Do I call the Consumer Credit Commissioner in the state I live in, or the state the collection agecny is working out of?
It did. I called on a company, American Collection Co located in Puyallup, Wa and found they were not licensed in the state of Fla. Sent a validation letter yesterday. For those who want to find out if a company is licensed in the state of Fla, call the office of securities and finance, 850-410-9895. Can't wait to see what their reply will be.
I am not good at interpreting laws etc. Any opinions? 392. 102 Claims against Bond A person who claims against a bond for violation of this chapter may maintain an action against a 3rd party debt collector or credit bureau and against the surety. The aggregate liability of the surety to all persons damaged by violation of this chapter may not exceed the bond (in TX 10,000) The chapter talks about who/what/etc of debt collection. It does state they have to furnish proof of debt. I am more or less asking if I should add to the estoppel letter that I was gonna sue for: 1. Defamation 2. Negligent Enablement of Identity Fraud 3. Violation of the FCRA 4. Violation of Texas Credit Laws???? (since they are not bonded?)
Lat- I've read a bunch of different things about suing a CA, if you do they can always countersue for the debt (not sure if they can if they aren't bonded). Personally I would send with the estoppel a notation stating that you are aware they are NOT bonded, a Texas requirement for Collection Agencies. Advise them of a C&D and also tell them to remove their notation(s) on all 3 CRA's within xx amount of time, to avoid you filing a complaint with your AG, FTC, BBB, whoever you can think of. And possibly throw in there you MAY seek legal action, don't ever say you WILL unless you really plan on it. Any other thoughts anyone? KHM
LAT, I called this number (512-463-5555) to check and see if my non-bonded collection agency could be owned by someone else who had the bond. Turns out the agency is owned by an individual. I just tried our original number to see if it's possible that an individual could hold the bond but they are out to lunch. I doubt if he has 10,000 to go and get bonded (at least I hope he doesn't). Anyway, it looks like all systems go. I will wait until Feb 1st because this debt becomes 4yrs old this month. I would hate myself if they quickly got bonded and filed a judgement all before Feb 1st. In the mean time, I will concentrate on my paid collections.
I am really upset because all of my collections are brand new. The oldest ones are from 6/99 and 11/99. They are under 80$, both of them combined! So maybe I can get these companies (who are not bonded) to delete for payment! I'm typing the letters up and will send this week.
I am offering the 1/3 of amount for delete. I figured they wouldn't try to sue me since it is sooooo little. I could not believe when I read people saying they had no idea what was on their credit report till I got mine. I am using the "not bonded to collect in TX, so I was told to not pay by.....and to file complaints with....thank you khm....but if you take XX I will let this go yadda yadda yadda
I just called the number to see if the collection agencies were bonded and out of 4, only 2 were bonded. One of them that was not bonded was an apartment complex. If they haven't tried contacting me, but they still have it listed on my credit report, would that still be considered a bonding violation? The other one that isn't bonded is in Colorado and that is the hospital bill that I had thought I had finished paying off,but in fact w/interest, it accrued more than double now and they're still trying to collect. I just sent them a letter for payment for deletion about a week ago, but now I'm wondering if I should just send them the estoppel letter stating that now I know that they are not bonded to collect debt in the state of Texas and I want them to remove me from all three credit bureaus. Janet
Not sure if this might help http://summary.users1.50megs.com/ something I found looking around the net, don't know how accurate it is.GL all
Oh my God, does that mean they can garnish 100% of my wages????? That totally sux! I hope nobody wants to get a judgement against me since in TX they are renewable.. I guess what is good about being here (c/a's must be bonded) there are more bad (listed above)....eeeeeehhhhhhh
LAT, Your Home and Wages are Protected Some collectors will threaten to foreclose on homesteads or to garnish wages. In Texas, a homestead cannot be taken to pay a debt except for debts taken for the purchase of the home, for home improvements, for home equity loans or to pay certain taxes. Wages may be garnished to pay court-ordered child support, back taxes, and defaulted student loans. http://www.oag.state.tx.us/consumer/brochure/debt.html
