Momof3 and I were chatting and this question came about: Are collection agencies protected by the "This is an attempt to collect a debt. Any information obtained will be used for that purpose." statement? There has been some discussion that collection agencies are pulling CR's on people, hence running up their inquiries and hurting their scores. If you send a letter requesting that they remove it due to the fact that you did not authorize, they don't necessarily have to remove it, do they? Seeing that they are a collection agency and are using information (i.e. your SSN) to collect a debt (by getting your current address from your report). Can anyone shed some light? Thanks and happy credit building! MP$40
RE: Collection Agencies Pullin It is true that they may pull your reports without your consent, as it falls into the "permissible purpose" of the "legitimate business reason" category specified in the FCRRA. There are many agents who can get your report without written authorization, collection agencies being one of them. If you call the collector to try to get the inquiry pulled (in which they will laugh at you), you are just walking into their little trap: which is to make contact with you so they can hound you. Part of any negotiation you have to settle the debt should be the removal of any inquiries. They will bull-bleep you about how they can't, but it is an absolute filthy lie. They CAN remove inquiries...it's done all the time. Regardless of what arrangements you make, do the following....don't fail to do it....and I'll repeat it.... GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING And one more time for good measure: GET EVERYTHING IN WRITING And here's a corollary: DON'T DO ANYTHING WITH A COLLECTION AGENCY UNLESS IT IS IN WRITING.
RE: Collection Agencies Pullin I am having this problem with the Northland Group trying to collect a debt for The Broadway. The debt is over 9 years old and not showing on my CRs. The Northland Group pulls my CRs most every two months. I called the FTC and they told me that the collection agency CAN pull the CRs. I agree with Mo! This is a BS way of trying to get you to call them to remove the inquiry so they can sink their teeth into you about the debt. I also heard that Gulf State Credit Collections is doing the same thing.
RE: Collection Agencies Pullin Greg, * IF * the debt has passed the statute of limitations for your state (SOL), then you DO have recourse (check SOL for your state at http://www.creditinfocenter.com/rebuild/statuteLimitations.shtml). You can write them a letter (writing, always in writing ---certified with return receipt)specifying that (a) the account is no longer subject to posting with a CRA, per the FCRA, and (b) the SOL has expired, and you have no intention of making any payment on the debt. Then demand they cease and desist any further contact with you. Per the FCRA, after your cease-and-desist, they can ONLY contact you subsequently to tell you of any specific (usuallylegal) action they are taking against you. PROVIDED the SOL has expired, there IS NO LEGAL ACTION available to them. Predicated upon this position, advise them that they will no longer have a "permissible purpose", NOR a "legitimate business reason" to pull your credit reports, as allowed and provided for in the FCRA. Advise them that any further inquiries will, in your opinion, construe a direct and WILLFUL violation of the tenets of the FCRA, and that you will pursue any and all legal remedies available to you. If they don't comply, sue the bastards. The following quote is from the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), located at: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/conline/pubs/credit/fdc.htm "You have the right to sue a collector in a state or federal court within one year from the date the law was violated. If you win, you may recover money for the damages you suffered plus an additional amount up to $1,000. Court costs and attorney's fees also can be recovered. A group of people also may sue a debt collector and recover money for damages up to $500,000, or one percent of the collector's net worth, whichever is less. " All supporting documentation can be found on the FCRA at: http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/menu-credit.htm Also, check into the FTC Staff Opinions site I referenced in a post close to this one. Bear in mind that the debt doesn't go away, they just can't do anything about collecting it....just a technical point.
RE: Collection Agencies Pullin Thanks, Mo! You have been a great help providing this information! *THANK YOU* ;-) Greg
To Mo! YOU ARE THE F*&%ing BOMB! That is very valuable information that you've posted. I'm sure I can speak for everyone when I say: T H A N K Y O U ! ! ! MP$40
RE: To Mo! My pleasure. By the way of disclaimer, I am NOT an attorney, and this is NOT legal advice. But everything you need is in black & white in the FCRA, FDCPA, and FTC Staff Opinions to support your proposal to collectors, and in court, if necesssary. I have been successful using the procedure I described, and have seen others use it as well. ONE THING I FORGOT in the previous post: Get the address for your State's Attorney General (usually they have a "consumer complaints" department), the Better Business Bureau, and the FTC (consumer complaints). I don't suggest you cc them with this letter...simply tell the collector that if they persist in their improper actions that all correspondence and letters concerning the matter will be forwarded to the agencies. Putting the addresses in the letter lets them know that YOU know who to get involved if push comes to shove. It is mostly for suppport should you take them to court (i.e., don't expect your AG or the BBB to come riding to your rescue in a white charger). But when a collector has NOTHING they can gain, having a derogatory position lodged against them at these agencies is just one more thing they don't want. Think of what goes on when Fred, the collector gets your letter, and tells his boss Sally: "Well, Sally, this guy is aware that we CAN'T sue him, and he says he is NOT gonna pay. In fact, he threatens to sue US if we screw up. He also knows that we cannot ding his credit report. He even enclosed excerpts from the FCRA and FDCPA so that we KNOW he KNOWS. He even is threatening to lodge a complaint with the BBB, the FTC, and his Attorney General's Office. We have nothing to hang over his head for leverage." Sally says, "So what you're telling me, Fred, is that we have NO chance of ever getting one thin dime out of this deadbeat??" Fred say, "Exactly, boss." Sally says, "Well delete the friggin' thing. You're just wasting your time fooling with it, and that costs me money, because you could be spending your time on someone else. Also, stop pulling credit reports because that also costs me money**. And for Pete's sake don't do anything illegal...he just might be the 1-out-of-1000 who ACTUALLY DO sue when they threaten to do so. What we got here, Fred, is a completely 100% no-win situation for us. Toss it in the garbage." **This is probably moot, as the incremental unit-cost to a collector who has volume subscriptions at a CRA is going to be virtually negligible.
RE: To Mo! You guys are forgetting that generally neither collection agencies nor the credit card companies don't have ANY paperwork proving their right to collect. AMEX admitted that they throw away the original application after 2 years(imagine banks throwing away mortgage paperwork). Collection agencies can either buy the accounts outright, or work for the credit card companies for a percentage. Either way to legally pursue you they need to be able to prove A. that you owe the money and B. that they have a right to collect it. I have never even heard of a collection agency providing those documents(only print outs of an account). I am planning on going to court over this...going after collection agencies. I'll let you know how it works out!
Re: RE: To Mo! If an OC/CA can produce documentation showing that you've made any payments on an account with your name on it (a statement with your name/address and then some form of payment from you), that's proof it's yours. This may be why AMEX tosses the original application. There's no need when there are 12 transactions a year proving ownership.
