Collection calls from "in house" collectors...

[CPO]

I will file Chapter 7 the end of May 2007.

I'm partially disabled, retired military, in Texas and just about judgement proof. My income was a little high, so I need to wait to get under the median income.

I ceased paying my unsecured debt December, 2006.

I have received many, many collection calls from the HSBC "in house" collection department, probably in California, at all times of day from 8am to 9pm, seven days a week and as many as 25 calls in a single day.

I screen my calls via my answering machine, but the constant phone ringing is somewhat of a bother. Hey, every half hour the phone rings....

This is for a Best Buy account.

I can barely understand the representative, whom has a heavy Indian accent, which can make the calls very difficult for me to extract any information. I was finally able to get a decent address, but alas it was simply the payment address on my statement.

And I frustrate the representative because I simply refuse to provide any info to them.

So, any ideas on how to reduce the number of calls from these guys...remember this is the "in house" collector....

Any suggestions are welcome.

Thanks in advance.

[GoingDown]

If by "in house" collector you mean this is the original creditor calling, then unfortunately the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act does not apply to them. After your account gets to be about 180 days past due, they will send it to a third-party debt collector, and at that time you can send the collection agency a letter telling them to cease and desist from calling you on the telephone, and it will usually get them to stop calling.

In the meanwhile if the phone ringing is too much for you, you might consider changing your phone number to an unlisted phone number.

Or you can get a pay as you go cell phone for the time being until you file BK so you can stay in touch with family and friends and not have to worry about answering the phone and speaking to a debt collector on the other end. Then just turn the ringer off on your other phone and let the answering machine or voicemail take your regular phone calls for you. That way you won't hear them calling you.

The reason I say to get a pay as you go cell phone is because you can pay for it with cash and there's virtually no way a debt collector will be able to find your new phone number. The cheapest pay as you go cell phone I have found so far is Net10. It's 10 cents per minute for all local and long distance calls nationwide.

After you file for BK the phone calls will all stop. But until then, I hope this info will be helpful to you.

Remember to never speak to debt collectors on the phone. Anything you say can and will be used against you. They are not to be trusted and they will do anything they can to get you to pay money to them.

[brainless twit]

You may consider a cease and desist letter, asking HSBC to contact you via US Mail only and not by phone. Since the account is not in collections yet, they aren't necessarily required to adhere to it, but they might. Search the forum; there have been several threads in the past and I think there's a sample letter floating around somewhere.

I also recommend changing your phone number if it's convenient for you to do so. By the time we filed BK, we were receiving at least 15 calls per hour from 7 AM to 10 PM, and Best Buy was one of the worst.

Edited to add: If you've already retained an attorney and paid part of the fee, you can refer collectors to him/her. That's usually enough to make them stop calling. Just don't answer any questions; they'll try everything to get information out of you. I learned to give the attorney's name and number ONCE, and if they kept asking questions I would say, "I've given you my attorney's contact information. Please call him with these questions," and hang up.

[CPO]

Thanks guys for the ideas. Yes, I did mean the "original" creditor, as in HSBC is the financier for Best Buys credit card...

brainless, I don't feel too bad considering your plight...wow, 15 calls per hour. That's intense. I think I'll quit complaining.

GoingDown, thanks for the advice on the cellphone. I had not thought of the pay-as-you-go route.

Although I have spoken with them, I provided no information to them. It was really an exercise to try and get a usefull address so I could send them a letter. They can be crafty...as I can sometimes hear the coach in the background telling this guy what to say. Amusing.

Something I had not really thought of was what action can be taken if they proceed to call my work like this.

Understand, this is all pre third party collection efforts have even started. So, as you know the Fed's law means little.

This amount of calling would stall my employers ability to do business. I have received one call at work, Citibank for a HomeDepot CC I have. I immediately told them not to call my work, and since they have a good address for me all communication would be through the mail.

No calls since then, so, perhaps that worked for Citibank...No mail from them either. I'm sure I'll get a collection notice soon from them though. Its not like they will forget me.

Let me know if there is an option I can use if these "in house" collectors begin to call me at work. That would be real serious.

Thanks again.

[GoingDown]

In that case, it would be best if you did not change your original phone number, so that they have a way to contact you at home without having to call you at work. Make sure your answering machine or voice mail clearly states your name so they know they are calling the right number. Sometimes creditors will call you at work if they can't contact you at home. Then just use the pay as you go phone to get calls from your friends and relatives.

Unfortunately, there is no legal way (under the FDCPA) that I am aware of to stop the original creditor from calling you at work if they so choose to do that. You can tell them that you are not allowed to accept personal calls at work, and warn them that they are harassing you at work which is unlawful, but to make that point clear to them, you may need a co-worker or your boss to call them and tell them to stop calling you. Perhaps your boss might be willing to do this to get the calls to stop. If I had employees, I would be understanding of the situation and be willing to call the original creditor and tell them to stop harassing my employee.

[CPO]

Well, HSBC called me twice this morning at work, once for HomeDepot CC and once for the BestBuy CC. I asked them not to call me at work again, but I have little confidence they will comply.

I believe these calls originate from an outside collector located in either India or Pakistan. A quick Google shows reems of compliants about HSBC's collection efforts from outside-the-U.S.-collectors they have hired.

Looks like they violate any and all applicable state and Federal laws (if any) to harass debtors. Appears authorities have no interests in stopping them.

Interestingly enough, I've never been one to submit to pressure, coersion or threats...must be the military....After mutual combat, one learns to think, gather appropriate information, adapt, improvise and overcome to win in your endeavors.

I wonder if these folks understand that harassment and threats will get them no closer to their goals.

Probably not.....

Well, if I lose this job then I will not reaffirm my auto but I won't lose my home and virtually all my other possessions. My pension and disability are exempt and that's what pays for the roof over my head. I planned on reaffirming my auto but if I'm terminated then she goes.

So, no job...ALL my creditors sans one lose any chance of any settlement.

HSBC will have screwed themselves.

On another note, I changed the greeting on my answering machine to clearly include my last name so anyone calling can readily identify this number as mine.

Since I screen my calls anyway, and I have a pretty good idea when family calls as we remain tight, I've decided that all the calls at home are okay. No need to stress over them. I think the calls at work are much more of a problem.

Thanks for your info and "hearing" me out.

I will continue to post as events warrant.

CPO