a license to be a PI?? That could end up being held plus your social security will be garnished. I would suggest you resolve it before you end up owing $40K and more. Also, finding out you are self employed might force the DOE to end up suing you.


Submitted by SOAPLADY on Sat, 11/07/2009 - 10:14

SOAPLADY

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Hey all you former Collect Corp employees,
Why do you not contact the debtor first? All's I get are automated calls to call CollectCorp. I got a call from an ex family member who had a message from someone claiming to be from BofA on her answering machine looking for me this week. The sib and ex divorced years ago and the ex does not even have my last name. And the ex has an unlisted number. No one is responsible for any of my debts but me. You know that employee misrepresented herself as being with the OC the debt was charged off earlier in the week. I told the ex to call me if she got anymore calls. CollectCorp call ME not my friends and family! I am going to have fun with this as I can see the FDCPA violations racking up. I am going to go out and get a recorder so I can get proof that CollectCorp does not abide by FDCPA rules.


Submitted by on Sat, 11/07/2009 - 13:04

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Go down to your local Radio Shack, and tell'em you want a telephone pickup coil.' It's a stock item, and sells for about eight bucks. Stick the suction-cup thingy to the phone receiver, and plug it in to the mic jack on any recorder. Cassette recorder, boom box, digital recorder, whatever. You can even use your PC. Windows Sound Recorder works just fine. Instructions are in the Windows Help & Support Center.


Submitted by unclewulf on Sat, 11/07/2009 - 14:23

unclewulf

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Anonymous
Hey all you former Collect Corp employees,
Why do you not contact the debtor first? All's I get are automated calls to call CollectCorp. I got a call from an ex family member who had a message from someone claiming to be from BofA on her answering machine looking for me this week. The sib and ex divorced years ago and the ex does not even have my last name. And the ex has an unlisted number. No one is responsible for any of my debts but me. You know that employee misrepresented herself as being with the OC the debt was charged off earlier in the week. I told the ex to call me if she got anymore calls. CollectCorp call ME not my friends and family! I am going to have fun with this as I can see the FDCPA violations racking up. I am going to go out and get a recorder so I can get proof that CollectCorp does not abide by FDCPA rules.


Hello there,

Nowaday there are so many ways to locate people. You may no longer use a landline so they used the following websites to locate you or people who know you or have known you:
Accurint.com, veromi.net and or pipl.com. Collect Corp's policies are to not contact relitives. I hope there this has been helpful to you. I do not work there because apparently I feel that a persons home is more important than a charged off BOA account.


Submitted by on Tue, 11/10/2009 - 22:26

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Collect corp is a company full of unethical rude animals... Its like you have to have no brains cells to work there.. Even the managers there are rude and unprofessional.. I feel sorry for them since they are just a bunch of dummies and Olivia Meta the supervisor there is rude and very unprofessional... i will have her job taken from her!!!


Submitted by on Thu, 12/03/2009 - 16:47

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Six months ago, CollectCorp was informed that my mother had cancer, was no longer working, and that she was terminal. They said they would not call again and held to this until tonight. Their question to her tonight was, "So you're just going to lie there on your deathbed with this on your back?" She said, "Yes," and hung up.

The thing is that she is working through things with the Department of Education, and not dealing with CollectCorp. The D of E knows that they will get what they get from her estate, and they're fine with it.

The next time they call, we will tell them that we have a lawsuit pending against them for harrassment - all we have to do is contact our attorney again. He's waiting with the paperwork as I write this.


Submitted by on Mon, 12/21/2009 - 18:02

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I have started to get calls from credit corp and it has been a nightmare since.I advise them that i can not receive calls at work and they are still calling my job 2-3 times a day.I spoke with the manager and advise to only call me.I can not receive calls at work .They have threatened me with garishment and said there is nothing i can do to stop it but make the full payment.They keep asking for my checking acct number but i see on another page were someone stated not to give any checking acct information because they will drain your account.THEY are the RUDES PEOPLE i have every talk to .Now my job is in jeopardy because of all the harassing phone calls that i have been getting .Pls someone advise me what i need to do to get these crazy people from harassing me


Submitted by on Fri, 01/08/2010 - 05:45

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I just got the address because they would not give me the address .this is a student loan .I have spoke to them from home and advised them talk to the manager they are so rude.I am willing to start to pay but i do not want them to get harassing me the call me about 10 times at day .


