I received correspondance from an attorney (says debt collector at bottom of letter) indicating that if I paid $2714.99 to Citi Bank by 6/2/2008 that they would let my account continue as it was before I was late in making my payments. I sent out the 1st request for validation and received this in return: Enclosed please find both an application and seven (7) months of statements of the above captioned matter. This account was opened on or 9/7/01 and was charged-off on or about 12/4/97. My client is Citibank (South Dakota), N.A. As they have retained my office to handle this matter, all communications must go through me. My letter dated April 29, 2008 is still in affect; or in other words, you have until June 2, 2008 to 'cure' this account with a payment of $2,714.99 pursuant to Maine law. Additionally, I note that your letter was copied to Attorney XXXX. IF you have retained counsel, please inform my office, as all my communication must go through your attorney if you have one. 1st, I am working with an attorney on some of this mess but he and I agree that there are several things that I can do on my own rather than pay him and validation is one of them. He has just asked to have copies of my letters for his file should I ask him to move forward on anything for me. 2nd, are the statements enough for validation? I asked for a complete validation of how they arose at their figure. The total credit line on this account was $5,520 and this statement starts out with a figure of $6611.84. Not all of the information has been provided. I'll have to check but I think that the original amount due on the account when I quit making the payments was around $2,500.00. 3rd, can they ask for a settlement figure based upon their calculations with all of the penalties added in or just the original amount? What would you do next? I want to make sure that I should even be discussing any of this with this woman first and I guess if it comes out that I should then I will probably hand it over to my attorney.
As far as I know, there hasn't been a court case that determined what qualifies as validation. The FDCPA says they have to stop collection activities until they validate the debt, but it's vague as to what qualifies. I think what you received would qualify as validation. It's certainly enough to allow them to continue debt collection efforts. That $6611.84 figure is about 19% more than $5520 -- sounds like a year of interest accumulating on the credit card debt. It sounds like the CA/attorney has his ducks in a row.
Charged off on 12/4/1997?? That is almost 9 1/2 years ago. And they're only contacting you now? Check the SOL for your state.
Is the "/97" year a typo? Should this be "07". it sounds like it but it is critical for the Statute of Limitations. What are the dates on the provided statements?
Sorry...that is a typo...it should be 07. So, they have provided validation. What would you do now? Talk with this woman myself? The attorney that I'm working with is pretty expensive so I'm trying to do as much as I can on my own. He's working more on the CA that DID violate the FDCA instead of stuff like this. Do you think that I should try and negotiate this with her any further?
I believe you did a typo in the date. As for your validation and the quickness of it I do believe they gave you much more validation and as efficient as possible than I have ever had IME. Also I think CITI still owns this debt but has sent off to a CA. IME Citi is a hard one to deal with as if you are dealing with an OC instead of a JDB they have a lot more of records. Who is the CA? Or JDB? What is the SOL in Maine? You have already retained a lawyer? What type and how much has it cost you so far, and what did the lawyer say it will probably cost you total? Sometimes it is much CHEAPER to cut a deal than to pay your own lawyers fees. Woofer I have dealt with a case with CITI and maybe able to help you.
CITI has been much more difficult to deal with than any of the other companies out there. This account is now with an attorney, Susan J. Szwed, P.A. out of Portland, Maine. It indicates at the bottom of the letter that "THIS COMMUNICATION IS FROM A DEBT COLLECTOR". The attorney that I hired just sent me a bill for $450 for 3 letters that he sent out to JDB that violated the FDCA IMO by not providing validation after I requested it but continued to pursue collection activity. Because of his prices I want to stay away from having him deal with things that I may be able to handle myself. This CITI account seems to be on the up and up and I'm probably going to have to deal with it to stay out of court. What help might you be able to provide Woofer re: CITI?
