United Recovery Systems-spoofed number?

Wow....I have never heard of anyone doing that. Hopefully someone else will come along and can provide more info.

Yes, they are simply trying to add pressure to you with the premise they will confront you face to face. Can we have the number they leave to call them back on?

Also, number spoofing is now illegal....

So they are just trying to pressure me they are not actually two blocks away right? That would be so creepy! The first couple of times they called using the number they didn't leave a message but it seemed so strange that when I checked my voicemail from the most recent message they left the number for URS but the number that had called had the same area code as I do and when I tried to look it up it showed the approximate location being two blocks from me. So what kind of action can I take if they really are spoofing the number? Thanks for the help I appreciate it!

MaverDoodle, Have you ever considered that you really do live that close? The URS headquarters is in the Westchase district of Houston. I doubt that URS would engage in any illegal activity. They make plenty of money the old fashioned way.

They did the same thing to me too - they are located in Houston, Tx; I'm in Ga and they had a number spoofed that is the next city over from me; is this illegal and what can I do?

debt collectors may not:
??? use threats of violence or harm;
??? publish a list of consumers who refuse to pay their debts (except to a credit bureau);
??? use obscene or profane language; or repeatedly use the telephone to annoy someone.
False statements. Debt collectors may not use any false or misleading statements when collecting a debt. For example, debt collectors may not:
??? falsely imply that they are attorneys or government representatives;
??? falsely imply that you have committed a crime;
??? falsely represent that they operate or work for a credit bureau;
??? misrepresent the amount of your debt;
??? indicate that papers being sent to you are legal forms when they are not; or
??? indicate that papers being sent to you are not legal forms when they are.
Debt collectors also may not state that:
??? you will be arrested if you do not pay your debt;
??? they will seize, garnish, attach, or sell your property or wages, unless the collection agency or creditor intends to do so, and it is legal to do so; or
??? actions, such as a lawsuit, will be taken against you, when such action legally may not be taken, or when they do not intend to take such action.
Debt collectors may not:
??? give false credit information about you to anyone, including a credit bureau;
??? send you anything that looks like an official document from a court or government agency when it is not; or
??? use a false name.

you can report to the FTC.

This is not the first instance I've heard of where a CA spoofs their phone number when contacting a debtor. I believe there was a thread, or a comment in a thread, from someone that advised a CA called them and the number that showed up in the CID was his own number.

From what I have heard, this is illegal!

In addition to filing complaints with your state's Attorney General's Office and the FTC, I would also suggest filing a complaint with the FCC. I would document everything. Take pictures of your CID and save any messages they might leave. Especially, if your answering machine gives the date and time of the call, that way you can tie it in to the picture of the CID.

This should give you a good idea of how shady this CA really is. If they operated legally and above-the-board, there would be no possible reason for them to spoof their number like that!

Helpful Mind. Maybe I'm missing something, but what in your list of FDCPA rules would make spoofing illegal, even if they were doing it?

It's not spoofing if the number is real and returns the call to the CA. Spoofing is when you impersonate someone else or use a fake number. Believe me, there's no way a successful CA would do ANYTHING illegal that might threaten one dime of their income.[samebox:281343ed9d="paulmergel"]more misinformation.spoofing is disguising your number.meaning that if the number is not there own it's illegal.also spoofing so a different name appears is illegal.i noticed you didn't mention anything about bottomfeeders.alot of supposed succesful collectors are bottomfeeders.as far as spoofing goes your wrong.[/samebox:281343ed9d]

LOL!

I spit milk and Cheerios through my nose from laughing so hard after I read your post "Guest!"

I'd bet, if the OP called that number back that showed up in his CID, it wouldn't work or even ring back to the CA.

What freakin' Fantasy Land are you living in? A LOT of CA's do A LOT of illegal things daily! The $1,000 they might have to pay out, if a debtor does decide to sue for FDCPA violations, is just not much of a deterrent to make them follow the law; to them, it's just the cost of doing business.

