Credit Collection Services CCC is Obviously a fradulent company Newton, Massachusetts
Just received a notice from Credit Collection Services about an AT&T bill that is supposedly past due and in collections. This bill was not only addressed to my maiden name, my first name was just an initial and my middle name was used.
Considering I haven't used my maiden name in over 11 years and have never used my middle name, it's obviously a fraud. Just because it looks real, doesn't mean it is. Check your credit report to see if it's on it. Go directly to the credit companies, don't use CCCs link.
Even if somehow this was a real debt, there is a statute of limitations that has long passed. That statute is somewhere between 7 and 10 years.
Do not pay these crooks! Don't even call them and give them your info. They will use it against you.
If they do call you, tell them not to call you again. It's illegal to harrass you. Keep a note on each time they call and who you told not to call. Eventually, you can sue them for the harrassment.
Good luck!
1 Updates & Rebuttals
Jackson Case
Provincetown,Massachusetts,
United States of America
Food for thought
#2UPDATE EX-employee responds
Wed, March 09, 2011
I worked for Credit Collection Services (CCS) some time ago
as a Customer Service Representative (CSR’s – aka bill collector), and just
wanted to shade some light on how things ran from the inside.
In order for CCS to collect money for their clients, ( i.e.
– Insurance firms, phone companies ect …) they have to first contact the person
who owes the alleged debt. Because people change their addresses, phone
numbers, get married or whatever happens in their life, usually their creditors
never get their new contact information. Sometimes all CCS receives from their
clients is the persons name, and the amount they owe. So what does CCS do in
this case? They have employees perform a task known as skiptracing, which
involves using what little information they have, to do various searches
(usually on the web) to gather more info. Facebook is a useful tool, where all
you do is type a name in, and you can find out where they work, what clubs they
belong to ect…
So you may just be the victim of improper skiptracing on
their end. Which is why the names in your name are in a different order. Maybe
the debtor’s first name is your middle name, and their last name is your maiden
name. Houston is also a big city, and it may be possible to run into someone
with a name similar to yours. Although even if this was a mistake, it’s still
unfortunate for innocent people having to go through the harassment.
To them, you’re the debtor until proven innocent. The reason
they work with that as their philosophy is because of how they get paid. The
CSR’s are not paid commission, but they receive monthly bonuses if they collect
above a particular threshold. So you can see why they don’t back down at the
first sign of objection. And many get desperate, especially at the end of the
month to maintain their level of income. THEY’LL DO WHATEVER THEY HAVE TO, TO
GET EVEN THE WRONGFULY ACCUSED TO PAY.
This is what I would do if I were you:
1st – Request in a certified letter (receipt
return included) that you want validation of the debt (aka – a breakdown). The
validation should include the period of time the bill is in question. You have
30 days to do this, from when you received CCS’s statement.
If they don’t send you validation,
the law is on your side and they will have to stop contacting you (In case they
do, save your receipt of letter as evidence). They can only contact you further
if they sent you a valid breakdown. If they sent it:
2nd -
Send another certified letter which contains a copy of your phone bill,
and a copy of proof of payment. Make sure the period of time in question is
written clearly on the bill, and write to the attention of your CCS account
number on the bill. Proof of payment is either the front and back of a cleared
check, or an EFT on your bank statement, it’s not a confirmation number.
If they contact you after not
receiving validation of debt (within 30 days), or if they contact you after
sending in proof that the debt is not yours – you may be able to collect $1,000
dollars for each letter or each call you receive from them:
3rd – Send a threatening certified letter to
them, telling them that you went online and filed a compliant with the state
attorney general, and that you’re taking them to court. State the number of
times they contacted you as well. Most times, they will just compensate you for
the number of times they contacting you, and try to avoid taking it to court.
As you know already, don’t call CCS and talk to a CSR.
You’ll get nowhere, and anything you say will be used against you.
Good luck to you, and hope all ends well