Too much?

[cKGunslinger]

Several months ago, I received a letter from a purported debt collector, claiming that an account had been assigned to them for collection. The claimed creditor was "FTD" and the amount was $362.45.

Now, I knew this was some mistake, as I had no idea what FTD could be (other than the flower delivery company - and my wife can assure you I'd never spend that kind of money on flowers) and regardless, I would not have indebted myself for this or any other amount and not paid it off. The only information given was "544 FTD - $362.45," the rest of the letter was boilerplate "Remit payment in full, if you dispute this debt, notify us in writing within 30 days", etc.

So, I type up a brief and professional response stating that I did, in fact, dispute the debt and would they please provide the name and address of the original creditor. I then sent it back to the provided address and, for the most part, forgot all about it.

Fast forward to today, and I basically get the exact same letter, same amount (I think), and the same company, FTD. As if they never received my response. A bit perturbed, I do some brief (online) research, trying to find out about the company, only to come up with a matching company name, address, and phone number in a Yellow pages registry that lists its services as "Communication Services" and "Truck Driving Instruction." I thought this odd, and typed up yet another response.

I may still be a bit ticked, so I wanted to run this by another reader or two to make sure it's not too beligerant or unprofessional. I lef the company info intact incase anyone wanted to help verify my research.

23 February, 2006


C.T.I. Circulation III
2639 Walnut Hill Lane ? Suite 114
Dallas, TX 75229

RE: Account #: <unknown> [Originating document attached]


Attn: C.T.I.:

Consider this second notice my continual dispute of the validity of the above (attached) debt. As I have previously requested, please provide verification of the debt along with the name and address of the original creditor, if valid.

Otherwise, I shall have little recourse but to assume your company is willfully engaging in fraudulent claims and be forced to take the appropriate legal actions ? a conclusion that is bolstered not only by the fact that you have seemingly ignored previous requests for debt verification, but also that the only information about your company (using the provided information) publicly available seems to indicate that you deal in the ?Communication Service? and ?Truck Driving Instruction? business, rather than legitimate debt collection.

Also note, any communications regarding this debt are to be limited to the above mailing address. All other address or phone numbers connected to this account should be considered those of my employer and may NOT be used for issues regarding this or any other debt.

I look forward to the accelerated resolution of this obvious error.


Sincerely,

Me


Attachment: (1)

 

[UsandThem]

Looks good (I would send it with some kind of return receipt).

 

[BobDaMenkey]

There are alot of companies out there now that try to capitalise on debt, and will buy up debt that was given up long ago. Most of them are so past due it's not even legal for them to try and collect fees. Watch out for this kind of stuff, it might come back as a big black mark on your credit, even if it's not legit.

 

[KLin]

Here's what I would have sent them

Dear Debt Collection company,

This is not me debt. Kindly piss off. Please enjoy the enclosed canine feces.

Love and Kisses,
KLin

 

[DaveSimmons]

be sure to send certified with delivery confirmation

if this doesn't work consider complaining to your state AG office. you might do that anyway, for all you know this is a flat-out scam like the copier supplies and yellow pages ad invoice scams that rip off businesses.

 

[ElFenix]

would help if you spelled 'fraudulent' correctly.

anyway, make some copies and mail it certified, rrr.

 

[sswingle]

Why all the bolded words?

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: DaveSimmons
be sure to send certified with delivery confirmation

if this doesn't work consider complaining to your state AG office. you might do that anyway, for all you know this is a flat-out scam like the copier supplies and yellow pages ad invoice scams that rip off businesses.

Funny you should mention that. One other "invoice" I keep getting is for $20.00 to DHL. Now, I understand that DHL is a shipping compnay, not unlike FedEx or UPS, but I'm very confident that I've never sent anything with them, and the bill is worded very - peculiarly. That is, they never actually *demand* payment, they just provide something that very much resembles an invoice. Also, in a seperate correspondance, I've gotten a "Wouldn't you like to join the DHL membership - dues are only $20.00" letter. There was nothing to do but send payment, so I just threw it out. Now this package come several weeks ater the "invoice," but I still receive these invoices once in a while, and they mention "30 days past due."

