Are any of these statements and questions a violation of FDCPA laws?

For starters....there is no such thing as being "prelegal". It is like being a little bit pregnant...you either are or you are not....there is no in between. Grey area to violation.

Asking for a financial statement is not a viiolation. Basically they are doing their job to find out what you can and cannot do.

You should have gotten their name and address and told them you would be sending a DV request. Then hang up.

Well, I did a quick search under "GC Partners" and found out it owns Golden Corral (Mmmmm. Loved that restaurant.) So I would be pushing them for their correct name and address. What phone number did they call from? You can usually google the number and find out who they really are.

I would go out and invest in a digital recorder and a phone adapter and start recording these calls. What state do you live in? Find out if you are a one-party or two-party consent state when it comes to recording calls. If they are refusing to give the correct name of their company as well as their address, and they are in fact a third party collector and not actually Citi-Skank, then they are in violation of the FDCPA. I would call them back and push them, while recording the call of course, for this information.

I would definitely send them a debt validation request immediately. They may be trying to toy with you and you may miss the 30 day window you have in which to request validation.

Ron, she stated in her post that she did record the call.

Speak of the devil . . . right after posting my question, they called again. I, of course, recorded the conversation. I told the rep that she'd told me previously that she was calling from the GC Partners, a Prelegal department for citibank and their letter received today (postmarked 19th when they said it was mailed on the 14th) read GC services limited partnership collection agency division and of course, she said they are the prelegal department of the company.

I also stated that I did not appreciate her lieing about IL being a common law state and she stated it is a community property state (I looked it up while on the phone and again - she was wrong).

I asked for the address and told her I'd be sending a DV request letter so she transferred me to a guy who was really angry about me wanting to send the DV letter. He said it was a stall tactic on my part. I was very calm and collected and told him that according to the statement they mailed, I have 30 days to dispute the validity of the debt and he was going on in a rage asking me what info I needed. He could give me that info right now. I told him it will all be in the letter and hung up.

Makes me wonder why he was in such a "tizzy" that I was sending a Debt validation request letter.

Do these collectors ever validate debt when a Debt validation request letter is sent?

Well color me confused, Stenogirl5 certainly did say that. So much for my own personal reading comprehension for the day.

Believe it or not, stenogirl5, some CA's do. That said, however, some CA's will only send you a statement on their letterhead advising the name of the debt and how much they say you owe. That is not proper validation. Proper validation is something from the original creditor like statements or a signed contract. If a CA is on the up-and-up, they should have no problem correctly responding to your request for validation.

Of all the CA's I've DV'd over the years, I have yet to receive anything form them that is considered proper validation. One CA did send copies of statements; however, when I questioned them as to why the balance they claim I owed was significantly higher than the balance of the most recent statement, I never heard from them again. And they aren't on my credit reports either.

I sent the letter out today but not before getting yet three more calls from GC services. A very rude manager who kept telling me I already had validation with the letter they initially sent that is pretty much a letter asking me to pay an outrageous $ amount and an envelope.

When I told her I no longer wanted to talk to her since I was sending the DV request today she became hostile and wouldn't shut up so I hung up and she called my cell phone and would hang up on me when I answered twice.

I plan on reporting them to the BBB for what it's worth.

Thanks for all the help and advise. By the way, I did notice that in a month and a half, another $600 has been added to the amount!

They should get the letter tomorrow so we'll see what happens next!

I just realized that GC services has multiple locations. I'm getting calls from the office in Elgin, IL and that's where I sent the DVR letter. They have corporate offices in TX. Do I need to send one there as well?

Keep records of them calling your cell phone: take pictures of the CID, save statements from your cell phone carrier. You may need them if you end up having to sue them form FDCPA violations.

Reporting them to the BBB is worse than useless. I would suggest reporting them to your state's Attorney General's office and the Federal Trade Commission. You could also report them to the IL and/or TX State Attorney General's Office.

You could send another copy of the letter to their TX office; however, I don't think it's required. It couldn't hurt, though, to have all your bases covered. I do hope, however, you sent that letter certified mail/return receipt requested. Did you also tell them you did not want them contacting you by phone, only by mail?

Let's see what anyone else responds with regarding sending a second letter to their corporate office.

I love talking to CAs on the phone. Especially when they ask me "what info you need to validate". Hah. I simply respond that I need documentation and when told they already did that I respond with, "no..you sent me a letter on your own letterhead stating I owed you such and such money, but proper and legal validation MUST come from the original creditor, so I want to see actual documentation from the OC, not their rehashed drivel.

I had one OC tell me that it would take them a few months to get that info and in that time all collection activities will continue and that it will be reported to my credit report. Boy o boy did I have fun with that one! I responded:

"No, you will send it to me in 30 days and during that time all collection activities will stop, which includes not putting it on my credit report until they can send validation."