Submitted by on Fri, 01/08/2010 - 06:04

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Anonymous
Hello there,
Nowaday there are so many ways to locate people. You may no longer use a landline so they used the following websites to locate you or people who know you or have known you:
Accurint.com, veromi.net and or pipl.com. Collect Corp's policies are to not contact relitives. I hope there this has been helpful to you. I do not work there because apparently I feel that a persons home is more important than a charged off BOA account.


That is absolute BS. I have a landline and I can easily be searched on whitepages.com The person does not even have the same last name as me anymore and hasn't since 1995. Oh yeah CollectCorp have not been very aggressive in their collection. I find that kind of funny. Every time I see the number pop up on the caller ID, I just hang up or let the call go to answering machine. It is usually an automated call. Yeah they are real aggressive. One automated call a day.


Submitted by on Sat, 01/23/2010 - 21:54

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My brother tried to do a debt settlement with this company late Feb 2010. They said they would settle so he asked for a fax stating the terms of the agreement. They dated the letter Feb 25, but in the letter they said if the debt wasn't paid by Feb 16, the deal was null and void. Had I not looked at the letter and caught that, they would have taken his money and still owed all the debt. They have tried several times to take money out of his account (yes he stupidly gave them his account number)even before Feb 25. Luckily I had told him to empty the account as soon as I found out he was dealing with them. DO NOT EVER GIVE YOUR BANK ACCOUNT NUMBERS TO A COLLECTION AGENCY. TELL THEM YOU WILL PAY WITH A MONEY ORDER OR GO THROUGH PAYPAL. My brother now has to close all his bank accounts.


Submitted by on Sun, 03/07/2010 - 08:25

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My brother tried to do a debt settlement with this company late Feb 2010. They said they would settle so he asked for a fax stating the terms of the agreement. They dated the letter Feb 25, but in the letter they said if the debt wasn't paid by Feb 16, the deal was null and void. Had I not looked at the letter and caught that, they would have taken his money and still owed all the debt. They have tried several times to take money out of his account (yes he stupidly gave them his account number)even before Feb 25. Luckily I had told him to empty the account as soon as I found out he was dealing with them. DO NOT EVER GIVE YOUR BANK ACCOUNT NUMBERS TO A COLLECTION AGENCY. TELL THEM YOU WILL PAY WITH A MONEY ORDER OR GO THROUGH PAYPAL. My brother now has to close all his bank accounts.


Submitted by on Sun, 03/07/2010 - 08:36

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I had a payment agreement with American Express and agreed to the payment plan and was making the payments. All of the sudden I start receiving calls from Collect Corp and they tell me my account was turned over to them and there's nothing I can do about it. I called American Express and they said my account was sent to them a day after I made the agreement with AMEX. How can this be?? If I'm on a pmt agreement how can they turn my account over the day after I made the agreement with them?

Another issue I have is that Collect Corp called my phone a total of 4 times today, three of the calls were from their number and they must have a programmable caller id because the other was from BOA who I do have my mortgage through but I'm not late on any payments. I was told that this is illegal. Any assistance you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thank You


Submitted by on Tue, 03/16/2010 - 14:49

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Quote:

Originally Posted by Collections-DONT pay them
I used to be in the bsuiness. I bought tens of millions of dollars of debt and collected on a small fraction of it. Its a very togh business. Now that I am not in the business, I will tell you this. Once your credit card, or any debt for that matter as gone to collections, DONT PAY IT - EVER. Once you have a "Charge Off" on your credit report, the only thing tat will make it go away is time. There is ZERO difference between a "PAID CHARGOFF" and a "CHARGEOFF". Once the creditor has charged it off, your credit score will suffer until time heals the bad mark. So, despite what the Collection agency tells you, it will remain on your report and be reflected in your FICO score. Negotiate DIRECLY with the Company that you owe the debt too. Have them send you a notorized letter stipulating that if you pay off he debt, that they will remove all negative information from all THREE credit reporting bureaus, and that they will not post any additional information concerning te specific debt. This is the ONLY way to repair your credit. Period.

