http://www.insidearm.com/forum/index.cfm?forumid=1 FuseTalk Basic Edition http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8348 2009-11-20T10:53:04 -05.00 Some Guy 2
Now to your industry's credit, most of the time when I am home to take the call, I politely tell them that she does not live here, never has, and I don't know this person, and more often than not they take the number out of their dialer and all's well...

UNTIL they sell it to the next agency and THEY start calling. Which to my understanding is perfectly legal, but whoever this person is must be a major skip if the best number they have is more than 2 years old. I've searched for this person in online databases and she does have an address listed in my city, so she probably did have this number at one point.

So am I just going to have to tell a different collections agency each week that she does not live here, or is there something else I can do? It's really only a minor inconvenience, but I thought some of you collectors might have an idea on this.]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8340 2009-11-15T09:31:19 -05.00 fdcpa101 17
It seems these broke dick small potatos unsecured banks like First Premier target people of such profiles. What a joke. They give you a $300 credit line and after all initial application and annual fees are applied, one has appx $75 of available credit before they even activate the card. Now who in their right mind would go that route? Apparantly too many uneducated consumers.

A far more viable option is to get either Bank of America or Wells Fargo for a secured card.

Upon research, Bank of America Visa is the best. You put between $300 to $5000 in a secured savings account and that is your guaranteed credit line. The annual fee is only $29 (not $84 like First Premier) and that is it. No additional signup or activation fees totalling $225. So really, those who say consumers have to stay in the penalty box for awhile after bankruptcy or on OOS unsecured debts are dead wrong. If you have 3K under the mattress, you get a 3K credit limit at B of A with a 9.9% APR and a $29 annual fee. After 12-18 months of staying current, you'll get your 3K back and your card is converted to unsecured.

Wells Fargo has a higher APR in the high teens but you can deposit up to 10K in that account. The drawback is those fresh out of bankruptcy have to wait one year to have the ability to have a Wells Fargo secured cc from date of discharge. Bank of America welcomes you with open arms immediately.

In closing, why are bottomfeeders like First Premier in business? Are that many consumers that ignorant?]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8336 2009-11-12T08:49:31 -05.00 L Nichols 62
Synopsis: I started getting letters from Hiller & Hoffman a couple of months ago about some type of automobile loan which was absolutely not mine. I've never even had a car loan before - any vehicles I've owned have been financed by my husband or dad. My credit is good but theirs is better.

The letters were addressed to Linda P. Nichols and of course were sent to my home address. My name is Linda J. Nichols.

I called to try to straighten it out and was berated and hung up on. I searched online and ended up sending dispute and validation letters. I never received anything from the firm in response so I assumed (silly me) that the matter was resolved.

About a month ago, I started getting nasty phone calls at my place of employment from these people. I told them to stop contacting me and also sent a cease & desist letter CMRR.

I eventually found out that they found my work place from my sweet little old lady neighbor who got fooled by a 'I'm an old friend of Linda's and I want to surprise her - can you tell me where she works?' line.

They are STILL calling my work, threatening to sue, garnish my wages, etc.

I just got off the phone with this firm again and am so mad that I am shaking. The man on the phone kept saying 'I'm not interested in your lies and sob stories. Give me a credit card number or you'll be in court this time next week'.

I hung up on him and a few minutes later, the phone here at work rang again. The number on the Caller ID was the same as it has been when these people called. Our receptionist answered and was told 'Tell that old bitch that if she doesn't pay me, I'm going to make her life a living hell' and then hung up.

So my question is - are there any remedies to this without a long drawn-out court battle? I want this to stop NOW. What can I do that I haven't already did?

I can't think of a good reason NOT to sue, though. These people should pay for their callous and illegal actions. But at the same time, I need a quick fix. I cannot keep getting calls at my work.

And once again - this is absolutely NOT my debt. I asked the rude man to please let me verify my SSN so they could see that they had the wrong person but he would not agree to it.

I did pull my credit report and do not show any negative entries.

So what do I do now?

How do I get these people to leave me alone??]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8322 2009-11-09T08:40:09 -05.00 ~Fleppie~ 1
I know most of you are "tight" and wouldn't "tattle" on a "brother" or "sister" but out of curiosity .............. here goes.......