Yes I went and looked.. http://www.szwed.com/pages/about.html Three letters? FOR ONE violation? IS this a NACA lawyer? I had an old account with CITI that they kept right to the end. What happened with me is they farmed out to CA's and the first one violated a lot, BUT I had kept dilligent records so it was pretty easy to go after the CA . I did and then they pawned it off to another who did not make any mistakes, but I had the first to the floor : ) Citi being the OC I could not get anything on them. All that said, I settled for 1/2 of what they were suing me for, and I got back twice as much from the CA that had done the violations. So way way ahead of the game They probably would settle for 1K. Can you come up with a lump sum? What do you think you have the CA on? It took Citi CA three years to sue me and by that time they had screwed up a lot! WHAT IS THE SOL IN MAINE? You have to decide if you have the tenacity and skills to hold on and get violations. In this case if CITI is telling you you can keep the account, no neg TL's and can go back to a positiive and if you have the money I would negotiate to pay it and then have a new start with CITI. If you can't pay it, then IMO I would wait it out and see what happens all the while getting my paper trail all set to countersue the CA when and if you get sued. ; ) Woofer Woofer
My attorney sent 3 different letters to three different CA's. I did all of the validation work and have a nice paper trail to prove the violations. One of them was the first CA that contacted me about this CITI account, much like yours, and now the account appears to be in the hands of someone who really does know what they are doing. So, maybe in the end my situation will be like yours in that I could possibly collect from Fred Hanna and Assoc. at a later date. The SOL of Maine is 7 years so this is pretty far away from falling into that category. I do not have the funds to pay the $2,700 that she is asking for by June 2 so I'm looking for a different way to handle this. Should I send something to her now indicating that I cannot come up with the $2,700? But could possibly settle for $1,000 by the end of June?
What do you mean three different letters? If there was a CA trying to collect, the first time, who was it and when was it? If it was over a year, then not much you can do about it and what the heck did the letter read? The 2nd was Hanna? When was the date and what do you have on them? What did you lawyer write to them or are they all the same letter basically? As for the 3RD CA, she may mess up as well. If you cannot pay them off NOW, IMO and what I WOULD DO is WAIT it out. Of course you have to decide what you want to do. I was tenacious with my trail and like I said, while I did have to pay CITI something, it was a pittance of what they initially sued for, we had a stipulation of dismissal so never had to go to court, and also I got back so so much more, and it was so great to get money from the CA!!! hahahah Woofer
Sorry for the confusion...let me see if I can straighten this out. I have received correspondance from Fred Hanna on one of my credit cards. I have received correspondance from NCB on one of my credit cards. I have received correspondance from Susan Szwed on one of my credit cards and ALSO on one in my husbands name. #1 - Fred Hanna - I believe that they are in violation of the FDCPA for the following reasons: 1st correspondance from them on 3/5/2008. I sent my first validation request via CRRR mail on 3/11/2008. 2nd correspondance from them on 4/2/2008. This was well after they received my 1st request. I sent a second validation request on 4/22/08. I have not heard from them since, however, my attorney sent a letter to them because of the violation. #2 - NCB Management, Inc. - This is a "business account" according to them and does not fall under the FDCPA. I agree with them on that after doing some reading, however, there is caselaw on the books where this same type of thing was beaten because the CA was personally harassing. I have sent 2 requests for validation but also backed that up with a letter from my attorney. My husband is retired, collecting SS and is not attached to our assets in any way so I'm not sure what will happen here. Hopefully my attorney will be able to do something with regard to this. #3 - Susan Szwed - I received 1st correspondance from her, sent the validation and received that right back. From looking at her website I believe she is the real deal and I want to avoid going to court. Just trying to figure out what my next move is with her. Also, we have received correspondance from Susan Szwed on a CITI account that is in my husbands name only..it has a $30,000 balance (originally $20,000). Same circumstance with this one; he is retired, his only income is SS and he has no assets. Maine is not a community property state so what can they do? Again, sorry for the confusion. Sometimes it's hard to express what's really going on on a forum.
