GC SERVICES, where to go now?

you are doing the right thing by not sending this bottomfeeder
any money without something in writing agreeing to the amount,and that they won't sell the remaining balance.by the way you or your realtive can file BK.any action by this bottomfeeder i would consider illegal.like reporting on your credit report.just keep your stance.nothing in writing no money.

Yes, you seem to have this well in hand. It should raise a lot of red flags that they keep pushing, then pushed for a check telling you you could 'stop payment'. The second you did that they would be screaming at you about "check fraud" which I honestly thing they wanted you to do.

The fact is this company showed their true colors by these 'bosses' getting on the phone.

I would not deal with them strictly over the mail system, send them letters and see where it goes from there.

Thank you Paul and Golden,
Yeah to be honest after fm1 told me who called, I googled the name, and found this forum and many other sites with all kinds of horror stories about them and their illegal tactics. So when fm2 spoke to Dan the first couple times and found Dan to be very nice and seemed to want to work with us and settle this I was pleasently surprised, but still very cautious. I KNEW never do any monetary transactions without a contract. But I also knew there was a good possibility that if I sent them a check that they could or would pull something like you said, and then not only would I be out that money but also in trouble for check fraud. How stupid do these people think we are????

For now I guess we wait and see if a letter comes in the mail by Friday. Do you think I should send out my set of letters to them registered receipt requested of course?
You know the funny thing is...they never once gave me an address to send the check to, or the name of who to make it out to. Then on their conversation, or should I say confrontation with fm2 this morning, the last boss told fm2 that he had till 4pm today to fax him a check, or else! What the H***? What good would a faximile of a check do? it is not considered "legal tender" they can't exactly take a fax to the bank can they? I know that the moment they got an account number they would try to electronically clear that account out.

CA's are in panic mode right now....money that comes in this month is their commission checks next month. You are right by standing your ground.

Thanks Soaplady,
BTW, what about the fact that GC is not even licensed in my state, even though their initial contact letter say specifically that they are but does not list a license number. Are they even legally allowed to collect from me in this state, and all of the parties, fm1 fm2 and myself live here.

GC services is a vendor for the US Department of Education....part of that contract requires licensing in every state. That is a multi million dollar contract so I can assure you they are licensed in your state.

I did a search at my states department of commerce licensing div. and they were listed in a number of states with licenses, including Ill. which is the office that contacted us, but my state does not show them as having a current license here. Also my state, Mn. says that if a collection agency does not have an actual physical office in this state, but wishes to do business here they have to post a surity bond for $20,000. I checked that too, and as far as my states site is concerned, they don't show one for GC in Mn either. I understand that they do collections for the dept of edu, but that doesn't mean they are the only one who the dept has contracted.

What if I told you these creeps paid less than $900 for your account and that your check for $9192 will be accepted for a very nice profit. They are pulling your chain. Because they would not comply, I would offer them $3000 now at the end of the month when their Quota bonuses are met because they have not complied with your request for written receipt. Ps make sure your request for PiF comes on their Company Letter Head.

DOE has several CA vendors and each is required under contract to maintain nationwide state licensure.

I am in MN too....unfortunately the seach site is not always up to date. A couple of times I have had to call to check on licensing that was not showing up on the website.

Thx again Soaplady, I defer to your knowledge. I am new at this "game".
Tony, I would say....
EXCUSE ME?????? I would ask you two things...
1) are YOU pulling my chain
2) why would they accept only $3000 now?

Ignore Tony.....from my knowledge GC Services is strickly a 3rd party CA. (I used to go to student loan conferences and met other managers from other agencies) It is possible that they might buy some paper but looking at their website, it doesnt appear so.

Just thought I would give you all an update, mail just came, not a thing from GC. I think Dan was not truthful in his statement that he had sent a settlement letter last Friday. BTW fm2 has that statement from Dan also on his voicemail.
Even junk snailmail would have been here by now from Il.
Now if the tables were turned, do you think they would be tollerant of us saying "it's in the mail" and to not receive anything within 5 days. :roll:

JJ what state do you live in?

Nascar, he mentioned that he lived in Minn.

Thank you guest, yes Nascar, I do live in Minnesota.
We sent our set of letters to GC's office in Elgin Il yesterday, registered return receipt. Since they never did give us an address to mail to other then the one on the initial form letter which has just a PO Box for GC's headquarters in Texas, we decided to use the one that tied to the phone number which Dan had called from. I knew that would not be able to send a registered receipt requested letter to a PO Box. So I guess we will see what happens. fm2 was absolutely amazed that in his last conversation that the last boss he spoke with, the "portfolio mgr" said that if we did not have the money to them by 4 pm that day that they would NOT accept our money. fm2 said you're telling me that you would rather have zero then 9grand? He said "yup". and fm2 said "okay, it's your choice", and hung up. Do you all think they will really turn down that money and decide to either turn it back in to OC or sue? Are these people mad?? :shock:

