Hi all, Last month I got a letter from National Credit Systems[NCS] saying I owed their client XXX some $600, and that I need to pay asap. I did not owe XXX a single penny, so I called up the no. listed in the NCS letter and left a voicemail saying I was disputing the charges and it was irrelevant. The next thing I know, is that they have reported a collection to my credit file and my credit score sky rocketed down by a 100 points. I am so frustated and angry. They cant take people's life for granted and toss us like however they want. I need help to know, how I can get the collection deleted and repair the damage it had caused to my credit file. Can I sue NCS for screwing my credit file by reporting wrong data? Any suggestion is appreciated. Thanks,
You need to dispute the account tradeline through the credit reporting agencies and request validation from NCS.
And do everything in writing. Don't call them--anything you say will be twisted, and it's "he said, she said."
Thanks guys for your upliftitng advice. I did speak to the actual Client XXX and double confirmed that I owe them no money. So this is what I have planned to do. A) Send a letter to Client XXX that I owe them no money and get an acknowledgement for the same B) Send a letter to NCS asking for validation of the collection charge and ??? C) Send letters to all three CRAs asking to DELETE the collection posted to my credit file. Does the above sound about right. I appreciate if you all can tell me precisely what to ask/tell the above 3 entities. Thanks again,
YOur dispute letter needs to be sent to NCS, disputing their claim, for they are the party that reported it to the bureaus as a collection account. They are required under the FCRA to respond with 30 days. Request a letter back from them, with a request that they also notify the credit agencies, stating in writing that the charge was incorrect, and they approve its deletion. Once you have that letter, in writing, the credit bureau will delete it. Sending cc's of your letter to NCS to the credit bureaus is a good idea, for it will flag the account as being disputed. But the key to getting something done is to get the letter in writing from NCS acknowledging its removal. I have done this several times, and that is the process that gets it done. Your letter to NCS must include all documentary evidence that you have regarding this matter. If, as you said, it is totally unknown to you, then simply tell them that your files show absolutely no evidence that you ever owed anything to the alleged creditor. Request a response with the requried 30 days, and request deletion of their report to each of the credit agencies.
No, you will get nowhere by suing NCS. They purchased a collection account from XXX. They probably did not know the full history at the time, they just bought it under assertion of xxx that it was valid, and hoping to intimidate you into paying it to get them off your back.. It seems that the faulty party here is xxx, who erroneously asserted your debt. By disputing with NCS, however, they have an obligation to provide to you evidence that the xxx claim is valid. Your complaint stems from xxx, and not NCS. but NCS is now the agent that you must deal with. If they cannot substantiate it, and they normally wont because they are too lazy to get back to xxx and provide to you the necessary evidence, they will most probably just give in. That is their game... send out intimidating letters, threatening that you must pay asap, but with no legal clout. This is the very reason that the dispute process under the FCRA was put into law. Dont lose a lot of sleep over this.... you are in the driver's seat, not them!!!!! If you really want to cover your bases, send a copy of your dispute letter now to both xxx and NCS, reqeusting a reply within the statutory 30 day period for substatiation of their claim, thus serving notice directly on xxx, and not relying on NCS to forward it to them. Good luck! You willl be smiling soon!
They are not going to send a letter that you do not owe the debt, nor are they going to notify the collection agencies. Before you go posting advice, please learn how things work. Do as Apex said. Request validation from NCS (they probably don't have it, so you will never hear from them again) and dispute to the CRAs. The CRA should notify NCS that you have disputed the tradeline and ask them to verify it. If they don't, it will be deleted. If they verify it but can't provide you validation, you have a violation and the beginning of the paper trail you will need if you have to sue them. The original creditor is most likely out of this game--they have probably sold the debt to NCS. That means that NCS IS the entity you must deal with. If you send something to the original creditor, they will tell you that they no longer own this debt, and you must deal with NCS. By law, NCS must obtain the validation from the original creditor and provide it to you. There is no requirement for the OC to give anything to you. In fact the law says the collection agency must obtain it and THEY must send it to you.
I posted advice because I DO know how things work, Hedwig! Sure, NCS is the legal party at interest now, and the one who posted the CA on the credit report. But you apparently did not read all of what Photox said. He said that xxx is in agreement with him, and that he already has concurrence from xxx that the debt was not actual. So why not also notice xxx at this time, get them proactive, and not wait for NCS to go through their process of independtly securing info from them that can come from Photox or xxx directly? If xxx sends a letter to NCS now, then the game is over. Sure, I know that NCS is the party that must request deletion, for they were the posting party, but your advice is for Photox to sit on his hands with a commitment that he already has in his pocket from xxx. I do not post advice that is not sound.