Ok, let's focus on your letter for your Citi card from her. So far you have received validation, but have not given her anything or have negotiated anything right? If it were me, I would wait and see what she does. Has she figured out that your husband also owes Citi? DO NOT LET ON TO HER ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR HUSBAND! Do you work? Do you own a home? New vehicle? Loan on vehicle? Other assets? What about bank accounts? Individually or co? If they are co, I would start having an individual one, in another bank. I would do a wait and see with this. As for hubby's if you do have a home and you do not have a HOMESTEAD on it, then they can and will attach once they win in court. If you have a home go do a Homestead now. VERY simple the clerk will help you and it is less than a 100 bucks if that. This has to be done BEFORE you are sued though. What are the total of your debts, and who were the OC's that now have sold to JDB's? Is bankruptcy an option? Woofer
QUOTE=woofer;475044]Ok, let's focus on your letter for your Citi card from her. So far you have received validation, but have not given her anything or have negotiated anything right? Correct...I have received validation but have not responded to her at all. If it were me, I would wait and see what she does. Has she figured out that your husband also owes Citi? I'm not sure. DO NOT LET ON TO HER ANYTHING ABOUT YOUR HUSBAND! I've not spoken to her at all so I don't know if the connection has been made or not. Do you work? - Yes Do you own a home? - Yes, but with a mortgage. New vehicle? - 2005 Loan on vehicle? - Yes Other assets? - Just the equity in my home..about $30,000 What about bank accounts? - Just checking...nothing in savings. Individually or co? - Individually but only since last month. If they are co, I would start having an individual one, in another bank. I would do a wait and see with this. As for hubby's if you do have a home and you do not have a HOMESTEAD on it, then they can and will attach once they win in court. If you have a home go do a Homestead now. VERY simple the clerk will help you and it is less than a 100 bucks if that. This has to be done BEFORE you are sued though. What is a HOMESTEAD? My husband is not on our deed at all and never has been. What are the total of your debts, and who were the OC's that now have sold to JDB's? Total delinquent debts now are: ME - CITI w/Szwed = $7500 CITI w/Hanna - $3000 HUSBAND - CITI = $30,000 Advanta Bank = $6000 We had an additional $30,000 with Bank of America but we were able to settle with them for $6,800 and that is now paid in full. Is bankruptcy an option? We thought about bankruptcy but once we were able to settle with BOA and learned that SS wages could not be attached we figured it might be better to try and deal with the two remaining accounts in my name and see what happens with the ones is his name. Worst case scenario we will file the bankruptcy on his debt but will try and salvage my credit by paying the others off. Maybe Hanna will help me out with the $3,000 debt in my name... BTW, I spoke with my attorney's assistant and my bill is incorrect. It should have been $150 for all three letters. JAD
Ok so to make this clear. You received your very first dunning letter from the CA when? You have never received any other communication from her or anyone else? And this was this year, right? You then sent off a validation request which she sent off to you and this is where you are with this now, right? Is phone same number for both of you? If not, then make sure you both use separate phone numbers if you can. ie.. you use the cell he uses the house phone : ) So you get a pay check or are you self employed? I would do a wait and see with this. As for hubby's if you do have a home and you do not have a HOMESTEAD on it, then they can and will attach once they win in court. If you have a home go do a Homestead now. VERY simple the clerk will help you and it is less than a 100 bucks if that. This has to be done BEFORE you are sued though. A HOmstead protects you from having a creditor put a lein on your home,or force you to sell your home because an unsecured creditor is now a secured creditor. : ( Ahhhh now I see. They saw you pay up and now everyone wants MOOLAH. They come out in droves. You're a soft touch ; ) How did you settle with BoA and when? Did you do it on your own? So when is the last DOLA on each of these accounts. You owe between the two of you almost 50K,or just you 10K which you probably will be able to pay off with 4K max. Now neither one of you