I had a account with AMEX . In 1998 I set up a payment plan with a law firm The amount owed was $16,500. The amount of the monthly payment was $200. since that time until May fo 2004 I have not missed a payment. Now NCO has taken over and they are not willing to accept the same payment that i was paying and was willing to settel for 2800/ then 2500 in the same phone conversation. they also told me that i cannot pay their own wab site because it could take up to 2 weeks to process. but if i would do that it would be $300 a month. They soon got frustrated and told me if i could'nt use the system of post dated checks she told me to save up the $ 200 until i had the $2500 and call them back. one other thing, based on AMEX statement sent to me in2003, the balance is $3934. however NCO says its $4334. I don't think they know.Also this is not on my CR anymore. how should i handle this matter. Please help
So, I read that you have had over 6 years of on-time payments, and you miss one, and they turn it over to collections? What a load of crap. I would read your agreement that you had with the law firm, and see what the stipulations were concerning a grace period. Why doesn't this surprise me? The are trying to get as much as they can up front, because they probably bought your account for $200. They figured that you are a good payer, why not squeeze you some more. They are good at that. Of course, they want you to put it on the back burner. That way they can trash your credit! I wouldn't EVER give them access to any personal account information. Don't even send them a personal check, if you decide to send them anything. Send a money order, PLEASE TAKE THIS ADVICE! Here's what you need to do. You say it's not on your CR. How recent is it? You need to find out tonight, if you got contacted by NCO. Chances are that it is. If that's the case, then you need to send them a validation letter, of which you can find a sample on this site in the FAQ's section. I would dispute it simply because your amounts don't match. Why should you have to pay more? Make them account for every dime of it. If they can't, then it's tough cookies for them. Two pieces of advice: If their lips are moving, they are lying. Don't send them one dime of a settlement offer until you get it in writing. Best of Luck, Col. K0rn
Send them a validation, demanding statements for every transaction, (including all the payments to the lawyers office) Demand COMPLETE & TOTAL historical documentation for validation, including but not limited to, application, contract, all statements from the date the AMEX was opened, to the date it was closed, all payments made through the lawyer, any interest & fees that the lawyer was charging, their rates, start date, and stop dates for the calculation of those interest and fees, what makes those interest and fees legal in accordance with the FDCPA. Add to the botom a 1 sentence C&D to any communications not in writing to the above address. Something along the lines of "Please in the future only communicate with me in writing at the above address, in this matter." Then don't give in to the temptation to call them for any reason, the phone is their weapon. The paper trail is yours. Send a dispute in writing to all three CRA's the minute you know that they received the validation letter.