They sputtered alot then finally said that is not how it worked. I of course responded that is exactly how it works in Texas.

Then I very innocently asked, "oh by the way, do you hold a Surety Bond with the Secretary of State of Texas?" knowing full well that they did not. I never heard from them again. Gee what a surprise.

The thing you have to remember is that you DO NOT have to answer -anything- they ask. Oh, and the 'mark you down as refusing to pay'...next time they do that, throw their favorite line back at them.

"Your marking it as a refusal to pay is just a stall tactic to not have to validate the account. Why is that? Do you not have any proof?"

I LOVE using that last one...I swear I make CA's stutter and almost cry.

When they ask you for a barrage of info simply and calmly tell them that they do not need that information until such a time as they can properly validate the debt. Anytime they ask anything, use that line.

Thanks, FloridaRon, I went ahead and took the pictures of the caller ID as well as their number calling on my cell. Thanks for the suggestion!

I did send the letter by certified mail/return reciept requested. I used a form letter I got from this site so it did state to only contact me via postal service.

I'm going to report them to the state's attorney general's office and the FTC in both states as you suggested.

They sure do sound really irritated with me because they don't have the upper hand.

I just hope I don't have to send another letter to headquarters. It isn't as inexpensive but I guess it's wise to have all bases covered as you said.

Thanks Goldenbast! I'm learning a lot from this forum and really appreciate it. I will definitely remember to use the advice next time they call. It's funny how they keep handing me over to the next person in the office when that one person can't get me to do or say what they want!

I found out yesterday though that my state is a 2 party state. I've been recording calls without letting them know. I had looked it up before on the internet and I don't know how I missed something but in fact, IL is a 2-party state.

That's too bad because I sort of enjoyed having the upperhand there. I'll still record them if they continue to call but I'll make sure I inform them I'm recording the call.

Whenever you call them, do you get a message in their VRU about "calls my be monitored for quality purposes.....?" If so, I've read where that's your two-party consent right there. Because the company advises they may monitor/record calls, and you already know you're recording from your end, then 2-party consent has been satisfied.

Someone chime in and correct me if I'm mistaken.

You should think about registering for this site, stenogirl5. Like you, I came here back in 2007; I was out of work and having some serious problems with a CA. It's amazing how much I've learned since then. I stuck around so I could give back the help and reassurance that I received, so no one had to go through what I did.

I still have much more to learn, though.

I've actually never called them but a few times when they called me, I remember them telling me the call was monitored for quality purposes.

So since I will obviously continue to record calls, I may not have to let them know that I'm recording if they tell me they're monitoring the call? What if they don't state that on every call they make to me, do I need to tell them?

I will definitely get around to becoming a member here. It's so informative and I'm extremely grateful to have found it!

Just at the very least when they call you, at the very beginning say, "Please be advised this call is being recorded." If they say you don't have permission, then state, "Then hang up now, by continuing this conversation you agree to the recording of this call no matter how many times you object. Hang up now." Either they will hang up or they will continue to sputter.

You should add this line to all DVs you send out:

"All calls to my home are recorded, if you object to this, then do not call." That is unless you put in a do not call part in the letter, in which case I would say this if they called again:

"Please be advised this call is being recorded." when they sputter, then add in, "oh by the way you do realize that you are violating my rights by calling when you were directed not to?"

good advice Goldenbast ...

goldenbast, I wish I was as calm, cool and collect when I talked to CA's. You have some really good responses.

Just remember that they are just people like you or me. Remember that they have a vested interest in getting you to pay and that they really don't care about you or your situation. Be polite, even if they are not as you can be better then them. Remember that all you have to do is hang up if you start feeling flustered.

You have the RIGHT to validation information, don't let them tell you any different. If they continue to act badly, just tell them that they need to act polite or you will hang up...if they don't...hang up.

does anyone know about united crime bureau?

Ron,

Off-topic post (I'm sorry), but I had a very bad experience at Golden Corral. I went there with my family one day for dinner. The soups weren't labeled, but one looked like cream of potato. So I asked a lady behind the counter "Is that cream of potato?" to which she said yes. I took a cup, sat down, ate a spoonful. It wasn't cream of potato -- it was clam chowder. I'm allergic to seafood.

I can understand mistakes happen, but I wanted to address it with the manager. As much as I wanted to yell and scream, I was very polite to her and explained the situation. Nonetheless she gave me a nasty look and bad attitude, like I was the one who had a problem. So I politely told her, "I would have stayed and finished out my meal and even paid for it; but since you're acting like a B*** I will be leaving, and I'm not paying for it, if you have a problem call the police." She made some remark about she just might do that, and I said "While you're at it then, call an ambulance too because I feel my throat swelling up, and I think I'll have to sue you for my medical costs." She let us go after that, but I won't be going back.