I have a substantial debt with a collection agency ($8000). I have seen some recommendations about validating the account as well as negotiating a 'paid as agreed' statement. My question is concerning the CA's who don't own the debt but report it. Since they are reporting it can I simply negotiate with them to have it marked 'paid as agreed'? Has anyone had any luck doing something similar? I am leary about validating it because it is a very large creditor and the amount would be worth finding some record of this. As it stands now the ca wants to settle for about half the original amount and I could afford to pay 4k but definitely not 8k which is what I would believe they would impose on me if they were able to validate it. Thanks for any advice.
I can well understand your concerns, but if they have made you one offer in writing they cannot change that offer just because you exercised your legal right to demand validation or proof of the debt at any time. And it isn't a question of can they validate the debt or not, it's a question of can they validate the debt in the way that is demanded of them by FDCPA and the courts. IF they don't follow the law, then you have a very strong bargaining position from which to demand that they pay you for having violated your rights under the law which is, among many other things, to receive proper validation of the debt at any time, even after they have filed judgment on you. Even the granting of judgment against you by a court of law does not alleviate them of the responsibility of "validating " or proving the debt at any time it is demanded of them. Many attorneys have disagreed on that point, but the law is clear on the point. Proper and legally acceptable validation is not a simple matter as most believe it is. When they have failed to validate properly, the courts have granted huge damage awards, usually starting at about $25,000 and going up steeply from there. When a company is looking at those kinds of damage awards plus attorneys fees to defend them against an almost unwinnable situation, they would far rather settle out of court even if it means forgiving an $8,000 or $16,000 or more sized debt just to keep from getting sued when they can't win. It's that simple.
