ok heres a new one for me....can someone explain this to me if you've heard of this... Harvard Collections recently called my neighbor, looking for ME! THey said I put them down as a contact ( which is a lie because I barely know them...only know their first name) the neighbor actually wlaked over to me and handed me the phone... I figure they use a book ( forget the name) with addresses and locate one near me then dial that number if it's listed ( mine isn't hence they reason why they couldn't contact me ) and I always give the cRA's an old number ( they have way to much information already! are you kidding!) WHats ironic is the account doesnt even belong to me....I figured this is a a way to embarass someone into paying... I told them if they call again ..I'll suit the pants off them... This whole industry ( credit, banks, collections, credit counseling is perverted, sick and just plain disgusting!
Yes, they can find phone numbers of people near a debtor. Who was the debtor? Are they trying to collect from you? Does this account appear on your credit reports?
yeah but they can't lie to them and tell them so and so put you down as a contact ..or can they? please please please..someone...fill me in Thanks in advance...
I forgot......I don't think its legal to defame" the person either is it ?...or is it not? And it's not legal to speak to me on their phone ( someone told me) ...or is it not... as you can see..Im not sure if I have a case...please fill me in!!!! THanks Again...
First issue: If it is not your account, watch out because it appears they are trying to collect from you on it. They may be just calling anyone with a similar name to that on the account, hoping to find the debtor, or get some sucker to pay. Did they say they had contacted the wrong party, or are they claiming you owe it? If the latter, you should get a letter within 5 days of this first contact. Also be sure to check your credit reports to see if they are reporting this erroneous debt. Dispute with both the CRAs reporting, and with the CA, as not your debt.
People lie all the time on the phone, usually with no consequences. As far as talking to a third party about a debt, yes that is a FDCPA violation, but one that the debtor would have the right to take action on. If you are not the debtor, you would not have the right to sue on that violation. However, if they, erroneously and in violation of FDCPA, identified you to your neighbor as the debtor, whether or not you actually were, you might, or maybe it could fit under slander.
Does this CA have a history of contacting or dunning the wrong party to collect debts? Is it part of their collection business model to buy old debts cheap, where the debtor may not have been previously located, and engage in locating anyone by that name with little care as to whether their actions damage innocent parties?
thanks on track...very good article.... right up my alley...gives me confidence to file suit... Im just not sure what Im asking for...$ amount, is it $1,000 per infraction...and then I need to read up on how to take them too court and all..I n eed to read up...I don't want them to laugh when I send them the laetter...and say...look at this bullshitter... Ive already got lots of info and form letters... ( from this site,credit boards.com, bud hibbs.com and creditinfocenter.com) even got the conversation verbatim..and getting it notorized , sending via certified mail... I want to come off hard and make em sweat....and just cough up the money...so I can run with it... I guess I need to call my local court ....if it does get ugly... then i gotta think...I have no laywer...just me...but they don't know that.... whatta ya think...can a rookie handle this or what???
First question: Are they claiming you are the debtor, and are they reporting negative TLs on your reports, or do they admit you are not the debtor they were trying to contact?
yes, yes and no..I am the debtor according to their records... I'm not sure what this has to do with them breaking the law... if it is mine...I can sue.. If it is not..I can't sue.. is that what your gettting at?? Thanks
If they view you as the debtor, but you believe they are pursuing the wrong party, then the issues of FDCPA violations for disclosure to third parties are secondary, although possibly useful, to the main issue of requesting validation, and forcing removal from your reports of a debt you do not owe. The FDCPA violation, and corresponding penalties, may be useful to force them to agree to remove and pay damages, since it gives you a cause of action that is separate from the debt itself. Simply failing to send validation and selling the "debt" to a new CA will not release them from liability for the FDCPA violation.
What do you believe is the basis for their trying to collect from you? Is this a debt that you already paid, or never your debt in the first place? Are they attempting to collect from you base on your name alone being similar to the debtor, or did someone else open an account using information identifying you?
Re: Re: collections trick... So, you don't know if the debt is yours or not? Initially you said you were not the debtor.