That's why more people need to start standing up to CA's that do pull this kind of crap by reporting them to the proper authorities and suing them for FDCPA violations.

What do you mean by "standing up to the CA?" Ever consider just paying your debts or not racking them up in the first place?[samebox:327066c263="paulmergel"]ever consider acting like a human and not a humanoid.try it.[/samebox:327066c263]

Why wouldn't it ring back to the CA? What possible reason would a CA have for not wanting the consumer to call back? That makes no sense.

Exactly what I mean, Guest!

Standing up to CA's that have to resort to tricks, lies, deceit, and just plain breaking the law (yes, the FDCPA is an actual law) while attempting to collect on debts.

And just an FYI, you mouth-breathing half-wit, I am attempting to take care of my debts. The reason I got behind on my debts was not because I just didn't feel like paying my bills, I was unemployed for close to two years. Now I have a job and have attempted to work with CA's to pay what I owe, I've only managed to clear one debt, because the rest of the CA's feel they want to jerk me around. I am actually in the process of suing two CA's for doing just that. So guess what happens when I win those lawsuits (and believe me, I will! I have everything well documented), or they settle, which will be the most likely scenario, the debts those CA's were collecting on will be taken care of as part of the settlement.

So that's two more debts taken care of and the CA's got no money from me AND they had to pay my attorney's fees! All because they wanted to break the law and thought I wouldn't call them on it.

And Guest #2, you would have to ask the bottom-feeding CA's that spoof the numbers that question. Because they do it every day.

I would like to suggest that if you encounter a collector who is breaking one or more laws, you also consider reporting the collector to his or her CA. I know for a fact that this practice is not tolerated by reputable CAs. (And don't even think about telling me that "reputable CA" is an oxymoron. There are such organizations out there, and URS is one of them.)

we know there are good CA'S out there.i have dealt with a few.it's the humaniod bottomfeeders we speak of.they are also the ones spouting the PAY YOUR BILLS lines.totally useless if you ask me.

I'm sorry for my "Pay Your Bills" comment, but it's hard not be a bit defensive. CAs are often set up as the bad guy, when many times it is reckless spending that landed the consumer into their current situation. It would be tough to be a collector not knowing which hat to put on. I do know that the best collectors (the ones who make the most money doing it) try to establish a relationship with the consumer. It's really in the best interest of all parties to do this. And although it seems like a "Fantasy Land," it's better than bumper sticker platitudes like "Hope and Change."

of course.when i set up payments with the CA'S i dealt with i spoke to the same agent on my account.they were helpful.it's when you get a different person everytime,they threaten you for immediate payment,and use profanity that makes them a humanoid.

Guest....

Consumers do not accumulate debt with CA's. It happens through folks falling on hard times and then the OC will sell it to the CA. You guys make it seem that we owe you the debt. You buy the debt for pennies on the dollar and then collect the debt to make money. You live for people that don't pay their bills. If everyone paid on time you guys would be out of business. So that's why the whole "just pay your bills" line strikes a nerve with most of us. I know it does for me.

Holy Smokes, sassy_lil_Brandy!

That was so very nicely put! I have never looked at it that way before.

Great post!!!

*taking a bow*

lol.......Thanks:)

must work for a bottom feeder with her stupid remarks!!! Woe to you if you ever fall on bad times and can't pay your bills!!!
Dummy! And spoofing is using an illegal phone number get you facts straight!

Guest and others -
I just had the same thing happen to me and I am in California. I talked to the man and when he gave me an 800 number for a callback I was confused and asked more about who he was and who he was calling for. He tried to make it sound like anything other than a collection even after pressing for answers. I searched his company on the internet and ended up here and many other sites that have a lot of information about this particular company. They also lost a lawsuit and paid 240K out for harassment and illegal practices.
I don't know if spoofing is illegal, but it should be and the number does not go back to the company when it is called back. The number is a california cellphone prefix and this guy was definitely not calling from a cellphone or from California.
I can't believe anyone in this chat would try to defend the collection agencies. They will harass people to collect debts that aren't even valid debts and harass people who don't even know the person they are trying to collect from.