National Service of Process

National Client Services

Frederick Goldstein and Zoe LLC

McMillan & Andrews


And before ya all get your panties in a twist none of em are after me I'm simply doing research :0) ]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8317 2009-11-06T21:35:56 -05.00 fdcpa101 21 http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8302 2009-11-04T04:36:53 -05.00 LungButter 10 http://www.marketwire.com/pres...DAQ-PRAA-1068011.html

http://www.insidearm.com/go/ar...lectors+and+other+news]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8300 2009-11-03T05:12:53 -05.00 Dr Tax 19
With the current recession and credit crisis, the news media is beginning to note a cosmic shift in people's attitudes towards credit. No longer are credit cards being looked at as a universal necessity - they are once again being looked at as a luxury.

I am also seeing a shift in attitudes on both sides of the equasion. Loyalty is history. Lenders, who used to value long term relationships with their customers are now looking at their customers as cash cows and when the cow doesn't give enough milk it is sent to the slaughterhouse to be turned into hamburger through rate jacking, credit line decreases or simple unannounced account closures.

I remember the days when bankers encouraged you to have a long term relationship with them. My Debit Card attached to my bank account still reads "customer since 1996", but my credit cards no longer do. American Express still does that, but after a rate jacking and 4 credit line decreases in six months on an account that was never delinquent by one dollar or one day that account was closed within 14 months of its opening. Amex made no attempt to keep me as a customer and actually paid thousands of their customers to go away. The other credit card companies are in the same boat. Citibank made no attempt to salvage our relationship, neither did GEMB.

It is easy to ascribe this to the current credit crisis, and that is probably a correct assumption, but what is happening to the concept of "loyalty"? Loyalty is a component of trust, and the credit industry is built on trust. Lenders trust borrowers to repay and borrowers trust lenders to be honest with them and to honor their commitment to lend. Stories are legion of people at checkout counters across the land attempting to use a credit card that they thought had plenty of available credit only to find there is none after a quick and unannounced decrease in credit line. I am not talking about accounts that are delinquent in payment - I am talking about accounts that are current, have always been current and in many cases actually have no balance owed at all.

Lenders say "it's a business decision" and they are correct. But that goes both ways, and this is where I am sure the collectors will argue with me. How many of us have heard collectors cajole us towards repayment based not on the "business decision to repay" but on the "moral" argument - you have a moral commitment to repay. It's as if one side of the transaction is an amoral "business decision" when made by a lender and the other is a "moral imperative" when made by a consumer. "Yes, we raised your interest rate to 30% and cut your credit limit to $5 above your balance with no advance notice, tripled your required payment amount and changed the due date unannounced and there is nothing you can do about it even though you have been a customer of ours for thirty years and have never made a late payment, but your payment is now five minutes late. Here's your late charge and we dinged your credit."

OK, so it may not actually be THAT draconian, but many people feel it's pretty close to that, and many are angry. How angry? I see a storm coming that the lenders are powerless to stop and may end up hurting them big-time.

If credit is reduced to simply an amoral "business decision" what happens when BOTH sides of the transaction see it that way? The moral imperative to be honest goes out the window and only what is expedient and can be "gotten away with" will happen. Let's discuss someone I know and we will call her Jenny. I personally know about dozen people who fit Jenny's profile and the number is growing daily.

Jenny is in her late 50's. She has a six-figure credit limit spread among a half a dozen credit cards. Her utilization is about 20% and makes her payments consistently above the minimum and on time. Her FICO's are all in the mid 700's. She has a six-figure household income, owns her home and has three paid for cars. Her children are all grown and she is preparing for her retirement. She has two pensions fully vested and a solid investment portfolio.

She has also had $75,000 in credit lines reduced in the past year and has had four credit cards closed unannounced. She feels she plays by one set of rules and the lenders play by another. She is right - she plays by the "moral imperative" set of rules and the the lenders are playing by the "business decision" set.

That is about to end.

Her plan: To retire at age 62 - as soon as she can collect her pensions and Social Security and move to the Philippines. She will sell her paid for home to her child before doing anything. By that time her investment portfolio will be in the low six-figure range, and her combined pensions and Social Security will allow her to live like royalty in the Philippines. Did I mention that she plans to hit all her credit cards up to the maximum before she leaves, and not pay them back? She won't need them in the Philippines, she will have enough cash for whatever her heart desires. She doesn't care what happens to her credit rating in the US, she will be in the Philippines. Or Brazil. Or Singapore. Or Korea. Or Mexico, Belize, Costa Rica or anywhere else in the world, even Nova Scotia. "It's not personal, it's business."

