Collection Tactics

[jrsmom]

We received a call last night from a collection agency asking for my daughter who is grown, on her own and lives in another State. My husband told him that she wasn't at our house and the caller then told him to write down a phone number and file number and tell her to call him. My husband said he wasn't going to do that. Caller told husband it would be in his "best interest" to do as he asked. When my husband asked him why it would be in his best interest since the bill he's calling about isn't ours, the caller said "it just would be". With that my husband told him the conversation was over and hung up. Since our daughter is experiencing some major financial "difficulties"(she's hired an attorney and going to file BK) I don't think this will be the last call we get. I feel like his comment about it being in our "best interest" to tell her to call him was a veiled threat and I really don't like that. Any suggestions as to what we should do or say to these people in the future would really be appreciated.
Thanks!

[chpxiii]

Your daughter may need to write them a cease & desist letter, sent certified mail return receipt requested.

[allavdj]

I've had a collector call my parents and my brother (who lives in a different state). Funny thing is, they had never attempted to contact me, I had received no letters and no phone calls. When my parents told me who called, I looked em up on the ol' internet and mailed off a C&D letter and haven't heard from them sense).

[tay666]

From what I am reading in this thread

http://www.insidearm.com/forum/messageview.cfm?catid=9&threadid=6594

Looks like that call was a violation.
If they are trying to track her down, they cannot disclose that they are a debt collection company to a 3rd party.
If they ask someome to relay a message, then they are doing collections. In which case, they must identify themselves as a debt collection company. Which in itself is a violation because they cannot disclose information to a 3rd party.

[isitreal]

I was watching a preview for a movie titled "Maxed Out". I'm certainly going to rent it tonight and I think it would be good for all here.

Anyway... to the point. They interview someone from one of these 'collection agencies' and they say they can contact neighbors, family members, whoever they want. In fact, one even said they prefer to contact family members because it is more embarrasing to the debtor.

I gather from what was posted, that the daughter has not filed BK yet. They haven't violated anything until they get written notice of the C&D.

[isitreal]

As a followup, here is a preview to the movie "Maxed Out". Looks like a cold hard look at finances among many Americans.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=YiOVNWoWTAU

[yoyoma51]

Just ordered it from Netflix. Should be interesting.

I'll post a review next week.

PLEASE NOTE: I am not a lawyer. Bankruptcy may or may not be a best scenario for you. It depends on your situation. You may assume my advice is totally useless. Talk to an experienced bankruptcy attorney (or three) in your jurisdiction for legal advice.

[jp2861]

jrsmom: There's not much you can do about this. All the quotes of harassment wouldn't be worth your time to pursue anyway. Some of these collectors are *******s and play the numbers game. They will risk violations in order to get a payment out of someone. It takes a pretty strong case to come out ahead.

Best thing to do is give the info to your daughter. Put the ball in play at the court it needs to be in. Once she's in contact with them she can start the ball rolling with DV and C&D letters, if she chooses. If she plans to file that's what she needs to tell them.

[whywhywhy]