I starting receiving letters from 2 separate companies saying I have a debt with them. I received today 2 letters from Capital One Loan Recovery for the amount of $11000.00 and $42000.00 The other one was from US Bank for the amount of $1000.00 I have never in my life had any business or accounts with this banks or agencies. In fact, I know they got the wrong person. There is somebody in my city with the same name. I was able to google him and we are completely different person. They are looking for a pastry chef with the same name as me. Now, I am getting annoyed, my credit score is 800+ and I am 2 years away from being completely debt free. I have worked hard to pay off all my debts. Getting this letters has gotten me worry. Can somebody tell me what to do? or letters I should send. 1 month ago I fax US Bank a comprehensive letter saying who I was and who they were looking for. I gathered all this information from google search which even included pictures, my age, etc. Thanks.
Have you pulled all your credit reports to verify if the debts have been reported to the CRAs yet? You say you have an 800+ credit score, so I'm assuming nothing negative has found its way to your reports. That's good, and you need to keep it that way. This means they are likely reporting correctly to the CRAs under the pastry chef's SSN. US Bank is absolutely horrible when it comes to fixing data entry mistakes on their end. Capital One isn't much better either, so you'll need to be very persistent in making your case, providing the documentation, and following through. The accounts should be attached to a social security number, so call them up and determine what process they suggest to prove you have the same name but in fact are a different person with a different SSN. I would also send letters CMRRR at the same time providing all the documentation you have and explaining the mistake they have made. Avoid faxes. They disappear all the time and you can't prove that someone actually signed and received your correspondence. By the way, did US Bank ever even respond to your previous fax?
I never received a response from US Bank. I will call CapitalOne to find out what information they need from me. I am not really sure what type of documentation I can submit as proof. Should I send them a copy of my credit report? I dont think it would be wise to give them my SSN or DOB. I figure they can't possibly have any of that information. I figured they run a name search and send those letters to everybody with the same name. That's the information I got from US Bank. So the question remains, what document should I send them as proof I am not who they are looking for? They have somebody's name in the same city. How do you proof you are not that person while sharing the same name? Thanks.
What was the result of your call to Cap One? I can't say I know what they'll require of you in this case. I've never experienced this before. I would think you'll need to prove that you have a different DOB and SSN than the person they have you confused with at the moment. But I agree, I wouldn't hand that info. out voluntarily if it wasn't completely necessary. Perhaps just proving your DOB is different with a copy of your credit report will be enough?
I wouldn't give them any personal information whatever under any circumstances myself. Neither would I send them any credit reports. I would simply write them a letter stating that you are the wrong person and that you have no accounts with them if that is true. If you have proof of this other person with the same name then you could provide them with the name and address of that other person and state that you believe that is the person who is at fault. Ask them not to contact you any further about this matter. Of course, the Milquentoast type of reply I outline above may not be the only way to go at this problem because your state laws may give you other options. It depends on what state you live in. If you live in Oklahoma or other state that basically has no consumer protection laws in place then the Milquentoast approach is about all you have available. If you live in a state such as California that has strong consumer protection laws then you may have other options. Some states paint both creditors and debt collectors with the same brush. If that is true where you live then a debt validation letter would be in order and would certainly be a better way to go. The problem with sending a copy of any credit report is that you run the risk of their using that information to be sure that your credit rating gets hammered along with the other persons credit reports. I wouldn't want to give them the information which would allow them to compound their mistakes myself. I always say that one should never attempt to educate the other fellow. Giving them information of any kind simply serves to educate the other fellow and that is never a good thing to do.
