This is taken from Arizona revised statutes regarding collection agencies. R20-4-1517. Holder in Due Course A licensee shall not be deemed a holder in due course even if he is an assignee for value, or otherwise gives value for the debt. Any opinions on what exactly this means? I am assuming that even if a collection agency is assigned a debt to collect, that they have no legal rights to it. Is this correct?
For all those who feel the need to go to the statute in its entirety it can be found at http://www.sosaz.com/public_services/Title_20/20-04.htm#pgfld=1 I believe you are correct. In my opinion, it would seem that the statute indicates that CA's attempting to collect under their AZ license cannot claim the debt is owed to the CA. In other words, the debtor remains obligated to pay only the original creditor regardless of whether the CA was assigned the debt or purchased the debt from the creditor. I wonder then if you would have to deal with the CA at all if you decided to pay in full/settle/negotiate....
The situation that brought this up is of course Gulf State. They are not licensed in Az., but their alter ego OSI is. They are attempting to collect as Gulf State which since they aren't licensed here, would mean, I presume, that they can't collect here. So we have a ca that is not a holder of the acct. per Az. law, and they are not licensed to collect in Az. So, how would this affect their right to report this debt to the cra's? I already filed a complaint with the state banking dep't once on them, and they immediately deleted the account from the cra's and quit collecting. This is another and thankfully, the last of my negatives.
i am in az and these idiots call me every day as GULF STATE, after months of demanding something in writing, the other day i finally got a letter but it was from OSI PORTFOLIO SERVICES. so can they call you and introduce themselves as ms. suchnsuch from gulf state then correspond on paper as osi?
Hmmnn...It appears that once again Gulf State is in the midst of illegal tactics.... AZ statutes requires that each CA be licensed separately and only one CA can be assigned a debt. Is the CA that reported the debt the CA trying to collect from you? You say "alter-ego"...please clarify. If the addresses of Gulf State and OSI are different then it is fairly straightforward. If Gulf State reported then only Gulf State may collect. If OSI attempts to collect from you, claiming they have been assigned the debt, then Gulf State must delete the collection account as they are not assigned the debt and reporting is considered a collection activity. I assume you have already sent Gulf State/OSI validation letters? Has either CA been able to produce a contract indicating their right to collect the debt? AZ law is bit more specific on this and requires CA's to have a written contract for each account that is assigned to them. I would suggest filing a complaint AZ department of banking about OSI and Gulf playing the old switcheroo and initiate a request to revoke OSI's license. Ask them to interceed with the CA that is reporting to the CRA's on the aforementioned basis. CA's value their ability to collect in a state more than any potential loss in a small claims lawsuit.....
so if gulf state is reporting my citibank chargeoff on my cr's but the letter i finally got was from osi (no mention of gulf state) this is a no no? kelly
OSI and Gulf State are in the same city and state, and share the same physical address. OSI is licensed in Az.. Gulf State is not, but Gulf State is the one trying to collect and they did the reporting. On a different account, I did file a complaint with the Az. banking dep't. I had sent validation to OSI who responded by stating they would not report anything and were discontinuing collection efforts. Then it shows up on my reports as Gulf State. I sent a complaint to the banking dep't. Gulf state responded by saying, although they are not admitting anything and OSI said they remove the listing, not gulf state, they would in the interest of good will, delete the account. What a crock. They did delete it. Now I have this one. I sent a validation in August, estoppel in Oct. and a notice of intent to sue in Nov. The only response I have received was from OSI - not gulf state. The letter says: This letter is in response to your recently received correspondence. We have verified your account and forwarded it to our dispute department for processing. We will handle your request as expedtiously as possible." This was dated Oct. 15th. I sent copies of every letter I sent and copies of the certified green card to the cra with a letter demanding removal. They are now reinvestigating. The letter I sent can be found in the letter section. At the time I sent the letter to the cra, I should have sent a copy of the letter from OSI with a statement to the effect of "The collection agency handling this is OSI, not Gulf State - remove. I'll use that if all else fails.
Where do you look again to find out if a collection agency is licensed to collect in a particular state? I cannot seem to locate that thread.
In Az. I checked with the secretary of state. I would suggest trying there or your state banking dep't.
So is it safe for me to assume, that if a CA is not registered in GA then they cannot collect against me? Also, I do not see a registered agent or anything? Does this apply to law firms acting as CAs? Help me here. I would like to tackle this tonight. The companies that I question are not even subsidiaries of any other company. Can anyone help with a letter. I would like to ask for val./ do a C&D and advise that they are in violation if this in fact the case.
No, it is not safe to assume that they cannot collect. I was quoting Az. law and I have no idea what Ga. law says. You need to call the secretary of state or banking dep't for your state to find out the laws. Or maybe you could try at www.lawdog.com A lawfirm acting as a collection agent I would think is regarded as a 3rd party collector. What ca's are you talking about?
This is from Lawdog. It is the rules for Georgia. Collection Agency Licensing Requirements: The Official Code of Georgia contains no provisions regarding licensing requirements of a collection agency. However, the general agency laws of Georgia should be reviewed by counsel. (e.g. see Section 10-1-100 et.seq. of the Official Code of Georgia). Section 10-6-100 of the Official Code of Georgia requires that any person, corporation, partnership, association, or any other entity which engages in the collection of money from others as an agent for a third party post a bond as as security in the amount of $50,000.00 with the clerk of the superior court in the county in which its principal place of business is located. This requirement is waived if the the number of payments handled by such person, corporation, partnership, association, or other entity is fewer than 20 payments per month and a written authorization to conduct such collection activities as an agent for the third party is obtained. Any person who fails to post a bond may be guilty of a misdemeanor and may be punished by a fine of not less than $300 nor more than $3,000, or by imprisonment for not more than six months, or both. (Section 10-6-102.) Debt collectors should also discuss with counsel the provisions of Rules and Regulations of the State of Georgia Section 120-1-14 et.seq., Amended UNFAIR TRADE PRACTICES. One section is reproduced below: 120-1-14-.25 Use of Debt Collectors; Agreement. Every creditor shall be presumed to know that any debt collector engaged by the creditor will be an agent of the creditor and will be acting for and in behalf of the creditor in connection with the collection of any debt allegedly owed the creditor. Every creditor shall be absolutely responsible for observance of these rules and regulations by the debt collector in connection with all activities of the debt collector so far as they are taken in collecting or attempting to collect any debt allegedly owed to the creditor, and it shall be no defense to the creditor that any violation complained of was not an activity of the creditor himself or itself. Before engaging any debt collector, a creditor shall require the debt collector (or a responsible officer of the debt collector) to execute a sworn certificate under the penalty of perjury, that he has read and understands each and all of these rules and regulations pertaining to debt collection and that each and all of them will be carefully observed in the activities of the debt collector.
Thanks five million. So, how can this be used to the consumer's advantage. I clearly understand the details of this provision. I am sure that the original creditors have sold many debts to these companies, so they do infact collect more than 20 payments per month. How can I prove if bond is posted or not?
I think the more lucrative point of the GA law is that whatever violations a CA incurrs, the original creditor is ultimately liable for. I think this means you could sue OSI/Gulf State AND the original creditor. I wonder how much business Gulf State would lose if all the people they screwed over sued the original creditor. FYI, I live in the Atlanta area. I believe the address I've seen for OSI/Gulf state is on the NE Expressway, in Norcross, GA. This address would put the company in Gwinnett Co., GA. Have fun. -ingenue
Yes they are in Gwinett. I guess for me, my aim is at riding some of these items since they are not registered/licensed in GA.