Is this really DHL or someone else? I should probably put more effort into this stuff, but I'm busy enough with legitimate issues that I don't often have time to deal with rediculous things.

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: ElFenix
would help if you spelled 'fraudulent' correctly.

anyway, make some copies and mail it certified, rrr.

Fixed. Much appreciated. I knew something looked off. My spell checker is non-functional in Word currently.

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: ScottSwingleComputers
Why all the bolded words?

Because I was pissed. Too much?

I kinda feel like Seinfeld in the episode when he tried to fire his accountant and was putting exclamation marks everywhere.

 

[Mill]

Next time some jerkoff collections agency tries to screw me with some debt that isn't mind -- I am gonna screw them. I'm gonna send them 300 pieces of certified return receipt mail. 299 pieces are going to say FVCK YOU and have noxious cologne/perfume sprayed on them. One piece will simply have my dispute written out appropriately.

Once they put the item on my credit report I will sue them in court for violating the FCRA. I'll have my one letter as proof that they didn't respond to my dispute allegations.

Fvck collection agencies. I loathe them more than the 9/11 planners.

 

[RCN]

Just pull your reports and if the "item" is on there dispute it through the credit agencies. Otherwise put the letters in the shredder.......

 

[Conky]

I wouldn't bother if you know it's bogus. If anything gets put on your credit report then dispute it and have it removed. 😛

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: RCN
Just pull your reports and if the "item" is on there dispute it through the credit agencies. Otherwise put the letters in the shredder.......

Actually, I haven't checked my Credit Report in several months - good idea. What's the site for the free reports we get each year?

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: Crazyfool
I wouldn't bother if you know it's bogus. If anything gets put on your credit report then dispute it and have it removed. 😛

Well, I know it's bogus, but I do worry about identity theft or the like. If they have a valid issue, I need to track it down. But their lack of a response makes me suspicious.

 

[RCN]

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger

Originally posted by: RCN
Just pull your reports and if the "item" is on there dispute it through the credit agencies. Otherwise put the letters in the shredder.......

Actually, I haven't checked my Credit Report in several months - good idea. What's the site for the free reports we get each year?

https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp

 

[Mill]

Originally posted by: Crazyfool
I wouldn't bother if you know it's bogus. If anything gets put on your credit report then dispute it and have it removed. 😛

It is better to go ahead and dispute it before it gets on your credit report. Once it is there it can be difficult to remove even if it isn't your debt. You don't want to have to sue under the FCRA to get them to remove it. Better to go ahead and dispute it before they post it.

 

[cKGunslinger]

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger

Originally posted by: RCN
Just pull your reports and if the "item" is on there dispute it through the credit agencies. Otherwise put the letters in the shredder.......

Actually, I haven't checked my Credit Report in several months - good idea. What's the site for the free reports we get each year?

<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp">https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp</a>

Thanks. It's definitely not showing up there, at least.

 

[Shadowknight]

Debt agencies are idiots; I've heard of multiple accouts where they:
a) harrase people at work, even though this is illegal
b) keep pestering people on the phone, even though they have the phone number that used to belong to the debtor, tell this to the debt agency, and still get threatening calls and harrasment
c) pester people in their house, even when informed that the old person moved out, and you are NOT them
d) bugged a family for their mother who owed money... and kept calling for her despite being informed she was dead, and sent legal proof she was dead
e) neglected to update their records when someone actually pays the debt
f) pesters someone for a debt... that never belonged to them in the first place. Wonderful when someone screws up to your detriment, isn't it?

 

[imported_Condor]

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger
Several months ago, I received a letter from a purported debt collector, claiming that an account had been assigned to them for collection. The claimed creditor was "FTD" and the amount was $362.45.

