EEVblog Electronics Community Forum
General => General Technical Chat => Topic started by: silviasol on September 15, 2015, 09:10:55 am
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A long long time ago I had some money in collections. I paid most of it but some was still in collections. Now 14 years later, 6 years past the no longer being accountable for any debts I had(our state law is a debt goes off your record if it has been more then 8 years) , the fake debt collectors are calling me and have sent several letters. If you don't know these fake debt collectors find your contact info somehow after finding your name and past addresses looking thru lists of old non paid debts they can buy from debt collecting companies. There is no way they could find me that I can think of, I am not listed in the phone book and can't think of anything else other then someone that I gave personal information sent it somewhere they shouldn't(sold it to telemarketer comanies?). So I have lived at my current address for 6 years and was free from it for 5 years, what could I have done that tipped them off to find me address and phone number? I am about to move again so I want to make sure they don't find me again!
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I don't think EEVblog is the right place for legal advice, just like any other public forum on the internet. A definitive answer cannot be provided based on the very limited information you've provided. Laws vary from country to country and state to state. There is also the issue that criminal law is very different to commercial law to civil matters...
If you're truly concerned, you should speak to someone who is registered and accredited to provide legal advice in your province/country. The most you can expect to gain from here is opinion only which might be far from accurate.
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Halcyon is right. Internet advice is only worth what you pay for it! In addition, in the US. the laws are different in every state so what works for me won't necessarily work for you.
The best advice that I can give is this: EVERYONE, and I do mean EVERYONE, is selling personal data these days. That includes your doctor, your state DMV, your school, every store and business that you do business in, the credit bureaus, EVERY contest that you enter, every warranty that you fill in, etc etc so sooner or later the debt collection scammers WILL find you. You're just going to have to learn to tell them NO! And forget paying them off, the debt collectors RARELY pay the people that the debt is owed to, so even if you pay the collectors. mostly likely other debt collection companies will continue to call. So called "Debt Collection" is a racket in this country! I went through YEARS of harassing phone calls from one of these companies in Nevada for a debt that I didn't owe, until they finally took me to court and I beat them hands down and got a judgement against them. Only then did they stop calling me. But of course, all of the OTHER telemarketers, charity con artists, political parties and junk surveys continue to call!
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If you're truly concerned, you should speak to someone who is registered and accredited to provide legal advice in your province/country.
I agree: get legal advice. Still to answer the reason why people are ringing at the door: over here (NL) non-collectible debts are packaged and sold to collectors which then try to collect them by sending agressive letters. If you ignore them they probably won't come after you because it is too much trouble for them. They are just fishing for people who pay any bill that gets into their mailbox.
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I agree with all the others. I had my own way of dealing with these people, I threatened them with a commercial Lein and court case if they kept coming after me for a debt I did not owe. I got the following response from the debt collectors.
Admin Emails
9 Sep (6 days ago)
to me
Dear Garry Williams,
Please be advised that this account has been closed by us and returned to our Client, Igo4 Limited.
Please bear in mind that C.A.R.S will no longer be dealing with this matter and you may address all future enquiries to the client concerned.
We can also confirm that C.A.R.S involvement in this matter has not had any adverse effect on your present or future credit rating.
Paula
JC International Acquisition, LLC / CreditLink Account Recovery Solutions Limited
Viewpoint, Basing View
Basingstoke
Hampshire
RG21 4RG
United Kingdom
i then got a hard copy letter from the people who employed them telling me that they were no longer trying to get the money they claim I owed, it was only £89 from a car insurance cover I had cancelled a year ago when i could no longer drive and they ignored my cancellation letter to keep taking money out of my account.
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i don't know the law well
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Just ignore them. Don't talk with them and most important don't admit anything or don't pay or promise to pay anything. Once I heard that if you pay or promise to pay, even a small fraction, it resets the debt expiration timer.
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First thing ask them to send you the charge details from the original charge, copies not re-typing the numbers. Tell them you want this info for any future court hearings. Stick to you guns on this one.
I would ask them to take you to court to have a judge settle it. Even ask them for a name and address to send them a summons if they will not. If you make it to court (unlikely) at least you would get it settled and over with and have a clear conscious.
There was a NPR radio story on this recently. Maybe you can find the show. Good show if you can find it, I think within the last 3 months.
You might find the legal shit to be fun (if you do it yourself and not use a lawyer). On your end it is just a matter of filling out forms (and trips to the court). If you make it to court ask for details like receipts and invoices from the original charge. This was the downfall of the collection agency in the story, they did not have this. The guy from the collection agency threatened all kinds of things but in the end he did not go inside and lost the case. The story said that it was common for agencies not to have details.
If you lose you could ask the judge for a payment plan. Ask for 48 months.
Are you good at poker? ie bluffing this is just a poker game. During all the threats just keep saying you want a judge to settle the case.
(if you have receipts do not let anyone know it)
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Alot of posts about how to deal with them. I know how to deal with them, just ignore them or just send them a letter asking them to stop, it is pretty much explained in the letters I get if you read into them, past their bull ish, that you don't really have to pay. Like someone trying to trade you a stick they found on the ground for a dollar. It is just that NOW THAT I AM MOVING I don't want them to find me again. It is odd how all of the sudden after all these years they found me, my phone number and address. I guess it will just be up to luck then, I will be more discrete with giving out my contact info from now on and hope for the best.
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I guess it will be hard to disappear from the radar totally. You probably leave a electronic trail: phone, internet, credit card, rentals, etc. So sooner, or later your name and address will show up some where.
If the source is legit, maybe just deal with it and get it over with. Or change your name (i always understood that thats something very simple to do in the US. ;)