Guest and others -
I just had the same thing happen to me and I am in California. I talked to the man and when he gave me an 800 number for a callback I was confused and asked more about who he was and who he was calling for. He tried to make it sound like anything other than a collection even after pressing for answers. I searched his company on the internet and ended up here and many other sites that have a lot of information about this particular company. They also lost a lawsuit and paid 240K out for harassment and illegal practices.
I don't know if spoofing is illegal, but it should be and the number does not go back to the company when it is called back. The number is a california cellphone prefix and this guy was definitely not calling from a cellphone or from California.
I can't believe anyone in this chat would try to defend the collection agencies. They will harass people to collect debts that aren't even valid debts and harass people who don't even know the person they are trying to collect from.

Oxymorons

Plastic glass
Jumbo shrimp
Government intelligence
Good CA

very funny...Tex.

As an employee of U.R.S. and an individual well educated on the FDCPA, I can tell you that this is not "spoofing". If you call that number back, it will go directly to U.R.S, which in itself means it's not spoofing. "Spoof" is a fake number. But yes, when we call someone, the area code is local to them. Unfortunately this creates distrust of our company.

As many people have previously said, U.R.S has contracts with reputable creditors such as Cap1, Amex, US Bank, Bank of America, USAA, and the like, and the last thing URS would do is tarnish the reputation we've build with over 30 years of business. If a URS collector calls you, keep in touch with him/her. With any luck all of your accounts end up with URS.

So you guys use local number when calling people, is this so you have a better chance of them answering the phone?...just curious? Thanks for all of your information. It's nice to know nice once exist. :D

As a Collector and not part of the I.T. dept, I have no idea how or why they use local numbers to contact a debtor 6 states away, and though it's technically not illegal the way we do it, I do wish we would just use our 866 number, because someone who wants to pay will answer those on their own. If you get someone to answer just because they thought it was local, that person won't pay the bill.

I have received in excess of 50 illegal spoofed calls from Premier Credit of North America regarding a defaulted student loan.

The numbers they use are usually numbers in my local area code, with a prefix indicating it is a close by phone number. Occasionally, I will let my answer machine pick up on one ... and BINGO, I have a mouth breathing Premier collector mumbling a script into my answer machine. I do this to document the actual spoofing by Premier. I have the calling number documented, as well as the time stamped message identifying Premier as the caller. I have many, many of these calls documented

Make no mistake, folks ... these are bogus numbers Premier is using. I have verified several of them. They are active numbers belonging to real people in my area code.

Side Bar: Not too long ago a number showed up on my caller ID with a Kansas City area code and the name of a Nashville Not for Profit. This is an example of how stupid these knuckledraggers are.

You ask ... "why does he do this"? Actually, the answer is quite simple. Premier Credit will pay my student loans for me. I am establishing a pattern of illegal activity by this A$$WIPE outfit, and, under the law, will receive $1,000 plus attorney fees for each proven documented violation of the FDCPA.

My attorney has advised me that we will likely receive much more than that by establishing Premier Credits pattern of "business as usual" illegal tactics as nothing less than harassment of consumers. Make no mistake, folks, ... this pattern of illegal activity is being well documented. It includes much more than the scores of spoofed calls. It also includes numerous documented calls to neighbors posing as "reference checkers".

The only legit reason a collection agency has to call someone other than the debtor is to locate the debtor. Well, if these idiots are calling your next door, and numerous other, neighbors ... it's obvious they already know where you are. They even ask if the neighbor knows the debtor's cell phone number??? Now, what does that have to do with a "reference check"? As I've stated before ... these are not the "best & brightest" bulbs on the tree.

Folks, you can do this yourself. There are many attorneys familiar with FDCPA who will take your case on a contingency fee basis, as their fees can easily outweigh the actual award you will receive.

These collection agencies, and the vast majority of collectors, are bottom of the barrell scumbags ... and need to pay for their illegal, harassing activities.

