I have good credit and suddenly I get a letter in the mail today from Credigy saying I owe $16,000 on an account from Fleet Bank - they even have an account #. I never had an account with Fleet, but I believe a relative with the same last name did. I called Credigy and they told me the acount was opened in 96 and closed in 99. I called Bank of America (which bought Fleet about 2 years ago) and gave them the account #. They say their systems go back more than 10 years and the said that there is no account showing in their system nor do I owe $ on any fleet account. My credit reports are all clean and I even have a B of A account with a nice limit that I opened about a year ago. In any event, the debt is past the SOL for California. My question is: Can they still report this to the CRA's even though the account was supposedly defaulted in 98 or 99? I am so angry because my credit is clean and this would take a lot of time and effort to remove if they ever placed it. Eric
That is why you dispute it, immediately, as not your debt. Did their letter include the legally required disclosure: http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpa/fdcpact.htm#809 "�§ 809. Validation of debts [15 USC 1692g] (a) Within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall, unless the following information is contained in the initial communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send the consumer a written notice containing -- (1) the amount of the debt; (2) the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed; (3) a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector; (4) a statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the consumer and a copy of such verification or judgment will be mailed to the consumer by the debt collector; and (5) a statement that, upon the consumer's written request within the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer with the name and address of the original creditor, if different from the current creditor. (b) If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt, or any disputed portion thereof, until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or any copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such verification or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor, is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector."
You would dispute this debt in its entirety, as not your debt. Send your validation request CRRR. Also pull your 3 credit reports along with FICO scores. If your credit reports show their TL for this debt, wait 10 days after your return receipt shows they received your validation request, and then dispute the account with the CRA. In your dispute with the CA, request the original creditor, original creditor's account number, date originally opened, full name of consumer opening the account, SSN, DOB, and billing address given, date of last purchase and statement showing it, date of last payment and statement showing it, copy of last payment, copy of original signed contract, and copy of all statements. Is this debt past SOL in your state? If so, they will probably not want to do any work to collect, but will trash your credit anyway. That is why you want to preserve your rights by disputing, and prepare to sue for damages. If they attempt to collect, post a negative TL to your reports, or verify their TL to a CRA in response to your dispute to the CRA, following their receipt of your request for validation, but prior to them providing it, that is a FDCPA violation that you may use to take legal action. Get BofA to provide in writing that the account number is not yours and that they show no such account either with them or with their acquisition Fleet.
Thanks for the info. I will have them attempt to validate and then try to catch them on violations if they try to mess with me. Eric
Document everything, including all calls, and keep good records, including all correspondance and return receipts. You may need to show not only that their collection attempts are wrong, and that their actions are illegal, but that they are negligent and had many opportunities to fix this, to boot. If they agree to do anything, get it in writing, and check to see if they followed thru. Notify them of any failure to follow thru. Memorialize any conversations, particularly involving threats of illegal actions, in letter form, and send them a copy, CRRR. Ratchet them toward settlement on your terms. To do that you have to document their liability for damages so that legal action pays if needed. If they are damaging you, then you are in the business of collecting from them.