Actually you can send CMRR to a PO Box..I do it all the time. basically when they pick up the mail they see a little slip that tells them they have a certified letter waiting for them and then they go up and sign for it. :)

Look into recording calls and get those calls recorded. You already sent the letters CMRR so that is good....stand firm. If they do sue, they will look awfully stupid when you break out all the proof of how you bent over backwards to pay this off but it was the company that stalled you at every turn.....imagine the judge's reaction when you prove that you had the money all ready to go, just needed them to sign the agreement......they will look like fraudsters for not wanting to sign the agreement....after all, why would they NOT sign it unless they had no intention of honoring the agreement? :)

Thank you Goldenbast,
I just hope it doesn't come to that. All of us have cell phones, no land lines. How can we record a cell phone conversation?

I have a digital recorder by Olympus I got at Circuit City and they make an combo mic/earpiece that plugs into it that you can record your cell phone. It's also made by Olympus and I got it at Radio Shack. Can't remember the part number. I'll post it when i get home.

I am not sure they will bother calling now. Just received their letter, amazing that they actually sent one! But... it was dated and postmarked Friday the 21st of Nov, (like Dan said he did). The thing is that in the letter it states "if settlement amount is not received by 11-26-08, this offer will become null and void."
Today is the 28th for goodness sake. They sent it plain old snail mail and expected us to receive it and get the money in their hands (at the busiest time of the year mail wise) in 4 mail days????? That is totally unreasonable.
I just don't know what we should do now, just wait?????

Wow they didn't give you any time to even get it in the mail! It seems odd they would type it up and mail it out with a 5 day deadline when it is going to take a few days (especially since this is a holiday as well).

Bump-
It is now Tuesday, and we have not had a single phone call from GC. We should get our green card back either today or tomorrow, that is if someone there signed it. If we do and they have signed, meaning received it, what then? Do we continue to wait, do we call, or should we DV them to make sure that they can't just go file suit? From the settlement letter they sent us they said that they were "authorized by OC, (who btw is Citibank) to offer us a settlement blah...blah..blah, and that they..GC does not put remarks on CR, so I am assuming that GC does not own the account, but is acting as a third party for citi. Which from what I have read that they would have to kick it back to citi and citi would be the ones who would sue, right?

Has anyone settled successfully with GC?

Thanks

Hi.
Was reading about your situation, and it is similar to mine. I am still in the beginning stages though. It is great to read how you handled gcs. Any new news of what has happened lately?

Hi guest,
not a whole lot. It was quite for a while. They received our settlement letter on Dec. 1st, and we heard nothing. Then about a week ago fm1 started getting calls from Dan again threatening to sue if fm1 didn't pay up. Fm1 was upset that he was calling them again rather then calling fm2 since they had sent GC a letter authorizing fm2 to negotiate on their behalf. Fm2 has not gotten any calls from GC. Dan's last voice mail message to fm1 was that he had a "case number" for them, and to call him so he could give it to them. That was a week ago. Fm2 sent a DV letter to GC, and in it stated unequivocally that all communications were to be in writting ( no more phone calls.) That was sent out CRRR on Wednesday 12/17/08 and although we have not received the green receipt yet, they should have received it yesterday. I don't know if they continued to call fm1 since the one last Monday (case number message). Also just received a new bill from the OC, of course with more fees and interest charges, but without any references to it being sent to collections. Just the message that "this bill is seriously past due". I don't expect GC to abide by the law to not call, (actually I hope they don't so we have something more to fight them on)
I was actually wondering myself, if we should send a settlement letter to OC, and see if they want to "play ball now"

Are you also dealing with GC Services? Let us know how it is going with your situation. And good luck!

GC is not a nice co to deal with. They are a collection agency that works for the OC. I had to deal with them on my Citi card. They get real mean and you need to remain calm and don't react to their threats. I personaly would not have sent a C&D letter because if want something settled fast you need to be able to comunicate with them. They give you the run around alot, every time I spoke with someone it was like starting all over again, this is a trick they keep notes everytime you speak to someone. You need to tell them you need a new settlement letter with new dates stating your agreement, again before you send money. If you had access to a fax they can fax the letter to you. I settled my account at 50% in payments. They keep telling me No, I was patient and finally got the call on the "good news" as they put it. It was not easy and when they good mean on the phone I just said I have to go now and hung up. They do push alot at the end of the month.

Hi time 2 wine,
Yes, I already know they are not exactly the nicest people to deal with.
I didn't send a C&D I sent a DV, (debt validation) letter to them which in it I added that all communication is to be by US mail. They were continuously calling fm1, about paying, when in fact fm1 had already told them both verbally and in writing that fm2 has their permission to negotiate a settlement for fm1. Fm1 wants nothing to do with this whole thing, and it upsets them that GC are being such *&%*&^ people. Fm1 is the one that doesn't want GC to call anymore.
As for settling, they already have my settlement letter in their hands, and it was for 60% of the total, in one full payment. Is all they would have to do is sign it and send it back to me and they would have their money within days. I don't understand how a OC could allow them to turn down such an offer if in fact GC was contracted to collect and didn't buy it outright. They could have had the money almost a month ago if they had really wanted to settle. The whole thing makes no sense to me, unless they were afraid of the "paper trail". That is also why I DVed them, I am wondering if in fact they are legally collecting for OC, or are they just trying to scam me?

