I have an old Credit card debt (originally 500.00) from my college days and last month a woman from Eastern Asset Management LLC called me demanding that I pay 3000.00 to clear my balance. She was SO RUDE..told me to "borrow it from family, take out a loan, clear out my bank account, etc."! I was very upset and didn’t pay anything. Well today…I received a message from a "law office" that I’m now a defendant in a suit filed against me because of this debt. BUT When I called..he told me he’d let me pay 1500.00 by the end of the week! I’m really stressed out with this! I’m not even sure if this agency is legitimate!! I researched them on the internet and found a site where hundreds of ppl are trying to sue them for using illegal collection tactics…stating the company is a fraud! I don’t know what my options are at this point. He says I have to call him today with an answer..pay or go to court! Is it to late to send a validation letter? Any advise would help!! Please…
Thank you both for your answers! They’re very helpful.
I’m curious though…which state would the SOL apply? I concurred this debt in Oklahoma (where I went to school)…but I’ve been living in California for the last two years. Also, I’ve NEVER received any written notice regarding this debt (none that I know of)…just a bunch of phone calls. They don’t even have my current address so I know I haven’t received anything lately. Wha"t if they sent a "notice to a past address…does that mean I’ve missed out on the 30 days to reply? AND…he told me that I have to call him with an answer asap. Should I even call him to let him know that I’m sending a validation letter? What if he proceeds with the lawsuit before I get the letter sent to him? I’m really nervous about all of this! These collectors are so intimidating…it’s hard to know how to handle this. Especially because I don’t know if they’re even a legitimate agency.
After reading your question and the following good answers, there are a few things that caught my eye that had not been addressed by the other answerers.
Starting off with the "message" you received. Since you didn’t state how the message was given, on paper, on tape, verbally from another person…. If you received it on paper or tape – save that message in a very safe place.
If it was relayed verbally to you by another person, ask that person if they would be kind enough to state in writing what info they were given and that they were given the info from the collection agency? the lawyer? Then have it notorized.
While they can discuss it with your spouse, they cannot speak to another person about it and they cannot make false claims no matter who they speak to.
(having that kind of proof of their violations could come in extremely handy in either getting them to go away or in suing/countersuing them)
If you are past the collecting SOL, their threat of suit is a violation.
If they relayed the message through someone other than your spouse it is a violation.
If they claimed they "have" filed suit When they actually had not "at the time" you received that message, another violation.
Another thing that you should do is to check to see if a suit was actually filed. Check every county you lived in since the time you had that card. You can check the online court system or call the county court clerk and ask if anything is filed in your name.
IF you find that they had indeed filed suit, you "need" to file an answer within the time allowed.
Since you had moved, IF they had filed against you it may be possible that they either knew your current address but sewer served you or they did not know your current address and served you according to the service laws of either state.
Since you defaulted on the debt in Ok. and then moved to Ca., they have their choice of suing you in whichever state they choose. Though if they had served you in Ok you can request the court move it to a Ca court.
The collecting SOL defense is often based on the TILA for open accounts. Okla is the "only" state that has exempted itself from the TILA.
The collecting SOL in Ok for open accounts is 3 years and 5 years for written.
The collecting SOL in Ca for both open and written is 4 years.
Since you have lived in Ca. for more than 12 months, you can probably use that states SOL.
Ca. also has a borrowing statute where you can try to use the 3 year SOL from Ok
Ca also has it’s own version of the FTC’s FDCPA which not only the collector must follow, but the collection attorney must adhere to it as well.
One great example of the Ca. FDCPA:
81. In Kimber v.Federal Financial Corp.(M.D.Ala.1987)668 F.Supp.1480, the court held that it is "unfair " within the meaning of the federal statute to file a time-barred collection suit against a consumer,and that it is a deceptive act to even threaten to file such a suit.
Never overlook the laws of your states laws When dealing with collectors.
Now, on to the letter that was posted in here. The letter itself is a pretty standard DV, but it should be tweeked a tad.
For example:
Omit the word installment from the letter, in fact, omit that full paragraph. All you need to include in the letter is the account number that the collector has placed on the account. You do not need to "self validate" the account by including the original creditor information – that is their job to give "you" that info.
As far as the word "installment", there is a possiblility that it "may or may not" be reporting as an installment account. Even so, you do not want to confirm that the account is an installment account over a revolving account.
You should add the following at the start of the letter:
This letter is being sent to you in response to your (letter? phone call? dated xx/xx/xxx)
This is not a refusal to pay, but a notice that your claim is disputed.
Then at the end of your letter, you should include the following (to get them to quit calling you and to send everything in writing):
I would also like to request, in writing, that no telephone contact be made by your offices to my home or to my place of employment as it is inconvenient to me. All future communications with me MUST be done in writing and sent to the address noted in this letter by USPS.
If there is a lawyer who is claiming to have the file, add the law firms name as a cc at the bottom of the letter.
Do not sign the letter, only print your initials or type your name. (signatures have a nasty habit of jumping from one paper to another)
Send one copy to the collector and send a copy to the (supposed) lawyer. Everything you send to them should be sent by certified mail return receipt.
You might click on my profile and click on the links I’ve provided to the FTC FDCPA, FCRA, etc.
You might also click on the last link I have listed to a free credit discussion board and do some reading in the Newbie Forum, then in the Credit Forum and State Laws Forum.
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