Collectors will skip trace her, maybe they will find her, maybe they won't. If they do, what can they do? Her pensions and Social Security will be Direct Deposited to a bank in the Philippines. Her assets will be in Treasury Bills. The Treasury will mail her a check every six months for the interest. None of which can be touched by bill collectors. Is he alone in making these plans? No, I know of a dozen like her and several who have already done this. The numbers will grow and with each one the lenders will get hit hard. In Jenny's case for $100,000. The new morality is "it's just business."

Lenders - you created this environment. I hope you enjoy it.]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8284 2009-10-23T12:51:26 -05.00 Jeremy Thomas 37
Now I am wondering why some bill collectors on this board are so angry, judgmental and nasty. And I'm curious if the attitude displayed on this website carries over to your personal lives. Do you treat everyone you come across in the same manner that you treat a person who asked you a freakin question?

If you do then I feel bad for you. Your lives must be really sad. I would hate to have to live with so much anger and hatred inside of me. I will put you on my list of people to pray for.

Now moving along - and please refrain from answering this if you don't have anything useful to contribute - what are your opinions on NCO?

(Short story - I had quite a bit of unsecured debt 6-7 years ago that I wasn't able to pay because I was incarcerated for shooting my stepfather after he beat my mother within an inch of her life. No I don't regret it and yes I would do it again in a heartbeat if anyone tried to hurt my family. Go ahead and judge, I don't care. I'm at peace with what I did and my only regret is that he didn't die. I wasn't forthcoming about this in my post yesterday but I decided that I don't care what people on the internet who I will never meet think about me personally. I didn't personally ignore the CAs but my wife did even though they hounded her relentlessly despite the fact that she wasn't a co-signer. I was moved around a few times and obviously didn't pay the debts since I was making about 80 cents per day. Now the SOL has expired and things have been very quiet since I sent certified mail a few months ago explaining that the time limit was up).

But back to NCO - they were the last CA that was sending me letters and calling but they stopped about 6 months ago. I had sent them certified mail that the SOL in Missouri expired. The 2 accounts they were handling were just taken off my credit report (Equifax & TU, didn't check Experian) and I was wondering if this is standard procedure or not. I understand that the SOL is different for legal action vs reporting but I don't know if removing the bad accounts from my reports is the norm.

I can probably get this information on a number of sites but the reason I'm on this one is because it came up first in my google search yesterday. Some people are reading way too much into it. I believe there are probably some nice, decent people on here who might be able to answer. So far, I've not encountered many but I am sure that a small number of collectors give the majority of you a bad name with their hatefulness, ignorance and haste to judge others without the facts.

I am trying to get my credit cleaned up and educate myself so I don't ever get in a financial mess again.
Thank you. JT]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8283 2009-10-22T20:30:15 -05.00 Unrepentant Jim 41
I'm a big time lurker of this forum. I am representative of the "scumbag" debtors you have come after. I've had my wages garnished, my car reposessed, my credit cards taken away, and everything. All because I liked to get drunk and laid at the tender age of 18. This new credit card legislation should help in preventing the kind of irresponsible lifestyle I used to lead.

Because of my past mistakes, I had to deal without any credit cards for close to a decade. I participated in many of the "debtor" boards (though not the popular one that's prominent here...though had I found it earlier, I would have used "the Method".... ) ) My credit has severely improved. I have a good number of credit cards with decent limits, I have a high interest auto loan (the penalty of my youth...but I make payments on it faithfully), a mortgage at a nice low rate, and a couple of P2P loans. I have a couple of past debts that are SOL...one got NDAed (yeah, you know what that means....and if you don't well lets just say the good guys one *and no, I don't mean you guys...*") and the other is on it's way to that.

Having said all of that, I know at least one of you will get his panties in a bunch....that isn't my intention, believe it or not. I actually have a respect for the ones who do their jobs HONORABLY and treats the debtor with DIGNITY. I suspect the good ones would not have let my debt go SOL and would have sued me righteously just like one of you did before the Internet had the information I needed. I just want to let both collector and debtor know that hey, we, debtors, deserve a second shot at life. I'm not the first, and won't be the last on this board to make that point. HOWEVER, I will do my best not to crap on what you do (IF YOU DO IT HONORABLY). I only ask that you do the same in kind. Remember, I'm trained to hate you...but after reading what some of you write...a few of you make some valid points. But the few who continue to treat us with disrespect ruin it for all of you. That's why you guys get shaken down.