Now, I knew this was some mistake, as I had no idea what FTD could be (other than the flower delivery company - and my wife can assure you I'd never spend that kind of money on flowers) and regardless, I would not have indebted myself for this or any other amount and not paid it off. The only information given was "544 FTD - $362.45," the rest of the letter was boilerplate "Remit payment in full, if you dispute this debt, notify us in writing within 30 days", etc.

So, I type up a brief and professional response stating that I did, in fact, dispute the debt and would they please provide the name and address of the original creditor. I then sent it back to the provided address and, for the most part, forgot all about it.

Fast forward to today, and I basically get the exact same letter, same amount (I think), and the same company, FTD. As if they never received my response. A bit perturbed, I do some brief (online) research, trying to find out about the company, only to come up with a matching company name, address, and phone number in a Yellow pages registry that lists its services as "Communication Services" and "Truck Driving Instruction." I thought this odd, and typed up yet another response.

I may still be a bit ticked, so I wanted to run this by another reader or two to make sure it's not too beligerant or unprofessional. I lef the company info intact incase anyone wanted to help verify my research.

23 February, 2006


C.T.I. Circulation III
2639 Walnut Hill Lane ? Suite 114
Dallas, TX 75229

RE: Account #: <unknown> [Originating document attached]


Attn: C.T.I.:

Consider this second notice my continual dispute of the validity of the above (attached) debt. As I have previously requested, please provide verification of the debt along with the name and address of the original creditor, if valid.

Otherwise, I shall have little recourse but to assume your company is willfully engaging in fraudulent claims and be forced to take the appropriate legal actions ? a conclusion that is bolstered not only by the fact that you have seemingly ignored previous requests for debt verification, but also that the only information about your company (using the provided information) publicly available seems to indicate that you deal in the ?Communication Service? and ?Truck Driving Instruction? business, rather than legitimate debt collection.

Also note, any communications regarding this debt are to be limited to the above mailing address. All other address or phone numbers connected to this account should be considered those of my employer and may NOT be used for issues regarding this or any other debt.

I look forward to the accelerated resolution of this obvious error.


Sincerely,

Me


Attachment: (1)

The letter will do absolutely no good. I don't even think they open them. When I had a broken neck, I was hospitalized for 120,000.00 of surgery in 6 hours. I was injured due to negligance and submitted the paperwork to George Washington University hospital to prove it. Not only that, but I had to pay a $100.00 copay to be admitted for surgery. A few months after the surgery, I recieved a letter like yours. It accused me of owing some group $100.00. They started calling the house at 0900 hours twice a week. I was never the least bit civil with them when they called and they never wanted to give ma any information about who the debt was to. I finally got nasty enough to get some information and finally got some attention from the only sane person at the collection agency. I found that the billing was a result of my surgery. GWU had apparently lost track of the copay that I had paid in cash and I had lost the receipt. Further, GWU kept billing me at my old address. I finally recieved the billings a year later. Broken neck, relocation (major) and retirement in some three months will do stuff like that. Once I finally discovered who they had purchased the contract from, I put pressure on GWU and GWU had to buy back the contract, I think. Once GWU got that collection agency off my back, another one started calling. They wanted $150.00 for the same bill. The first agency had apparently sold the contract to a feeder a little closer to the bottom. By this time, I had the names and phone numbers and GWU had to reverse engineer that one too.

Bottom line and this is a guess. Someone thinks you owe them money. Medical is my guess. They write off the debt and sell it to a collection agency for a discount rate. The collection agency gets to keep what they can collect. If they fail, they sell it to another collection agency. this is nothing less than legalized robbery and the collection agency is free to do what ever is neccessary to harrass you until you pay. Your only hope is to discover who initiated the collection (initially sold the contract) and make it hot enough on them to pursuade them to buy back the contract. I told them that I would have to have my phone disconnected and possibly change my name. Then I told them that I would live the rest of my days in court until I achieved satisfaction from the originator. It took me something like 18 months to get this resolved. That was with the agency that I worked for when the accident occurred telling them on email and on the phone that they would cheerfully pay the hundred dollars if GWU would simply send the bill to the correct party. Actually, if GWU had billed correctly to begin with, much confusion would have been avoided.If you get an email address, perhaps everyone on AT would like to communicate with the agency.

