Check out the letter I got today!

I am now a bit confused as to what to do on this.
I received a response to my original letter today to an OC whom I wrote to in an attempt to settle. The first letter is their response and the second is my original letter to them. Should I do this? Or should I do something else??? If so any ideas what??? BTW, the OC has increased their calls to both my home and work numbers since this letter. I know some of this does not apply to an OC, I just wanted to see if it would work. I am still within SOL by almost 3 years.


Dear Tall: This letter is in response to your recent correspondence regarding your OC credit account referenced above.

Unfortunatley, we have been able to comply with your request because there was no signature on your letter. Please send a signed copy of your letter and we will be happy to respond accordingly.

If you have any questions, blah blah blah.....

Regards,
(ALSO UNSIGNED)
Collection Dept.

MY ORIGINAL LETTER:

Dear Sirs:

This letter is in response to the tactics OC has been using within the last month in their attempts to collect a debt, allegedly owed by me but never validated by OC. You may not contact me by phone at work as I am not able to receive personal calls. Please communicate with me in writing at my address of record as I prefer to conduct business matters in writing. I request that complete validation on this account be sent to me within 30 days.

Additionally, I request that you refrain from contacting me by phone at home or contacting my neighbors, friends and especially my relatives,which I am sure you are aware, are serious violations of state and federal laws, specifically FDCPA, FCRA & FCBA. I am aware of and have secured affidavits from several persons that indicate they have not only been contacted, but my personal information was released to them, as well as the status of my account by representatives of OC. I am certain you are aware that these are violations of the aforementioned laws, but in the event you are unfamiliar with the FDCPA:

§ 805. Communication in connection with debt collection [15 USC 1692c]
(a) COMMUNICATION WITH THE CONSUMER GENERALLY. Without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector or the express permission of a court of competent jurisdiction, a debt collector may not communicate with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt --
(1) at any unusual time or place or a time or place known or which should be known to be inconvenient to the consumer. In the absence of knowledge of circumstances to the contrary, a debt collector shall assume that the convenient time for communicating with a consumer is after 8 o'clock antimeridian and before 9 o'clock postmeridian, local time at the consumer's location;
(3) at the consumer's place of employment if the debt collector knows or has reason to know that the consumer's employer prohibits the consumer from receiving such communication.
(b) COMMUNICATION WITH THIRD PARTIES. Except as provided in section 804, without the prior consent of the consumer given directly to the debt collector, or the express permission of a court of competent jurisdiction, or as reasonably necessary to effectuate a postjudgment judicial remedy, a debt collector may not communicate, in connection with the collection of any debt, with any person other than a consumer, his attorney, a consumer reporting agency if otherwise permitted by law, the creditor, the attorney of the creditor, or the attorney of the debt collector.

As you are aware there are penalties for willful noncompliance which, OC representatives have clearly demonstrated. The penalties are as follows:

§ 813. Civil liability
(a) Except as otherwise provided by this section, any debt collector who fails to comply with any provision of this title with respect to any person is liable to such person in an amount equal to the sum of --
(1) any actual damage sustained by such person as a result of such failure;
(2) (A) in the case of any action by an individual, such additional damages as the court may allow, but not exceeding $1,000;

Please realize that these penalties are per violation. Thus far, OC has amassed seven blatant violations that are documented and can be proven either by affidavit or other evidentiary means. Additionally, there are approximately six other violations which are not admissible in court but could be proven to the FTC and the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner of Texas in the event a complaint were filed by me against OC. This amounts to $13,000 in federal fines total. Additionally, the defamation your company has caused in my rural community could be as little as zero or as high as a judge or jury decides.

The State of Texas prohibits this type of abusive and negligent conduct. I refer you to Texas Finance Code Title 5

CHAPTER 392. DEBT COLLECTION
§392.301. THREATS OR COERCION. (a) In debt collection, a debt collector may not use threats, coercion, or attempts to coerce that employ any of the following practices:
(3) representing or threatening to represent to any person other than the consumer that a consumer is wilfully
refusing to pay a nondisputed consumer debt when the debt is in dispute and the consumer has notified in writing the debt collector of the dispute;
(8) threatening to take an action prohibited by law.
Companies engaging in this type of action are subject to the following as well:
§392.403. CIVIL REMEDIES.
(a) A person may sue for:
(e) A person who successfully maintains an action under this section for violation of Section 392.101, 392.202, or 392.301(a)(3) is entitled to not less than $100 for each violation of this chapter.

As you can see, Texas law provides for an additional recovery no less than $1300, which makes your minimum penalties in excess of $14000. We all recognize the time and expenses of litigating this matter through a jury trial. If OC would like to resolve this matter out of court and avoid the expenses of attorney fees, an ongoing jury trial, statutory and quite possible punitive damages, I am offering to settle this matter, with no admission of liability on anyoneâ??s part.

I would be willing to consider an offer of settlement in the amount of $2000 and full deletion of this account from all credit reporting agencies, along with the agreement to close this account and not sell, transfer, or reassign this account to another lender in exchange for me not retaining an attorney and me dropping any and all legal claims against OC and itâ??s associates.

I am sure you would consider this settlement fair as we can be sure that the repercussions from a lawsuit, attorney fees, repeated violations, statutory and possible punitive damages and the potential of a class action lawsuit would most likely be far greater than the amount I am willing to settle with now.

If you agree to the above, please acknowledge with your signature and return a copy to me along with your release for my inspection by no later than October 28, 2003. Furthermore it is expressly agreed that once I return the properly executed release, a check in the amount of $2000 will be forwarded to me within 5 business days. Upon receipt of this signed acknowledgment, I will promptly review any necessary releases you may require to conclude this matter.

Notice: This agreement is restricted. This is not a renewed promise to pay but rather a restricted settlement offer only. By not signing below, you agree that the debt has not been renewed nor has any concrete written agreements been exchanged.


Creditorâ??s Authorized Signature: _____________________________ Date:____________
Name Title :




Cordially,




TallSmith

 

C.mon y'all........so many reads and no responses????????? What's up with that?