Well, I've rambled on enough...it felt good to finally say hello. And I will keep all of my consumerisms here on the consumer part of this board. Take it easy. ]]> http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=11&threadid=8272 2009-10-16T15:12:20 -05.00 cwojtan 10
After spending a considerable amount of time researching laws, etc. I'm left confused and unsure of where I stand and what else I can do to improve my situation. I sought specifics and I only got generalities.

In November 2007 I looked at my credit report to see a key derogatory debt that I had no previous knowledge of and had no idea what/where it was from.

My research suggests that I should have been notified by someone (creditor or collector) prior to the debt showing on the credit report.

Question#1: Should I have been notified and given a chance to dispute the debt (or make payment arrangements) prior to it being reported to a CRA?

I contacted the collection agency looking for information. They told me it was from a gas company for $389. I initially disputed it. After contemplating I decided to take care of the debt. I had left the apartment without shutting off the gas service in February 2003. A friend was to take over the apartment and change the service to his name. Turns out he moved elsewhere. I have no idea how long after before the utility company shut off service. I claimed responsibility for not taking responsibility. Nonetheless, I was never informed of the debt. It was never even posted until November 2007.

The "Date Opened" listed on my credit report suggested April 2005. My personal credit reports that have dates on them rangin from May 2005 to September 2006 show no indication of such debt. I have other reports but they were not date stamped.

It is my understanding that the "date opened" is the point of initial delinquency.

Question #2: Is the account "date opened" the point of initial delinquency?
Question #3: Once in collection, when does the agency report to CRAs?
Question #4: Should the agency have submitted information to CRAs upon first obtaining account information and/or after notifying debtor?

In November 2007 I made payment arrangements with the collection agency. I was to have $64.83 withdrawn from my checking account every month until paid off, a total of 6 months. I would check my (paper) statements as soon as I received them.
My March 2008 statement showed no withdrawls from the agency. On April 16, 2008 I called the agency to find out why after 4 payments they stopped collecting. I was informed that the account was pulled by the original creditor. I asked what I could do to clear this up and pay it off. I was told to contact the utility company.

I called the utility company and made arrangements that day to pay it completely. They actually asked for more than the balance ($129.66) left, they wanted $153. I complied and was informed that I would be received a refund. By May 2008 I received my refund and my credit report no longer showed the key derogatory debt.... Until October 8, 2009, where it appeared that I owed a balance of $130.

My credit score went from a well deserved 747 (posted 9/30/09) to 663 (posted 10/08/09) on Experian (I was at 562 in May 2005). This is when I immediately started researching FCRA & FDCPA and any other legalities pertaining to my situation.

I found that once a debt has been removed from a credit report for over a year it cannot be resubmitted/reposted to CRAs as long as that information is verified to be accurate.

Its a good thing I keep notes... I called the agency 10/8/09 and asked what their internal comments had to say in regards to my payments and why they stopped. I was told due to insufficient funds in my bank account. I was livid but tried to keep my cool. I asked when their office closed so I could look through my files and get back to him. I tried but couldnt reach anyone when I called back 20 minutes later. At that point I called the utility company to verify the information I had in regards to paying them was accurate. Yes we were on the same page. I requested a letter stating that the account was paid in full. I called the collection agency back and told them that I am disputing the debt and once they verify this I want them to report their findings to CRAs.

I checked my credit report today and now Equifax has the debt listed, over a week later.

Question #5: What is the verification process of a debt for the CRA?
Question #6: Who ultimately validates a debt? The collection agency or creditor?
Question #7: Is information submitted to CRAs at roughly the same time?
Question #8: Does one person per establishment handle this task or are there multiple hands involved?
Question #9: Do collection agencies have any red flags such as an account being 'on hold', inactive, suspended or closed prompt anyone to actually verify whether the account still needs to be paid?
Question #10: (kinda like questions 5 & 6 but more specific) What is the verification process of the collection agency once a debt has been removed for over a year and resubmitted to CRA?
Question #11: Do CRAs receive red flags?

I made some more calls; The collection agency told me that the only internal comments in their system are from November 2007 and October 8, 2009 and nothing in between.

Question #12: Who do you trust when it comes to speaking with a collection agency?
(The guy that tells me they can't pull money out of my account due to insufficient funds (where did he get the(false) information to tell me this?) or the lady that says there is no information?)

Question #13: Are collectors required to submit (internal)comments when speaking with anyone regarding an account?


Any and all information is greatly appreciated... questions too. Thank you!]]>