Afni Attempted to collect 10 year old Verizon bill - I WON Bloomington Indiana
Like many others, I recently received a settlement offer from Afni for a Verizon bill from 1997. The first thing I did was to look Afni up online, and found that a lot of people seemed to have received very similar bills around the same time.
My first thought was that it was a total scam. My second thought that the charges may actually be valid, and Afni recently purchases thousands of old bills from Verizon to see if they could bully people into paying them.
After I called them, I realized that my second theory was probably correct. The bill (bills, as it turns out) was in my husband's name, and person I spoke with at Afni was friendly, and able to give me a decent bit of information, such as verifying social security numbers, addresses, and exact dates of these charges. I thanked him for the information and told him I would investigate this on my end. I looked in my files for any old debts from Verizon (I keep everything), and I checked credit reports for both my husband and I from 8-9 years ago, and no Verizon debts appeared.
We realized that at the time these charges apparently took place, my husband was still living at home. After a fun trip down memory lane, we realized that these bills were from around the time he was seeing a girl who was spending a semester abroad.
I believe there is a good chance that these charges are valid. Why my husband or his mother have no record of any attempt on Verizon's part to collect this debt is a mystery. However, knowing that my husband made a lot of calls to Ireland around that time wasn't enough to get me to pull out my checkbook. I am almost fanatical with my finances and debts, and have never tried to "get out" of paying a debt I knew I owed. However, I also have never paid a debt that couldn't be proven, regardless of whether I believed the debt to be valid.
So, long story shot (yeah, right), I sent Afni the following letter:
To Whom It May Concern:
I regret to inform you that after much investigation into the debts associated with above referenced accounts, I was unable validate these charges. Due to the fact that these debts are ten years old, and that you are unable to provide us with any more information than what is present on your billing statements, I must decline payment on these accounts.
I was informed by a representative at your company that you are not able to provide us with copies of the bills from Verizon. Having been in similar situations in the past, I do know that it is possible for a collection agency to obtain such information from the original biller. I imagine it must be frustrating for you to not be able to include this essential information in your attempts to collect on these debts, but unfortunately that is not my problem.
Please discontinue your attempts to collect on this ten year old debt for which you can provide no proof that I owe. I will be monitoring my credit report for the next several months, and if these charges appear I will take legal action.
Thank you in advance for your cooperation,
Two weeks later I received a letter from Afni telling me they were dropping all attempts to collect these debts and that if the debts had been reported to credit bureaus, that they would have them removed.
My opinion is that Afni is only "kind of" ripping people off. They probably have valid bills they are trying to collect on, but when it comes to having to show proof, they don't have a leg to stand on.
Obviously my advice to everyone who has received a similar to this is to copy and paste my letter verbatim and send it to Afni, because the idea of them receiving the same exact letter from 50 or so different people amuses me. ;-)
Cheers!
Kelli
Blacklick, Ohio
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
Pdj
Columbus,Ohio,
U.S.A.
Addional info
#4Consumer Comment
Wed, July 16, 2008
Well obviously you owed it and got out of it....you should really pay it as you said you owed it and could even verify with Verizon at 877.325.5156 that it was sold to AFNI...but whatever you have a nice day. God bless you.
Truth Detector
Intercourse,Pennsylvania,
U.S.A.
To the IDIOT AFNI employee: WELCOME TO THE WOODSHED
#4Consumer Comment
Sun, July 06, 2008
Today is the day that you and your company are exposed for what you REALLY are: Bottom-feeding, scum-sucking pieces of lowlife trash.
Let's break down the bottom-feeder's replies one-by one, shall we?
'you know it is a legit bill, you said that in your report.'
***By 'legit', do you mean collectable? You see, bottom-feeder, I work for the company that sells you these debts. I know for a 100% FACT that you get nothing more than a single piece of paper with a name, the last known address, and the billing telephone number of the account. Our bills for those accounts were purged YEARS ago. Ergo, you cannot provide validation of the uncollectible debt as required by the FDCPA.
'You know deep down it is owed, but know that it can't be proven. So you did get out of a bill that he owed.'