FCRA Requirements [Quote by RobertEG] "They are required under the FCRA to respond with 30 days." Actually, there is no requirement under the FCRA to respond at all. They are only required to conduct a "Rreasonable Investigation". Here's the text from the FCRA § 611. Procedure in case of disputed accuracy (a) REINVESTIGATIONS OF DISPUTED INFORMATION.-- (1) REINVESTIGATION REQUIRED.-- (A) IN GENERAL.--Subject to subsection (f), if the completeness or accuracy of any item of information contained in a consumer's file at a consumer reporting agency is disputed by the consumer and the consumer notifies the agency directly of such dispute, the agency shall, free of charge, conduct a reasonable reinvestigation to determine whether the disputed information is accurate and record the current status of the disputed information, or delete the item from the file in accordance with paragraph (5), before the end of the 30-day period beginning on the date on which the agency receives the notice of the dispute from the consumer. _________________________________________________________________ The FDCPA does deal with requirements by an information furnisher but still falls short or requiring any such report. It only requires that collection activity must cease until validation has been obtained and furnished to the consumer and only then if the dispute has been sent within 30 days of the "Initial Communication". Here is the statute: _________ 15 USC 1692g (b) If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt, or any disputed portion thereof, until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or any copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such verification or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor, is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector. _________________________________________________________________ [Quote by Hedwig] "Before you go posting advice, please learn how things work." I agree. While the technique described by RobertEG may have been successful for him, following this advice will more likely just frustrate the OP and cause a big laugh by the CA.
You really should read all of the FCRA, because your statement is incorrect. There is absolutely a requirement to respond. BTW - While you can dispute your credit report with the furnisher directly, and they must respond in 30 days, there is no recourse for an individual unless they dispute via the CRAs. FACTA has no teeth where they added this.
Well, this is getting interesting. I think the plan set forth by photox is the best. It places the dispute before the CRA, and triggers their obligation. It notifies the CA and the original creditor that the dispute is in progress. If, as pphotox has said, the original creditor agrees that the debt is erroneous, then the process will only be accelerated. I dont think a CA will "laugh" at a letter from the original creditor acknowedging the debt was in error, since that is what they will ultimately need to resolve the matter before the CRA.
What's all this bickering about . . . It's not that hard folks. Each person can proceed as they wish.
Not to be too cynical, but that seems to give the CA a lot of credit. The bottom line, however, is that each CA is different in how they respond (i.e. how much they laugh at whatever you send them). The only thing a CA cares about from the debtor is money, everything else is viewed as some sort of excuse or dodge to get out of paying. To the CA, if they have a debt to collect, its a valid one and they'll go after it with all the vigor they can muster. After all, that's how they stay in business. So, my vote would be: 1) if Photox can get a letter from the OC, then more power to him, but I would do this last as it has the least influence on the matter even if it provides the greatest sense of satisfaction. The CA could say, "Well of course Photox doesn't owe the OC anything, we bought the debt from the OC and now Photox owes US." 2) send a dispute/request for validation letter (CMRRR) to the CA within the 30-day window. This is necessary to retain his rights under the FDCPA. 3) after he gets the green postcard of the CMRRR, dispute this entry with all the CRAs that are reporting it. This must be done (in this order) to make sure the CA complies with the FDCPA and removes the entry while it validates the debt as required by the FDCPA. This also gives the alleged debtor a legitimate FDCPA violation with the requisite paper trail if the CA does not pull the listing or if they validate it should the debtor decide to pursue a civil action against the CA. But, I'm not a lawyer and this is not legal advice. Do what the spirit moves you to do.
Folks, A lot of things have been discussed and many views presented. I appreciate all of it. I personally am bent on beating the heck out of CA for the the very fact tht they dinged my credit file with CRA and only contacted me once. They never sent me a second letter, or a phone call or nothing. But I am not the one to tell them how to run their business. Anyways, ccbob's suggestion is in sync with my own plan of action. What I am not clear though is, do I have to wait for 30 days[after i send letter to CA] and then send letter to CRA's??
