confused

[14themoney]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

Rec'd letter from Law Firm out of Miami claiming to represent a Debt Collector who represents a Bank on a Debt. They a threatening to sue me. I acknowledge that I owe this debt but am now in a position financially to pay the balance. I am confused as to who I make the payment to and if this payment will put this matter to bed forever. I am not sure if this Law Firm is now acting as the Debt Collector, or if the Debt Collector they claim to be representing are the one I should deal with. I have about 27 days to respond. I guess my main question would be: How do I protect a $2100.00 payment?

Thank you-

 

[single317dad]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

Rec'd letter from Law Firm out of Miami claiming to represent a Debt Collector who represents a Bank on a Debt. They a threatening to sue me. I acknowledge that I owe this debt but am now in a position financially to pay the balance. I am confused as to who I make the payment to and if this payment will put this matter to bed forever. I am not sure if this Law Firm is now acting as the Debt Collector, or if the Debt Collector they claim to be representing are the one I should deal with. I have about 27 days to respond. I guess my main question would be: How do I protect a $2100.00 payment?

Thank you-

You need to pay whoever owns the debt currently. It's quite likely the original creditor (the bank) sold the debt for a reduced value to a debt buyer. The law firm that contacted you, assuming they're legit, can answer your questions. Google the firm and check your local court for other cases by them. Most firms know better than to threaten to sue when they have no intention of doing so, so failure to pay up will likely result in a lawsuit.

You can attempt to negotiate a settlement; see the sticky post in this forum for details.

If you want to protect your payment, you could talk to the creditor about escrow or use a protected form of payment such as a debit card. Never send money to anyone via cash or Western Union or similar services.