***If you took the time to educate yourself you would comprehend the legality of a STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS on debt. You have no legal basis to sue and collect that debt, and as the original creditor we wrote the debt off years ago. Why else would we sell it to you for pennies on the dollar? We make money off of you, you make money off of no one. That's the beauty of it...
'Thank you for showing people how to further rip the economy down or giving them false hopes that it will stop the agencies.'
***Oh yes, the U.S. economy is held together by a bottom-feeding, scum-sucking collection agency collecting on uncollectible debts that are SO salient to a telecom's survival that we sold it to you for pennies on the dollar. We're all dying to know...Where did you learn economics - from Michael Savage or Ann Coulter?
'Either way those major companies will get their money, if they have to raise their rates because people like your husband didn't keep track of bills, or have collection agencies try to get them to pay, is up to them.'
***This statement is proof that collection agency employees do not have the brains that God gave a mule. Every state's Public Utilities Commission (or comparable regulatory body) decides precisely how much we can charge for any and all regulated services. You see, we tend to conceal information like that in documents with WORDS, not PICTURES - so I can understand how you may have missed it. It is all explained in the tariff that we are required by law to follow in each state (www.verizon.com/tariff). The prices of our non-tariffed services, which are few and far between, are determined by market forces to stay even with or better our competitors (Econ 101, bottom-feeder).
'That is not going to hit his credit report and they will never take him to court over the bill. Collection agencies that purchase old bills from other companies rely on MORALS at that point from the consumer or honesty appeal to get the consumer to own up to their bills. It shouldn't matter how old a bill is. If you owe it, pay it. Don't rely on a company to provide bill copies to you when they were alreay given to him 8 years ago. Collection agencies put billions back into the economy. You may be just one consumer and that one bill doesn't hurt companies, but there are millions of peple out there like you that hurt the economy and then complain at high costs of services. This just makes me sad.'
***Today, we are indeed fortunate. We get a lesson in MORALS...from a bottom-feeding collector! In addition, this idiot tells us not to reply on the collection agency to actually validate the debt via bill copies (I mean C'MON...just get your credit card out and PAY!). He then delves further into comedy by suggesting that paying collection agencies puts BILLIONS back into the economy. Oh yes, just like price-hiking, money-grubbing oil companies and speculators are doing. Save that speech for the next sap you talk into joining your 'cause' to save the U.S. economy.
Bottom line here, Kelli:
Do NOT speak to a collection agency on the phone...EVER. Once you sent these idiots a CEASE COMMUNICATIONS letter, they were brought to their knees to kiss your feet. You beat these scumbags thoroughly - and for that, you deserve all the accolades you can read. Hopefully, others will read how you wisely took AFNI to the woodshed and do the same when they are threatened by a bully. As we all know, the best way to deal with a bully is to punch them one time, in the nose, so that they never dare mess with you again. I guarantee that AFNI will never dream of messing with you again.
Anonymous
West Frankfort,Illinois,
U.S.A.
bill
#4Consumer Comment
Sun, July 06, 2008
you know it is a legit bill, you said that in your report.
"We realized that at the time these charges apparently took place, my husband was still living at home. After a fun trip down memory lane, we realized that these bills were from around the time he was seeing a girl who was spending a semester abroad.
I believe there is a good chance that these charges are valid."
You know deep down it is owed, but know that it can't be proven. So you did get out of a bill that he owed.
Thank you for showing people how to further rip the economy down or giving them false hopes that it will stop the agencies. Either way those major companies will get their money, if they have to raise their rates because people like your husband didn't keep track of bills, or have collection agencies try to get them to pay, is up to them.
That is not going to hit his credit report and they will never take him to court over the bill. Collection agencies that purchase old bills from other companies rely on MORALS at that point from the consumer or honesty appeal to get the consumer to own up to their bills. It shouldn't matter how old a bill is. If you owe it, pay it. Don't rely on a company to provide bill copies to you when they were alreay given to him 8 years ago. Collection agencies put billions back into the economy. You may be just one consumer and that one bill doesn't hurt companies, but there are millions of peple out there like you that hurt the economy and then complain at high costs of services. This just makes me sad.