Sorry, I guess what I meant was that if you want a quick settlement then you need to speak to them on the phone. limiting yourself to snailmail will slow things down. I understand why you did it, but, that's the way debt settlement is. Their job is to get as much money as possible thru scare tactics and intimidation. They way I have been settleing my accounts is once I reach an agreement (after many calls) on the phone then I tell them to send me a settlement letter to the terms we agreed on, on thier letterhead, once I recieve it I send the money. They are under no obligation to agree to and sign anything you send them. If I were you I would ask them for a new settlement letter on their letterhead with a new agreed upon date.

That's okay time2wine.
I was not the one who has delayed a quick settlement, they are. They are the ones that decided to send me a settlement letter which had an expiration date 5 days from the day they mailed it. They knew full well that there was no way for me to receive the letter and send them payment within that time frame. It specifically stated that after that date, their offer was null and void, thus invalidating the settlement. So if I had sent them money there was no written guarantee that they wouldn't continue to try to collect the remainder.

That being said, they received our DV letter on Dec. 23, with the no phone calls stipulation, and today they have called 3 times and hung up. They leave no messages. That is a clear violation of FDCPA 805 and 806.

Now if someone could tell me do I file a complaint with my state AG, or do I have to hire an attorney and sue them? :?

I would suggest looking for an NACA attorney....you got em on violations. Take photos of your caller id.

what state are you in???

Hi Soaplady,
So you think I should get an attorney rather then file a complaint with the AG? BTW, I am in Minnesota.
Also do I have to pay upfront for an attorney? If so then I will have to use the money I have for the settlement.

Oh I have an attorney for you then......I am in Minnesota too!!! Nothing up front!!! Pete Barry...he is an NACA attorney here in the cities. We have used him

Thank you Soaplady,
Sorry it took so long to reply to your post, I had some other personal business to take care of.
Since my last post I have received one phone call, hang up each day from GC, and in yesterdays mail we received another "settlement letter" from them. The same amount as we had agreed on in our original conversations, but this time it is without a deadline to send it in. They again stipulate in it, and I quote: " *As of the date of this letter, you owe $15321.59. (which btw is not what the last bill said from the OC). Because of interest, late charges, and other charges that may vary from day to day, the amount due on the day you pay may be greater. Hence, if you pay the amount shown above, an adjustment may be necessary after we receive your check, in which event we will inform you."
In other words, again they can still attempt to collect more money after we send them this settlement amount. I DON"T THINK SO!!!!
Another odd thing, the letter is dated Dec. 18, 2008, (well after they received our DV letter, which to me seems like they are again violating the FDCPA by continuing to try to collect a debt after they have been sent a DV, but before they have validated it) and although the letter was dated for the 18th, it wasn't mailed until the 29th of Dec. And the wording in it is as if it is the first letter they have sent us again with the statement "Please note that this letter does not reduce your rights as stated on the reverse portion thereof, please refer to the reverse side of this letter for an explanation of your rights. (The reverse is a statement of our right to dispute the debt within 30 days etc.) There isn't a single mention of the previous communications, or the fact that they have already received a DV letter disputing the debt and requesting validation based on our rights under FDCPA.
Really odd :?
Fm2 said "just call an attorney and let him handle it". He said he would rather give him (the attorney) the money then these idiots.

Contact Pete Barry. In fact I think he has posted here on this board. He is a great attorney....on TV all the time defending consumer rights!!

You can look up the FDCPA online. Also, there are settlement agreements you can get at about 60% of your debt or even less. Then your credit report reflects Settled In Full, not Paid In Full. They are 3rd party for DOE, but they run 1st party for cc's too. They both try to scare you, but only the DOE debts can be garnished without litigation. Some of the people are nice and try to help people, some are bozos and only in it for the money. Either way, you can pay, or not, it's up to you. Who needs credit anyway.

this is very interesting. I just googled GC svs after getting a call for my neighbor. the guy said that it was a business matter, and that my neighbor had given my name as the closest neighbor - I knew it was BS, said I was housesitting, and did not even know if that was who lived next door. can they call me? he did not say the call was being recorded, or that it was an attempt to collect a debt. can I get in on this class action lawsuit now? he left his name and phone number w/ext. sure was glad to find this website.

ps, I live in a state that does not allow recording without knowledge. thank you

Nothing illegal about skip tracing. In leaving a message with a third party, all they can give is there name and phone and business name if specifically asked. They cannot disclose they are calling on a debt. So they did nothing wrong.