 

[RCN]

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger

Originally posted by: RCN

Originally posted by: cKGunslinger

Originally posted by: RCN
Just pull your reports and if the "item" is on there dispute it through the credit agencies. Otherwise put the letters in the shredder.......

Actually, I haven't checked my Credit Report in several months - good idea. What's the site for the free reports we get each year?

<a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp"><a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp"><a target=_blank class=ftalternatingbarlinklarge href="https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp">https://www.annualcreditreport.com/cra/index.jsp</a></a></a>

Thanks. It's definitely not showing up there, at least.

Ignore it then. Monitor your credit to see if it pops up though.......

 

[venk]

Originally posted by: BobDaMenkey
There are alot of companies out there now that try to capitalise on debt, and will buy up debt that was given up long ago. Most of them are so past due it's not even legal for them to try and collect fees. Watch out for this kind of stuff, it might come back as a big black mark on your credit, even if it's not legit.

If you contest or even make a partial payment on the old debt owed, it becomes current and the company push for the full amount. My guess it is some company trying to make a few side bucks by buying old debts from other companies for pennies on the dollar and trying to squeeze people out of cash.


What you should do1) Check your credit reports and see if anything is on there about FTD flowers

2) if not, IGNORE THE MESSAGES!!! Any kind of activity could make the old debt current and your responsibility

3)monitor your reports

 

[Kyle]

looks good.
On a related note- this just happened to me-

I get somthing from a credit agency from Sprint saying I owe like $400.
The name was

??null??
(my address)

So I'm thinking that its someone who used to live here- I give them a call and this guy answers with a strong southern drawl. I explain the situation, he looks up the account.
I say that I dont have a sprint account and ask if he sees a name on the account on his computer.
Him: The name I have here is "Null"
Me: .....uh
Him: Is your name Null?
Me: Isnt that a place holder cause you dont have the name?
Him: What? The name is Null! Is your name Null or not?
Me: No. My name is not null. Do you have any information besides that?
Him: No other info, just a DOB and SSN.
Me: Was this person born in 1983 (thinking he wouldnt be able to give out any specific info)
Him: No- born on (gives full DOB) with a SSN of (gives full SSN).
Me: wow...ok thats not me. Please dont send any more mail. *click* *shakes head*

how the hell did he get that job and why the hell did he not understand null wasnt an actual name...just amazing...

 

[imported_Condor]

Originally posted by: Kyle
looks good.
On a related note- this just happened to me-

I get somthing from a credit agency from Sprint saying I owe like $400.
The name was

??null??
(my address)

So I'm thinking that its someone who used to live here- I give them a call and this guy answers with a strong southern drawl. I explain the situation, he looks up the account.
I say that I dont have a sprint account and ask if he sees a name on the account on his computer.
Him: The name I have here is "Null"
Me: .....uh
Him: Is your name Null?
Me: Isnt that a place holder cause you dont have the name?
Him: What? The name is Null! Is your name Null or not?
Me: No. My name is not null. Do you have any information besides that?
Him: No other info, just a DOB and SSN.
Me: Was this person born in 1983 (thinking he wouldnt be able to give out any specific info)
Him: No- born on (gives full DOB) with a SSN of (gives full SSN).
Me: wow...ok thats not me. Please dont send any more mail. *click* *shakes head*

how the hell did he get that job and why the hell did he not understand null wasnt an actual name...just amazing...

That goes down in history!!

 

[markgm]

Ooooh, I like the employer bit.

I know I had one from a cell phone account I canceled during the trial. They said I continued to use the phone even when I showed that the phone was returned. I would send that letter, and then hear nothing. Then a few months later a new collection company would send out a letter, so I would just send that letter again. The third time it happened I sent the letter again and they took it off of my credit report.

They just want to go after the easy money, if you're a little smarter than the next guy they'll take it off.