Send DV to CA, CMRRR. Get CMRRR postcard in mail. Send Dispute to CRA(s). Wait a week or two. Check credit report.
update I sent a dispute/validate letter to the CA through CMRRR[apr 09], and they sent me a letter back[apr 16] saying the following:.... " your dispute has been investigated; however, we have yet to find sufficient evidence to validate your claim(s). It is very imp. that you provide our company with all documentation supporting your position. In the event that new information is obtained which places doubt on the validity of this debt, we will promptly update our records accordingly. In additon, NCS[ this is the CA] will revise or delete the information it may have reported to the 3 major credit bureaus, in full compliance with the provisions of The FCRA, The FDCPA and any state regulations that may be applicable. Be advised that NCS, is a 3rd party debt collection agency whose efforts are solely on behalf of other companies who have previosuly validated debts. Enclosed you will find documenation provided to us by [OC]. Sincerely. <<<<< I checked my credit report and the collection still exists. PLEASE ADVISE WHAT ACTION I NEED TO TAKE NOW. Moreover, I had reqested a lot of info. from CA in the dispute letter that they did not provide. Here is the letter. Is there anything I an do about it. >> To Whom It May Concern: This letter is being sent to you in response to a notice sent to me dated XXX. Be advised that this is not a refusal to pay, but a notice sent pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 USC 1692g Sec. 809 (b) that your claim is disputed and validation is requested. This is NOT a request for â??verificationâ? or proof of my mailing address, but a request for VALIDATION made pursuant to the above named Title and Section. I respectfully request that your offices provide me with competent evidence that I have any legal obligation to pay you. Please provide me with the following: â?¢ What the money you say I owe is for; â?¢ Explain and show me how you calculated what you say I owe; â?¢ Provide me with copies of any papers that show I agreed to pay what you say I owe; â?¢ Provide a verification or copy of any judgment if applicable; â?¢ Identify the original creditor; â?¢ Prove the Statute of Limitations has not expired on this account â?¢ Show me that you are licensed to collect in my state â?¢ Provide me with your license numbers and Registered Agent If your offices are able to provide the proper documentation as requested in the following Declaration, I will require at least 30 days to investigate this information and during such time all collection activity must cease and desist. Also during this validation period, if any action is taken which could be considered detrimental to any of my credit reports, I will consult with my legal counsel for suit. This includes any listing any information to a credit reporting repository that could be inaccurate or invalidated or verifying an account as accurate when in fact there is no provided proof that it is. If your offices fail to respond to this validation request or respond but fail to validate the debt as claimed by your offices within 30 days from the date of your receipt, all references to this account must be deleted and completely removed from my credit file and a copy of such deletion request shall be sent to me immediately. I would also like to request, in writing, that no telephone contact be made by your offices to my home or to my place of employment. If your offices attempt telephone communication with me, including but not limited to computer generated calls and calls or correspondence sent to or with any third parties, it will be considered harassment and I will have no choice but to file suit. All future communications with me MUST be done in writing and sent to the address noted in this letter by USPS. It would be advisable that you assure that your records are in order before I am forced to take legal action. This is an attempt to correct your records, any information obtained shall be used for that purpose. Best Regards, <<
I wish someone would update the boilerplate letter. The one you sent is soooo out of date, but sufficient, nevertheless. Anyway, if you're keeping good records (like printing copies of your credit report every so often and maintaining a timeline of events), you now have grounds for an FDCPA suit. THEY are supposed to provide validation of the debt, not you. My advice, file a claim in small claims court alleging violations of the FDCPA: continued collection activities without providing validation. My guess is that will make it go away and it might make you a nickel or two in the process. I wouldn't make a fuss or call them and read them the riot act, that's playing in their sand box. They live to argue with people over the phone. Just file the claim and send them the summons. That'll get their attention REAL QUICK. The best defense is a strong offense.
The letter they sent you references enclosed documentation from the OC. What did they enclose? That boilerplate letter asks for a bunch of stuff that they don't legally have to provide. The FDCPA says they have to provide validation, but doesn't specify what sufficient validation consists of. So they probably HAVE validated, as far as the law is concerned.
Ooops. Missed that. If they sent the information from the OC, then they've validated per the FDCPA and can continue (or resume) collection activities. So, the ball's in your court. If you don't owe the money AND they are collecting for the OC as opposed to having purchased the debt, then you should deal with the OC and try to straighten it out. So far as NCS is concerned (and until they hear otherwise from the OC) you owe the money and they'll go after it with all their vigor.
