Bad credit repair forces “deadbeats” to face zombie debt collectors, who pull out all stops to scare, intimidate and lie until you pay what they demand…or fight back!
Being “right” is not good enough anymore when it comes to standing up to nasty, aggressive debt collectors.
Good luck appearing in Court to defend yourself, thinking justice always prevails.
Strangely, my experience is that even judges don’t know Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FCDPA).
Therefore, you can NOT afford to (try to) defend yourself in front of a judge and a debt collector’s “junior thugs wearing Armani suits.”
What started as one Minnesota lady’s email to me about Minnesota’s “debtor’s prisons” and alleged debt collection abuses with Court support has transformed into more shocking reality of debt collection abuses.
According to the Minneapolis-St. Paul Star Tribune newspaper, staff reporter Chris Serres unearthed eye-opening debt collection abuses:
“In Minnesota, the court system rubber-stamps most debt claims without scrutinizing them for accuracy. Proof is needed only if a debtor disputes a debt claim in writing, which happens in less than 10 percent of cases. People disputing those claims often face an expensive legal fight in which the burden of proof falls on them to prove a database is wrong (emphasis added).”
Sooooooo true!
Daily, I hear from people who want me to give them a credit repair easy button. They don’t want to be bothered…they’re too busy…they don’t want to learn how to fight back.
They’d rather throw money at debt collectors out of fear and intimidation…and then they discover another debt collector coming after them for the SAME DEBT THEY THOUGHT THEY JUST PAID OFF.
Bad.
They’d rather pay a credit (dis)repair company to make the “problem” go away…and then they discover the truth about credit (dis)repair companies.
And they discover paying off a debt collector DROPPED their credit scores instead of raising their scores as expected.
Really bad!
Click Read More below now for even more shocking truth about aggressive debt collectors popping up all over the US as original creditors are charging off BILLIONS in bad debt, selling packaged debt for pennies on the dollar
HOW BAD WILL ONE DEBT COLLECTOR BEHAVE TO FORCE PAYMENT?
According to Rachel Sabinske (reported in the Star Tribune newspaper article), Thomas Labeaux, executive vice president at Debt Equities (a junk debt buyer) showed up at Sabinske’s house when her husband was a work.
Labeaux allegedly impersonated a cop with the Wright County Sheriff’s Office and demanded to know the whereabouts of Sabinske’s husband. When she refused to answer, Labeaux is reported to threaten to get a warrant for (Sabinske’s) arrest and to have her child thrown in protective custody. Then he sped off, leaving Sabinske fearing for her and her baby’s safety (source: http://www.startribune.com/investigators/97231649.html?page=8&c=y)
Debt Collectors Be Damned!
Labeaux’s brazen behavior cost Debt Equities an out-of-court settlement.
There ya go, Mr. Labeaux!
When alleged debtors stop putting up with debt collectors’ illegal, intimidating & threatening behavior, none of us will have to read about people getting screwed over by “cowboy” debt collectors.
In a small victory for the “little” guy, the Sabinskes sued Debt Equities and won, proving that the courts will work when YOU get informed on your rights and refuse cower in some corner while scampering to round up money THEY claim YOU owe.
Debt Collectors Always Win In Court!
Debt collectors win in court because YOU allow them to win.
Huh?
- You don’t pay valid, legitimate bills.
- You don’t keep records to prove payment or state/federal REPORTING violations debt collectors/credit bureaus commit.
- You don’t pay attention when debt collectors send you mail.
- You don’t take a Court Order to appear in court seriously, forcing the judge to award default judgment to Plaintiff (debt collector).
- You don’t force DEBT VALIDATION within 30 days of receiving the “dunning letter” from debt collector.
- You don’t have a clue what your rights are re: Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA).
- You don’t insist the judge FORCE the debt collector to validate your debt before ruling in debt collector’s favor.
When bulk debt buyers gobble up millions in debt, they do NOT receive paper files as you might expect. They don’t even receive fully digitized files complete with payment history and customer information.
Instead, these junk debt buyers buy debt complete with VERY LITTLE proof you are the debtor on a mostly blank “page” with only a name, three words and a series of tiny numbers.
How do THEY really know you owe what they say you owe? Typically, they do NOT know!
When you ignore every piece of mail, try to run from debt collectors & don’t show up to court when court ordered, you leave the Court with no options but to throw the book at you – that’s why arrest warrants are issued.
At some point, YOU must take responsibility for your actions and stand up instead of ignoring, hiding, running & hoping “it” will go away. This “it” will not (usually) go away.
For every person whose bad credit mysteriously disappears (and goes away), I can show you 5 others who have shared horror stories about getting arrested and/or sued.
In the Star Tribune newspaper article, staff writer Chris Serres adds, “Firms with little known names, like LVNV Funding and Unifund CCR Partners, buy massive databases of unpaid debts for cents on the dollar, and then inundate courts with legal actions seeking to collect the full amount, plus interest and fees. These firms, known as debt buyers, base their claims on data up to 15 years old that can be impossible to verify.”
(source: http://www.startribune.com/investigators/97231649.html?page=1&c=y)
What happened to Bonnie Hanson of Rockford what happens to 5-10 people PER WEEK who email me. Bonnie’s $260 debt turned into a $5,800 judgment.
How the hell does this happen?
Easy. Bonnie paid off the $260 debt and kept the canceled check to prove it.
Even though she repeatedly sent each new debt collector a copy of the check, Bonnie did NOT sue each debt collector according to federal law for failure to report accurately. BTW, each adjudicated violation costs the brazen debt collector $1,000.
Bonnie’s $260 debt (she had paid off) exploded to $5,800 with accumulated fees and interest. Finally, a debt collector filed an “affidavit of no answer” with the court claiming that Hanson didn’t respond to its lawsuit. In early 2008, the firm began garnishing Hanson’s wages…with the court’s full blessing and order.
Unbelievable, huh?
You damn right, it’s unbelievable.
But it happens ALL THE TIME…because YOU allow it to happen.
Fortunately, Bonnie’s husband (as reported in the Star Tribune article) personally knew an attorney who simply sent a letter to the debt collector accusing it of filing ‘materially inaccurate information’ in court. Debt collector immediately ceased collection efforts and returned Hanson’s garnished pay.
Chances are, Bonnie’s and her husband’s attorney was not an FDCPA expert. But he didn’t have to be.
Legal letterhead alone and the magic words “materially inaccurate information” was enough to force debt collector to back down.
This is their game.
They KNOW they’re gambling that you will pay – and gambling pays off big time for debt collectors. They typically have ZERO proof – they can’t validate or verify.
PLEASE go below & leave a comment, ask a question or share an experience you’ve had with a debt collector. I want to hear from you. Please also forgive me for appearing to scold you for sticking your head in the sand or throwing money at a credit repair “easy button.” It’s a waste of money, and you’ll find out should you take that route.
Bad credit repair takes on zombie debt collectors with simple, LOUD warning: Take responsibility for your credit situation and stop wasting your money on a credit repair easy button (trying to hire a legit credit repair company) or sticking your head in the sand & hoping your “problem” goes away. Can you afford to take the chance that your problem goes away, or will you become the next Bonnie Hanson who contacts me with a $260 alleged debt that explodes to $5,800 and wage garnishment?
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