Here's the embarrassing story in a nutshell. I am/ was a mortgage loan officer (Need I say more)? Instead of giving you the tired song & dance that you've heard before, I'll just sum it up: When the sub-prime market crashed & the tightening of credit happened, about half of my income fell off the face of the earth. We ended up living on credit cards... & are to some degree continuing to do so... nothing extravagant, just paying bills. Well, let's just say that the collection calls have started. I am fairly certain it is in regards to a CC I had a large balance on, and let get behind. You know what a bottomless pit that is. I have been getting a call from "alliance one", which is a CA. In fact, so have relatives in other towns, and god knows how many people with my last name. In fact, my neighbor came over to tell me that they had called him. They "expressed concern" over their inability to contact me. This is Intolerable. While I was typing this, another neighbor just came over & told me that they called his mother's house looking for me. I can't believe this. What are your suggestions? Any ideas? Thanks Again From a 713 mid to 500 in 1 year flat!!! Not bad for a FICO!!!
Send them a strongly worded "Cease & Desist" letter by CMRRR - warning them not to call you either at work or at home, not to call anyone else either, and only contact you through mail.
That is typical? They can go through the phone book & call anyone in your zip code? Something about that seems incorrect.
No, they can't. And be careful with "cease and desist" letters. If you tell them to cease and desist contacting you, you leave them only one option--to sue. Have you received anything in writing from them? They are obligated to send you a letter within five days. If they haven't, that's a violation. They are only allowed to call family and neighbors to find out how to locate you. They are not to tell them anything about collecting a debt. It sounds like you have a lot of violations racking up already. Keep good records of all contact. Record when they called. You may want to answer the phone. If your state law allows it, record the call. DO NOT admit that the debt is yours. Do not arrange payments. Tell them that you want all contact in writing, and that since they know how to locate you, you expect the calls to others to cease. Then send a validation letter. Keep it simple. Say that you want proof that the debt is yours, and an accounting of how they arrived at the balance. You also want proof that they have the right to collect it. In this letter, tell them that it is inconvenient for you to accept calls at any time at any number, and that further contact is to be in writing. Send this letter CMRR (Certified Mail, Return Receipt Requested). If you want, you can skip calling them and just send the letter, but until they get it they may still be calling neighbors and family. Ask your family and neighbors to record when they were called, what they were asked, and what they said. You need the best paper trail that you can put together. If they sue, you will have counterclaims. At some point you may just want to bring suit against them. You need to make sure that this is your debt and that they have the right to collect it. They may not validate, in which case they must cease collection activity. Post back with updates.
It has just recently been placed w/ a CA They surely must have validation info? Wouldn't you think? I am just becoming reacquainted with this forum, and am trying to re-familiarize myself with lingo & common sense practices. Thanks again for any advice! PS. Where can I find some good dispute letter templates? Are there any "stickies" that I am not seeing?
Don't use a template letter. Just write, in your own words, a letter disputing the debt. Say that you do not know of any amount you own them (you don't, really--you THINK it was for a credit card, but don't tell them what you think. They need to tell YOU.) Ask them to send you proof of the debt and an accounting of how they arrived at the balance. Also ask for proof that they are authorized to collect this debt. You wouldn't want to pay them, only to find out that they actually sold it to someone else, or the OC pulled it back and assigned it to someone else, or something. As for validation, no, I would not necessarily think that they have validation. They have either been assigned or purchased this debt. If they purchased it, the paperwork often doesn't convey with the debt. They are required to obtain the proof from the original creditor and send it to you. Depending upon how many hands this has been through, they may not be able to do that. Too many people pay debts because someone tells them if they don't pay they'll be put in jail, have a suit filed, or any number of things to coerce them into paying. Don't fall for it. Read, read, read the stickies at the top and as much other information as you can. Know your rights and stand up for them. They are looking for the people who don't know their rights and who will cave right away. Don't be one of them!
It depends on who owns the debt. If it's been sold, the OC is out of the picture. So, you need to know who owns the debt and who has the right to collect. Did you send the CA the letter?
