CAMCO ripoff Rockford
FTC SLAMS CAMCO
See Link
http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2004/03/camco.htm
Debt Buyer/Debt Collection Companies and Their Principals Settle FTC Charges
FTC Alleges CAMCO, RM Financial, and their Principals Violated Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
Companies that the Federal Trade Commission alleges have threatened and harassed thousands of consumers to get them to pay old, unenforceable debts or debts they did not owe have agreed to settle charges that their abusive and deceptive collection practices violated federal law. The settlement prohibits the companies' alleged abusive debt collection practices in the future, require disclosures to consumers of their rights in the companies' collection notices and communications with consumers, and requires the companies and their principals to pay a $300,000 civil penalty.
The FTC charged that Capital Acquisitions and Management Corp. (CAMCO), its subsidiary, RM Financial Services, Inc., and four principals, engaged in systematic and widespread violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). The FTC charges that the principals of the companies were directly involved in the alleged law violations.
CAMCO is a debt buyer a company that buys old debts well past the statute of limitations and attempts to collect them. Most of the debts are unenforceable in court and are also so old that they are beyond the reporting periods allowed under the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Some of the debts CAMCO allegedly attempted to collect were already discharged in bankruptcy or had been paid. The FTC charged that in their attempt to collect these debts, the companies engaged in abusive and deceptive collection practices, including:
Harassing consumers at their workplaces;
Discussing consumers' debts with third parties;
Continuing to communicate with consumers after consumers had notified them that they did not owe the money and did not wish to be contacted again;
Using obscene or profane language;
Calling consumers continuously with the intention of annoying and abusing them;
Falsely representing the amount and legal status of the debts;
Misrepresenting themselves as attorneys;
Threatening imprisonment, seizure, garnishment, attachment or sale of property or wages with full knowledge that such action could not legally be taken;
Threatening to take action that could not be legally taken, including threatening to disclose the debts to consumers' employers and threatening to report the debt to consumer reporting agencies even though the debts are past the credit reporting periods; and
Ignoring consumers disputes of the charges and continuing to harass them after consumers requested verification of the debts.
The settlement with CAMCO, RM Financial, Reese Waugh, Jerome Kuebler, Scott R. Franson, and Mario Bianchi prohibits these deceptive and illegal practices. It further requires the defendants to pay a civil penalty in the amount of $300,000. It requires that all written collection materials sent to consumers contain disclosures about consumers' rights under the FDCPA, provide an address and phone number consumers can use to contact the companies, disclose that the FTC enforces the FDCPA, and disclose ways to contact the FTC. It also contains certain recordkeeping and bookkeeping requirements to allow the FTC to monitor compliance.
Joe
arleta, California
U.S.A.
3 Updates & Rebuttals
TIM
ROCKFORD,Illinois,
U.S.A.
ARTICLE FROM ROCKFORD REGISTER STAR
#4Consumer Comment
Thu, March 25, 2004
http://www.rrstar.com/business/services/20040325-18772.shtml
Local debt collection firm fined
Feds order CAMCO to pay $300,000 to settle charges of abusive practices.'
By SARAH ROBERTS, Rockford Register Star
ROCKFORD A Rockford debt collection agency will pay a $300,000 fine to settle federal charges that it engaged in abusive and deceptive collection practices.
In a 13-count complaint filed Wednesday in Rockford, the Federal Trade Commission accused Capital Acquisitions and Management Co. of systematic and widespread violations of the Fair Debt Collection and Practices Act.
The company, also known as CAMCO, settled the charges by agreeing to pay civil penalties and adopt guidelines designed to ensure it complies with federal law.
This case came about because of numerous consumer complaints against the company, said Nadine Samter, attorney with the FTC's northwest regional office.
The commission, which began its investigation in 2002, gathered evidence through sworn statements from consumers and interviews with former employees.
CAMCO has until Monday to pay $300,000 in civil penalties. The company referred all questions to attorneys at the Chicago law firm of Bell, Boyd & Lloyd.
The firm released a statement Wednesday evening that said, in part: The consent decree entered today by the court reaffirms the commitment of CAMCO to intensive compliance with the many and complex state and federal regulations governing our rapidly growing consumer debt collection industry.
Any large operation having contacts with many consumers can always do things better when interacting with the public, especially in a business like ours. CAMCO is committed to ensuring responsibility and integrity in our business operations. We will continue to do more to ensure strict compliance.
