Got served by mistaken Identity. What to do

[hobbesk]

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

Chicago, IL here.

I got served notice from a debt collector for $28,000+ but the debt they are trying to collect is not me. We share the same first name and the last name. I've had calls from debt collectors and every time I told them the last 4 of my SSI number and told them that they had the wrong person. Now I get served notice.

What can I do. Do I have to shell out for a lawyer just to let these idiots know that the person they are after is not me?

Help.

TIA

 

[cyjeff]

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

Chicago, IL here.

I got served notice from a debt collector for $28,000+ but the debt they are trying to collect is not me. We share the same first name and the last name. I've had calls from debt collectors and every time I told them the last 4 of my SSI number and told them that they had the wrong person. Now I get served notice.

What can I do. Do I have to shell out for a lawyer just to let these idiots know that the person they are after is not me?

Help.

TIA

First, call the credit bureaus and dispute the charges.

Second, call the police and report an identity theft. You will need this police report to get any real traction.

 

[Ozark_Sophist]

First, call the credit bureaus and dispute the charges.

Second, call the police and report an identity theft. You will need this police report to get any real traction.

Read the OP. This is not a case of identity theft. More than one person can have the same name.

 

[Some Random Guy]

YOU have been served, which means that YOU have been sued. You will need to present a defense to the court otherwise you will get a judgment against you for $28,000 that you didn't owe before.

Talk to a local lawyer and see that it would take to respond to the lawsuit and to see whether there is any possibilty of cost reimbursement by the debt collector for this fraudulent suit.

New York law is different from Illinois law, but here is an interesting article
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/29/nyregion/29about.html?_r=2&ref=nyregion

 

[dfromnyli]

A lot of bad information/advice given in this thread. Number 1, this is not a case of identity theft. Plenty of people in the US have the same name, my name is not that common at all, and I know of at least 8 people who share the same name as me.

Number 2, just because YOU have been served does not mean YOU have been sued. They may think you are the John Doe that owes money to them. As long as they do not have YOUR social security number, they will not be able to freeze any bank accounts or garnish any wages if the name they have does not match up with your social security number.

The catch is though, this may very well show up on your credit report if there is a judgment entered against somoene with the same name as you. I see this every single day where there are valid judments entered against John Smith, but it shows up on another John Smith's credit report.

 

[TigerD]

As long as they do not have YOUR social security number, they will not be able to freeze any bank accounts or garnish any wages if the name they have does not match up with your social security number.

I can get someone's SSN within minutes. That seems rather pointless. The OP really needs to get an attorney and fight this.

DC

 

[dfromnyli]

I can get someone's SSN within minutes. That seems rather pointless. The OP really needs to get an attorney and fight this.

DC

Truth, but then you are talking about a crime.

 

[Zigner]

Truth, but then you are talking about a crime.

Nope, but you won't let a silly think like accurateness sway you!

 

[TigerD]

Truth, but then you are talking about a crime.

What crime are your referring to? Skip tracing is collections 101.

DC

 

[dfromnyli]

I've had calls from debt collectors and every time I told them the last 4 of my SSI number and told them that they had the wrong person. Now I get served notice.

I can get someone's SSN within minutes.

DC

What crime are your referring to? Skip tracing is collections 101.

DC

Now DUCY???

 

[Zigner]

Now DUCY???

I suggest you stay in school a few more years.

 

[TigerD]

Now DUCY???

All debtors lie. When a debtor says it isn't me, they are lying. You are the collector - not their priest. If there is a mistake, the debtor will prove it. Until they prove they are not the debtor, they owe the money - do your job and collect against them. Court is where they get the chance to prove their case.

For the record, collection and judgment enforcement are permissible purposes - no crime.

If the OP does not get an attorney and fight this case, the OP will be on the hook for the debt. And no one will believe him after the judgment is issued because "all debtors lie."

DC

 

[eraserheads]

Show yourself to the court and show your proofs that you are not the person who owes that $28000. You mentioned the last four digits of your SSN and the debtor's are not the same, then prove it to them.

 

[Sheriff10]

All debtors lie. When a debtor says it isn't me, they are lying. You are the collector - not their priest. If there is a mistake, the debtor will prove it. Until they prove they are not the debtor, they owe the money - do your job and collect against them. Court is where they get the chance to prove their case.

For the record, collection and judgment enforcement are permissible purposes - no crime.

If the OP does not get an attorney and fight this case, the OP will be on the hook for the debt. And no one will believe him after the judgment is issued because "all debtors lie."

DC

Not disputing your post DC. But do you think it fair, that when the collector mistakenly goes after the wrong debtor, the wronged debtor be awarded legal fees and time lost against the collector's employer?

 

[FlyingRon]

Yep, It's band enough that my cell phone was listed as the EMPLOYER of a deadbeat guy named Chris. No amount of explanation to LOW LIFE SCUM cold caller debt collectors that the number is NOT the debtors NOR was it ever represented to be, and I am not his employer no where he is and about half their calls to me turn out to be ILLEGAL under the law.

Unfortunately, no where for me to complain. The law is designed to protect the debtor, not the upstanding innocent victim of the corrupt and dishonest collection industry.