• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

debt collector

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

T

thin line

Guest
ok i will try to make this as short as possable

i recieved a paper from the county sheriff stating i needed to be in court for a hearing because i am being sued by a collection agency that i have never heard of but its from an old debt that i have disputed with the original creditor. so i show up to court and my name is called so i step up and the judge askes what i would like to do? so i ask to speak with the lawer representing the collection agency out side, so we step out side and he imeadiatly starts in on me of this is what we want and i try to tell him my side of the story and why this debt is there but he inturupts me and askes how much i want to pay? i tell him that i am willing to pay the balance of what i originaly owe. he calls the agency and comes back with a larger amount and adds the att fees and cour costs that add to more than the original debt i am being sued for so i decline and we go back into the court room and talked to the judge and i trial is set.

a little back ground now:

in sept of 2001 i recieved a statment from my creditor and looking over it i realise thay put an over limit fee of $35 on to the account when i was not over my limit(my bill for the month was $766 with the over limit fee and i had a limit of $750 thats only $16 over the limit. do the math) when thay put this on. i call the creditor and tell them of the mistake and they remove the charge i will pay infull. but they refuse to remove the charge, so i tell them i will not pay untill its removed. i start getting calls from them saying they want there money and each time i have the person on the phone(including managers) bring up the statment on ther end and do the math, most of them said that yes i was under my limit but they still want the money. i finnaly wrote them a letter telling them to stop calling and to communicate by mail only and i also reidorated what the problum is and how to rectify it, i stopped getting phone calls so i figured they wrote it off and i was willing to take the hit on my credit and suffer for a few years( i am still young).

untill now i havent had any calls for about a year then i get the notice to appear. that day after court i go home and start looking for some info and i find out

a. they sould have sent me a letter stating that they are going to take legal action if i dont call then and try to settle things first.(i finnaly recieved this letter on the 20th the post date was the 13th i had a notice to appear delivered on the 5th to be in court on the 18th( follow so far?)

b.the original creditor has since gone bankrupt. the evidance the collection agency is using is the finnal statment from the creditor(the bank of the creditor was shut down my the feds in feb of 02' and the stament is dated in april of 02' then the credit card section of the creditor was closed in july of 02')

c. i find out that the collection agency is not the nicest one around and has evidently been caught doing some things thay should not have been doing ( as of what? im still looking)

i have writen a letter the the attourney stating that wanted some paperwork from the collection agency( past statment s they might have, records of phone conversations.....)

does it sound like i might be able to fight this case? i do not object to the money owed just not what they are sueing for i am willing to pay the original balance.

thanks in advane for any info that you can give
 
Last edited:


JETX

Senior Member
"a. they sould have sent me a letter stating that they are going to take legal action if i dont call then and try to settle things first."
*** There is no statutory obligation on the creditor to 'warn' you of pending legal action.

"b.the original creditor has since gone bankrupt."
*** That really makes no difference. Clearly someone else purchased that debt and would have the right to pursue collection.

"the evidance the collection agency is using is the finnal statment from the creditor(the bank of the creditor was shut down my the feds in feb of 02' and the stament is dated in april of 02' then the credit card section of the creditor was closed in july of 02')"
*** Can't figure out what all that is about, but you certainly have the right, and they have the obligation, to provide sufficient records to show that YOU owe the debt claimed.

"c. i find out that the collection agency is not the nicest one around and has evidently been caught doing some things thay should not have been doing ( as of what? im still looking)"
*** Not surprising.... and not relevant to YOUR issue.

"i have writen a letter the the attourney stating that wanted some paperwork from the collection agency( past statment s they might have, records of phone conversations.....)"
*** What you are asking for is called 'validation' of the debt. Your request to the attorney may, or may not be, sufficient. I would suggest you take a look at the sample letter at http:www/creditinfocenter.com/forms/

"does it sound like i might be able to fight this case?"
*** Regretably, no. The problem is that the debt is yours. And you have allowed it to go this far, incurring additional interest and legal fees. I would have suggested that you make the payments that you claimed as valid ($731.00) and then disputed the $35.00 overlimit fee. If you had done that, this dispute would not be where it is.

"i do not object to the money owed just not what they are sueing for i am willing to pay the original balance."
*** As noted above, the opportunity for you to pay the 'original balance' has very likely passed. Unless you have some statutory relief (expiration of SOL, etc.), they have what appears to be a pretty good case against you..... at least for the original $731, plus interest and fees incurred.
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top