I received a call last week from an American Agencies super., he said that if I couldn't pay a 4 year old debt then he was going to file a suit. Then the amount which is 1200, will go up because I will have to pay court fees and there atty. cost. He called again today spoke to my husband, couldn't get nowhere, he wanted to know my husbands work number and address. My husband refused, he said, "Fine I will just pull all your credit files and I will find somone in your payroll" and hung up. This place has never been willing to accept payments. what can I do, I can't pay the bill in full now. There must be something I can do, any ideas please. Thank You.
Send a "Cease &desist" letter to American agencies. Make sure to send your letter by registered mail with return receipt and keep that green receipt in a safe place. Here is the sample letter. Hope it helps This is a request to cease & desist general communication with a collection agency. Send as certified mail, return receipt requested. «Your Name» «Address1» «Address2» «City», «State» «Zip» «Company» «Address1» «Address2» «City», «State» «Zip» «Date» RE: Account #_________/Original Creditorâ??s Name Dear Sir/Madame: This will serve as your legal notice under federal law, "The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act," to cease all communication with me in reference to the above account. If you fail to heed this notice, I will file a formal complaint against you with the Federal Trade Commission responsible for enforcement, the state Attorney Generalâ??s Office, as well as the American Collectorâ??s Association which monitors for noncompliance. I choose not to work with collection agencies under any circumstances, and will contact the original creditor to resolve this matter directly with them. Should any adverse items be placed on my credit report as a result of this notice I will be forced to seek legal action against you and your client. Sincerely, «Signature» «Your Name»
American agencies is a trouble. So you should do all the communication very carefully and save all the communication log. After sending your "Cease and Desist" letter legally they can't call you or harras you at all . If they do, you may file complain with FTC.
Correct, In this situation you should keep very accurate records of any contact after they recieve the C&D letter.
You said this is a 4 year old debt. What state are you in? It's possible that the SOL has expired, and the debt is now uncollectable. It's possible this debt collector knows this and is making one last effort to scare you into paying. Here is a link to a website which lists the SOL for every state: http://www.cardreport.com/laws/statute-of-limitations.html If the SOL has expired, all you need to do is send a c&d letter. If not, you need to immediately send out a validation letter, send it CRRR.
Have you requested validation yet? I had an alleged $1300 phone bill with them. I disputed with TU by phone. 10 days later I get a "bill" from Amer AGC! I ignore it. At 30 days, TU deleted. I'm back at it again over an alleged 91 Express Lanes bill. Also try filing an online complaint with the BBB, FTC and your State's AG. BRING OUT THE BIG 'UNS err GUNS! smog
Thanks for the responses. I live in Calif. I was so stressed out about this. I will send off a c&d letter, certified mail. After talking to a few people I feel better knowing they can't collect the money, though I was told by a lawyer that they can file a lawsuit if they are stupid and want to waste their time and money, all I would have to due is respond by stating that the SOL has expired and the lawsuit would be thrown out. They sent me a carbon copy type letter asking for my attorneys name and number, at the top it said in more than one place who to make the check payable to and don't forget the account number on your check. I didn't reply. Thanks again.
Oh, the fear that those CA's try to instill in the average person! It's wild! Right when I ready 4 years ago in your post, I knew what they were trying to do; make one last ditch effort to collect. Losers.