were AU's on the others cards right? Was BoA still the owner of the debt?Not a JDB correct? What year was this? AS you will get a 1099C on this and will incur an income of 24K I believe. : ( OKAY good. : )NOw what type of lawyer is this? What does he/she have to say on these debts? So this lawyer is working for both you and your husband? If things get tough and you feel that you can deal with paying them off and not be bothered by your husbands debt and they cannot come after you for anything, then like you I see paying off the debts eventually. I would wait though and see what happens. What made you pay off BoA ? What does your CR's read? You really need to see who owns what to make sure of DOLA etc. Now I am off to start dinner. Oh and remember I am not a lawyer so this is all just MY opinion and not to be considered LEGAL ADVICE. Woofer
Looking for lawyer I am starting the process of looking for a lawyer. I don't want a bankruptcy lawyer; I want one who will openly advise me during the response/discovery process and perhaps represent if necessary. The debts are legitimate and my strategy is to wait them out as I build the means to negotiate, settle and pay down. Any advice on how to find a good lawyer to do this? I assume from this comment you would recommend an NACA-affiliated one? There's only one in the NACA directory within an hour of me...would that be your first choice? Any other advice on finding and evaluating a good one? Thanks,
The best lawyer I ever had was one I never met. Found him on line, and he is a NACA lawyer. When I first started getting back on my feet, I had gotten several lawyers that just did not know much and looking back they made mucho mistakes. Then I heard about NACA lawyers and called over a dozen and only 2 got back to me and I could not stand either one of them. I then started searching on line, and wrote to several and they both got back to me. One was not a NACA and I hired him online and we met in court. We got the case dismissed with prejudice .It cost me though and I had to do so much work as he did not know anything about consumer law whatsoever. The other one is a NACA lawyer, and he has been great. Smart, inexpensive compared to any lawyer I have had before, as he doesn't have to research all the consumer laws that you need to beat the bad guys, AND he knows more than I do about consumer law. : ) If I were you I would check on line for consumer lawyers and find one that can take a case in your state. Where are you ? I may be able to recommend one. Woofer
That sounds like a good move to make. If you could recommend someone or help me find someone I would be forever in your debt.... I am in Maine.
Here are a few but I do not know anything about them. I would email and or call and see which one gets back to you as if they are not interested BEFORE you hire them they are not going to be much interested in your case AFTER IMO and IME. J. Scott Logan Jeffrey P.White & Associates, PC Auburn ME 04210 Andrea Bopp Stark Molleur Law Office Biddeford ME 04005 Lee Anne Graybeal Attorney at Law Kennebunk ME 04043 Tanya Sambatakos James F. Molleur, LLC Saco ME 04072 What town are you in? Send me a PRIVATE email on this answer as you do not want to get to specific for everyone to see. Do you have a dog? If so a donation to a local shelter or rescue,would be a nice thing to do for my help. : ) Woofer
Here are a few but I do not know anything about them. I would email and or call and see which one gets back to you as if they are not interested BEFORE you hire them they are not going to be much interested in your case AFTER IMO and IME. J. Scott Logan Jeffrey P.White & Associates, PC Auburn ME 04210 Andrea Bopp Stark Molleur Law Office Biddeford ME 04005 Lee Anne Graybeal Attorney at Law Kennebunk ME 04043 Tanya Sambatakos James F. Molleur, LLC Saco ME 04072 Of these four it seems that two of them focus mostly on what you need help on. Andrea and Lee Anne Go to their websites and check things out. What town are you in? Send me a PRIVATE email on this answer as you do not want to get to specific for everyone to see. Do you have a dog? If so a donation to a local shelter or rescue,would be a nice thing to do for my help. : ) Woofer
JAD do you mind updating us on your communication with Susan Szwed? We have just rec'd communication from her and are in limbo, unsure whether we should just call her and try to settle or bother w/ the debt validation letter. Just wondering what you decided to do with regard to her communication. Thanks, hope everything is working out for you and your husband!
