Steve [Not A Lawyer]
Bradenton,#2Consumer Suggestion
Fri, January 05, 2007
Jo Ann, The first rule is to stay off the phone. never speak to any debt collector on the phone. Forget that Arbitration agreement. Mandatory Binding Arbitration is a scam, and you will never win, and if you go through the arbitration process, they can use that determination to get a judgemnt against you. DON'T DO IT! Here's what you so. Send a DEBT VALIDATION request to them. In this request, demand to see the original signed contract that created the debt, a full account history and itemization of charges. Also demand proof that they are legally entitled to collect on said debt. in addition, if they claim to own it, dmenad to see the purchase contract, chain of title, and proof of payment. If the debt was SOLD and is not being collected ON BEHALF of the original creditor, the arbitration clause is void, and it is fraud for them to attempt to use it. File a bar association complaint against this "lawyer" and an ftc.com complaint online. Once they recieve your validation request, all collections activity must stop until it is provided. That booklet is NOT validation, only the info I listed above is acceptable, as that is what they would need in court to win. Send the letter by cert mail, RRR, and put the cert # on the letter itself and keep a copy for your records. this is very important as it proves WHAT you sent, so when they violate, you can have them pay you! Good luck.
Debra
Eagan,#3Consumer Comment
Fri, January 05, 2007
You don't mention whether or not this debt is out of statute. If Gerald Moore and Associates decides this is suitworthy, they will forward it to an attorney who is licensed to practice in the state of Michigan. It's done all the time. Just because the debt is charged off by the creditor does not make it uncollectible. It's a bad debt because it has gone unresolved. Were you a victim of identity theft? If you ran up the debt, pay it. Pay the original creditor if you must, but pay it. If it is your debt and you don't make it good, you are guilty of theft. Too many people in our society have it in their heads that they don't have to pay a debt they ran up because...they don't want to. They ran into financial problems so the creditor is supposed to eat the bill. They disputed one charge and the issue wasn't resolved the way they wanted it to be, so the creditor gets to eat the entire balance. Business slows to nothing and their negotiations with the creditors go bad so they walk away from their debts and dare their creditors to do anything about it (you know who you are). Collections is a growth industry for these reasons, among many. All the agency needs to do is throw a bunch of crap at the wall and see what sticks. Collectors are despised, with good reason, I won't go back to it to save my life. Still, there are many perfectly legitimate debts out there that are going unpaid, and somebody needs to deal with them.