Hello All, My reports have been clean for about 3 years now. And just recently NCO put a baddie on my CR's for a measley $200.00 unpaid medical bill that is over 3 years old. The thing is that I never received any letters from NCO regarding this bill. So yesterday I made the mistake of calling them (their office is only about 10 miles from where I live) and I spoke to the head scumbag. I said that I never received any letter from NCO regarding that bill. He then told me that they sent it to an address that I lived at over 3 years ago and its not his problem that the mail didnt get fowarded to me. The conversation turned into a big yelling match after that and I got absolutely nowhere. he insisted that the letters they send out is guaranteed , and that no letters were sent back to them. I said that if the letters were guaranteed, then shouldnt I have to sign for them? I'm out for blood now and I've been reading over the FDCPA for some ammo, If anyone has had a similar experience or has any advice please fire away.
Does your credit report have your current address on it, or the address you had 3 years ago? If they're putting something on your credit report, you would expect they would do an inquiry, giving them your address and other information off of your report. I have had 4-5 year old baddies that I've moved 2-3 times since I last had contact with the baddie, and they managed to find me at my current address, which is on my CR. I feel you need to first make sure of the SOL. Not that you're likely to get sued for $200; however, if you're past the SOL it's easier to get someone to deal. You should NOT EVER talk to ANYONE over the phone. First problem with that, is that now they possibly have added your home telephone number to the account so they can start making telephone calls to you in an attempt to coerce you into paying. Now if you're past SOL then DISPUTE DISPUTE DISPUTE! Send an official written dispute of the account to the CA. Wait until you get the green card back, then dispute it with your CRA. Good luke. ChrisB
For this small of an amount I'm not sure I'd worry about if it was in or out of SOL. It's not that much to pay, and they'd probably settle for less. Send them a validation letter, certified return receipt requested. See what happens. Since it's a medical collection, search this board for HIPPA and read up on that law as well as the FDCPA. Perhaps you'll get violations to more than cover your debt.
Hey guys, Thanks for the input. The bill is unfortunately within the SOL. Its about 3.5 years old give or take. What I am so mad about is that it is only $200.00, it was a big mix up on me and my health insurance part. And I offered to pay it over the phone in exchange for removal from my CR, but the head scumbag decided that he wanted to flex his CA muscle over $200 and try to make me feel like I never pay my bills. Well if thats the case, then why has my CR been clean for years and full of good credit? To answer the question above, yes my current address has been on my CR for about 2 years now. And keep in mind that these scum just put the baddie on my CR within this past month. The head scum's exact words to me (after he admitted that they sent the letters to a previous address) was that "it is not their responsibility to get a current address on people." I'm sorry but how in the hell are people supposed to know that a scumbag CA is after them if they dont even receive 1 letter from them?! This is the route that I'm leaning towards- § 809. Validation of debts (3) a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector; (4) a statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the consumer and a copy of such verification or judgment will be mailed to the consumer by the debt collector; and (5) a statement that, upon the consumer's written request within the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer with the name and address of the original creditor, if different from the current creditor. If any loop holes are noticed that I am over looking, please fire away.
Loopholes and suggestions: #1- In one of the more insane decisions that a Judge has given, a Federal Judge has ruled that "The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act requires only that a 'Validation of Debt Notice' be sent to debtors, not that the notice be recieved." (Mahon, et al. v. Country, Inc., et al., 171 F3d 1199 - 9th Cir 3/10/99). The practical effect of this insane decision is that it gives the debtor (whether the debtor knows of the debt or not) the burden of informing not only his creditors of all address changes, but also all future purchasers of the debt!!!! So, the 30-day period expired long ago. #2 - Since it's only $200 it is a very good bet they will not sue over it - the amount is just too small - attorneys fees will exceed the amount of any Judgment they may get - so I wouldn't be concerned about SOL. #3- The reason the CA honcho was being a hardass can be summarized in two phrases: "You called him, so it bothers you" and "The debt is so small it's not worth making any concessions over to collect it". The fact that the debt bothers you means he has leverage over you. You have to reverse that situation. You do it by exercising your rights under FCRA, not FDCPA. Here's how (my apologies - it's called the 1-2 punch): 3A: First, notify the CA that you dispute the bill in its entirety. Since it is beyond the 30-days (see #1 above), they need not provide you with any Validation (unless they are stupid enough to sue you - I will cover that later). Send this letter CMRRR 3B: Thirty days later dispute the bill with the CRA. 3C: If the CRA says the bill was "verified by the creditor" and was NOT marked as "in dispute", you have your FCRA violation - you write to the CRA demanding a procedural - who verified it and how was it verified. When you get that, file suit against the CA for the FCRA violation. 4: If they are stupid enough to sue you (they cannot countersue you for the debt on your FCRA suit since the validity of the debt is not an issue or element of your FCRA suit), you first answer the suit with a general denial and then you BURY them with a Discovery Demand, Demand for Production of Documents, Demand for Admissions and Demand for Production of Witnesses that will have them digging through their records. the previous owner's records and the OC's records for months... all over a $200 debt. You can easily cost then $5,000 or more in legal fees.
One word.............BRILLIANT! I'm now putting the clamp into position, and standing by to twist Thanks for all the input you guys rock!