As one astute poster mentioned earlier ... most of these agencies & their collectors are not "white knights". They purchase the debt for pennies on the dollar and are trying to make a killing at your expense. They are certainly not trying to make any original creditor "whole". The rest are on a commission basis. Most are failed telemarketers.

Have a good day!

Quote:

These people are harassment personified. When you call them out on illegal stuff or laws or even ask them for an address they hesitate as say they don't have a physical address. if this is a reputable CA they should have an address to send mail to.

Here are the real reasons that the number comes up as a local exchange: #1 Believe it or not you are not the only person that is being called each day and the company uses what is called voice over IP lines. Like a T-1 line. It costs less money as these companies are making thousands of long distance calls. The number DOES ring back to the collection agency, which is another reason a local exchange is used. These companies cannot do anything which would cause you to incur any charges to contact them. If their local number came up and you called it, you would incur long distance charges.

Also, you can always get the calls to stop by answering the phone and paying the bill. It will stop the calls every time.

Quote:

you are full of crap if you even really believe that UNITED RECOVERY SERVICES is a reputable collection agency. they are not even close. i know for a fact that they will talk to the consumer and after call is terminated by consumer they will call back immediately---a blatant FDCPA VIOLATION. they will also within in minutes call a relative usually a third party not connected with the debt when they in fact have good consumer phone---blatant FDCPA VIOLATION. In fact, they will call multiple non-responsible 3rd parties the same day. In fact they don't give the disclosure that they are debt collectors nor give the required mini miranda warning--blatant FDCPA VIOLATION. I even have tapes of a collector RICARDO/RETARDO GILMORE using profanity on the phone-blatant FDCPA violation. also the same collector refusing to put a manager on the phone-blatant FDCPA violation. then putting a non-managerial person on the phone whom repeated the same violations as well as threaten to hang up on phone and make threats-very blatant FDCPA violations. the idiot who is defending this garbage collection agency will end up in jail just like the BUFFALO NY collection agency did. oh, and this is from a real ethical and sucessful debtor collector 19 years and counting. you are an embarassment to the collection industry and belong in jail for even defending URS IN HOUSTON. I AM CURRENTLY PREPARING A MAJOR SUIT/COMPLAINT AGAINST UNITED RECOVERY SERVICES AND IT WON'T BE 240K. THEY WILL NO LONGER BE IN BUSINESS. ANYONE WANT TO JOIN IN. HOLLA!

To the "I Educate Idiots" poster (pretty nasty username btw) . . .

You are either fooling yourself, or just posting baloney because you are bored. But, you won't get $1,000 per infraction of the FDCPA. Not unless you have an endless supply of time and money. Do you know how much time and effort is involved to be able to win a suit against a FDCPA violation--just one?! It is extremely time consuming, and the work is quite daunting and usually discourages most people from even attempting to try. A debtor needs to document EVERYTHING! Every call, the time, persons names, the name of the company, what was said, etc. Then, the debtor needs to be somewhat cagey themselves--to get the debtor to give up certain information as well, which they most certainly will not. Then the debtor needs actual HARD PROOF. Then it will be about time to start a suit. The discovery process, and the costs associated with filing motions will make the debtor wish he or she would have just paid the creditor off to get them to stop! THEN, it will take anywhere from 18 months to 3 YEARS to go through the court process! I believe this attorney of yours is just made up . . . not because you are trying to show off, but because you are probably SOOOO fed up that you are just venting and trying to rally support. Totally understandable. But, it is disingenuous to make people think that the process of trying to fight back is ever-so-easy. Remember, even though nobody likes collection agencies . . . the debt WAS valid at one point. So finding a sympathetic process that makes it a 'one-click' system to make money from mean people that harass is like trying to find a one-sided seesaw. Besides, there have been many people that already jumped on the bandwagon long ago--to exploit the system for greed alone--and made it impossible for the rest of us. Good luck on getting some justice. I hope you can.