In filing the complaint, the FTC became the first regulatory agency to take action against CAMCO.
The company arrived in downtown Rockford in October 2002 with much fanfare as it moved its headquarters from Sycamore into the former Conseco and Pioneer Life Insurance Co. building at 303 N. Main St.
Community leaders heralded the company's arrival as an opportunity to create good-paying jobs and revitalize downtown after the departure of Conseco. A package to lure CAMCO to Rockford included $7.4 million in tax incentives over a 10-year span. That amount has since been reduced to $5.1 million.
In making the move, CAMCO brought 150 jobs to Rockford and promised to create 300 more by this year. The statement released by the company's law firm Wednesday stated CAMCO employs 340 workers at its Rockford headquarters.
John Strandin, spokesman for Mayor Doug Scott, said the city hopes CAMCO can address the FTC's complaint and move on.
The city of Rockford is happy that CAMCO moved into a vacant building in downtown Rockford and provided hundreds of jobs, Strandin said. We don't support the types of activities alleged in the charges filed by the FTC. We hope CAMCO has been able to correct these problems and hope they don't occur in the future.
Congress established the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act in 1977 and amended it in 1996 to prohibit abusive practices by debt collectors. The federal law specifically states what collectors can and cannot do when attempting to recover debt.
The FTC's complaint against CAMCO also names as defendants RM Financial Services Inc., a subsidiary in Norcross, Ga.; Reese Waugh, CAMCO vice president and chief operating officer and president of RM Financial; Jerome Kuebler, vice president of operations at CAMCO; Scott Franson, a debt collection manager at CAMCO; and Mario Bianchi, debt collection manager at RM Financial.
Samter, with the FTC, said the settlement does not constitute an admission of guilt from CAMCO because the case wasn't litigated in court.
But the commission does not file a complaint in federal court unless it has reason to believe that violations have occurred, she said.
As part of the settlement, CAMCO's collection letters to consumers must include information about the federal law and how consumers can file complaints. Company employees must also sign statements stating that they will comply with consumer protection laws.
CAMCO also is responsible for maintaining detailed accounting, personnel and consumer complaint records for the commission to inspect.
For the next three years, each of the defendants must also file a written report with the FTC detailing how they are complying with the terms of the settlement.
Samter said the commission will monitor the company closely to ensure it is in compliance and watch for continued consumer complaints. Penalties for violating the settlement, she said, can be sizable.
Jack
Austin,Texas,
U.S.A.
DITTO! to Sylvia's comments ..glad to see they got their due and I didn't have to pay an attorney
#4Consumer Comment
Thu, March 25, 2004
DITTO! to Sylvia's comments.
I couldn't believe what I just found on the FTC site about CAMCO. I had no idea they were doing anything wrong by trying to collect debts.
They have harrassed me with phone calls to my cellular phone for about one year for a credit card debt that charged off my credit years ago when I was in my 20's. I'm 40 now.
I tried every possible tactic to convince them to go away. I never answered their questions are agreed to be who they were calling, nor agreed to the information they shared, but they just kept calling. I told them to put all contact to me in writing. I acted like I was recording the calls on tape. I took control and asked the questions. I gave them them the "my attorney" lectures. Nothing worked. They called me pretty much on schedule about once per month.
On the last 2 calls, I just started having fun. I would act like someone at the door and make up conversation as if I was talking to my neighber. And I would have the conversation bad-mouthing this stupid rep on the phone who I let hear it. Then, I would come back to phone after 10 minutes and ask if they were still there. Usually they were gone. If they were still there, I would apologize for taking so long and ask them to hold again. Then I just put the phone on mute and wait for them to hang up. Fortunetly, I had Free incoming air time minutes on my cellular phone. Otherwise, I may have had to take this rediculous activity more serious.
But it became something I actually started to look forward to and was telling all my friends about. I'm gonna miss those calls from CAMCO.
But I'm sure glad to see they got their due and I didn't have to pay an attorney for them to receive it.
Sylvia
Alton,Illinois,
U.S.A.
It's about time
#4Consumer Comment
Wed, March 24, 2004
Hallelujah! It's about time sCAMO/SCUMCO got theirs. I'm just sorry the penalty was such a paltry amount. I'm sure Scott from Akron helped a lot on this. Thanks for posting the good news.