I had a payment agreement with American Express and agreed to the payment plan and was making the payments. All of the sudden I start receiving calls from Collect Corp and they tell me my account was turned over to them and there's nothing I can do about it. I called American Express and they said my account was sent to them a day after I made the agreement with AMEX. How can this be?? If I'm on a pmt agreement how can they turn my account over the day after I made the agreement with them?

Another issue I have is that Collect Corp called my phone a total of 4 times today, three of the calls were from their number and they must have a programmable caller id because the other was from BOA who I do have my mortgage through but I'm not late on any payments. I was told that this is illegal. Any assistance you can provide would be greatly appreciated.

Thank You


Submitted by on Tue, 03/16/2010 - 14:54

( Posts: 202330 | Credits: )


If you're going through the trouble of finding out ways to avoid a debt, bashing debt collectors and filing complaints isn't the solution. You borrowed the funds, now its time to pay it back -- what would you be if you didn't? A thief? Pretty much. If you don't want to pay it back - fine, deal with the concequences of being in collections and find ways to resolve it.
Removed, personal attacks not tolerated!


Submitted by on Sat, 03/20/2010 - 09:08

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[QUOTE=Anonymous;669611]If you're going through the trouble of finding out ways to avoid a debt, bashing debt collectors and filing complaints isn't the solution. You borrowed the funds, now its time to pay it back -- what would you be if you didn't? A thief? Pretty much. If you don't want to pay it back - fine, deal with the concequences of being in collections and find ways to resolve it.
Removed, personal attacks not tolerated![/QUOTE]

Not everyone is a passenger in the same boat, sometimes big corporations can take a leak on the little guy if you know what I mean. If a debt is disputed, but forwarded to a collection agency instead of being dealt with, is that really your fault or the people who are trying to screw you out of your hard earned money. My advice on the situation, is just ignore them, tell them if you really have a debt with another entity that you will deal with that entity only. If it is a government debt and they garnish your wage, it has to be done. If it isn't just ignore them and don't give them any personal information. In fact, *69 the number if they don't give it to you, then *67 your number and call them back over and over again, fill their voice mail up so they can't conduct their harrassing calls. Give the number to all of your friends and tell them to do the same, make it a drinking game and see how they like stupid phone calls about debts that don't exist or are even relevant. Have FUN WITH THEM


Submitted by on Thu, 06/17/2010 - 20:13

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The best thing to do when you have issues like this is to contact a consumer attorney. The National Association of Consumer Advocates (NACA) has a website where you can easily connect to attorneys who work in this field. The website is www.naca.net. Select the "find an attorney" tab, put in your state, select "debt collection", click whatever box makes the most sense (FDCPA, Not My Debt, Harassment and Abuse, etc.), and then click the search button to the left. A few attorneys will come up so the best thing to do is to (starting at the middle or bottom, because the top names probably get the most inquiries) send out a form email explaining the situation to all of the attorneys listed. If you leave your contact information, the interested lawyers should get back to you. Good luck.


Submitted by on Thu, 09/02/2010 - 17:23

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I think you're right. When collect corp took over my account from amex they told me that If I paid a lesser amount each month, they would stop the negative reporting. That was nine months ago, and I have been paying them religiousely every month. I just got my annual credit report and it shows that they have been reporting adverse info each month which didn't help my credit score one bit. I even had a restictive endosement when I began.
:(


Submitted by on Mon, 12/13/2010 - 14:28

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MOD NOTE

Stupid Canadian Collector who doesnt realize he is posting on a US based board. So i deleted his rant.

I am Canadian and I reserve the right to call some of them dumb as stumps.....


Submitted by INDYDOT on Tue, 09/13/2011 - 12:25

INDYDOT

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