Quote:

Well, I just got a call today from a local number and it was from URS in Houston. He said to call them at the office and gave the URS Houston number. He said he would be in the office today until 6PM. It's now 1:PM in Temple. If he called locally it's a 4-5 hour drive to Houston and he'd probably catch Houston rush hour traffic so he'd get back to the office, to maybe, just maybe, in time to clock out.

Yep, they're spoofing. I've told my wife that if the number comes in by CID local, and they say they're in another town outside of our area code, and they ask for personal information, do not tell them anything. If they get pissy, tell them you suspect fraud because of the phone number discrepancy and that the company they claim to be from and the phone number will be reported to the feds.

I'm not disputing that I owe a company money and we have done all we can to work with them, but our best is not good enough so we've been turned over to a collection agency. Which was Focus. Now it's been changed to URS. It's a pain when you start making payments to one group and they change it to another.

Sigh.

I have just received a call from a CA from United Recovery Systems. He told me he was calling from Houston, TX however, the number that showed up on my caller I.D. is a local City. If they are breaking the law, how do they continue to operate? I plan to place a complaint.

I've made $9500.00 suing collectors this year alone. I live in Cali so we get them on FDCPA and State Rosenthal Act. I have a great attorney in San Diego who files for me and negotiates settlements. Funny thing is, I've sued all on a debt of less than $3000.00 from old cell phone companies, allegedly a $50.00 bounced check which I never write checks and other crap. Now, I love it when my phone rings and I know it a collector. Thanks a$$hole$!!!

I wouldnt piss on a debt collector if they were on fire.

Here is a spoof number 304-906-2127--they just called me--

Had some fun with a URS collector today. Toyed with him, wouldn't give him the info he wanted, such as a verbal refusal. He even mentioned two OC's in the same call. Then he informed I could only fax my dispute (now where is that turnip truck) When I balked at confriming my identity he even threatened to call my HR Dept, then when I offered to transfer the call he suddenly did not want to.Then he mentioned my wife's account with yet another OC which I'm not even on. Stumbled and fumbled all the way until he abruptly told me have a nice day (or he was instructed to end the call). Probably didn't get him to violate FDCPA but i tried. Tomorrow I mail the "dispute" by Cert Mail and I'm sure they'll pass it to yet a 4th collector. I think I even felt sorry for him.

Have you ever thought these people are just doing their job? If you do not want them to call, then simply tell them....they must honor your request whether it be written or verbal. URS makes every effort possible to make sure all collectors follow all of the applicable laws.

Most major companies, amex, citi, bank of America and so on.. don't sell the debts unless there 3-4 YEARS past due. The bigger creditors place the account to the agencies on a lean type contingency. If the agency collects anything they get a percentage. Example. If you owe $1000.00 and Joes agency receives your account there's a percentage. We'll use 20%.. let's say you pay $50 a month for 20 months, the agency ONLY gets $10.00 a month till your bill is paid off. That's 1% of your debt a month they'll make, the rest goes back to the company.

As for mean collectors, some are heartless, some are mean but there are some that care and want to help you get out of debt.

I'm sure the people that say "we're the middle man your upset with the wrong person.. pay your bills you won't have these problems" are talking about the idiots who open lines of credit with no intention on paying it. Just because you had or are going through hard times doesn't mean everyone is. There are people who will get credit cards out the wazoo just to try to impress someone else. Then not pay a penny back. So before you ASSUME all agencies buy your debt, your wrong. Just because collectors skip trace and call your family to make you call them back, doesn't make them a bad person. We all have jobs that we do. Some like to be a judge, doctor, firefighter, teacher, COLLECTOR and we all do those jobs because we are or choose to be good at it. So stop complaining. There going to call you.. invest in call block, save them in your phone as "don't answer" assign a special ringtone so you know not to answer. It can be harassing trust me I know I get the calls. But either deal with it or don't. I have chosen not to deal with them I pay the bank(s) direct. The agencies know when you go to the bank and pay them.. the bank has to report it so the balance due changes at the collectors end..

Hope I could help.