Stop Debt Collectors in Virginia

Posts Tagged ‘False’

What happens when a creditor has a judgment and you have a joint bank account?

The creditor can issue a garnishment (seizure order) to the bank, and freeze all of the money.   A separate notice is then sent to the other account holder. They then have the opportunity to come to court and claim that some or all of the money in the account is theirs.

In order to do so, they must come with 2 or 3 months of statements, and proof of the source of the deposits.  For example, they need to bring pay advices showing that they are the one who deposited amount X on date Y.

If the joint account holder does not show up in court, the judgment creditor gets the benefit of the doubt, and gets all of the money.

One of the first things we always ask is how did the case get this far.  Sometimes there are things we can do to alleviate the problem.  Sometimes we will recommend Bankruptcy.

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

OUR FEES: Our fees are controlled by the local rules and your situation.  They may vary from “free” or probono representation to a flat fee to an hourly fee, depending on your situation.

DISCLOSURE: Pursuant to Federal law, KCLS is a debt relief agency.  We help people, who need those services, to file for Bankruptcy, if there is no other option.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.
You can call us: 804.303.0204
You can fax us: 804.303.0209
You can contact us by US MAIL:
Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.
5310 Markel Rd. Suite 102
Richmond, VA 23230

There is a recent Virginia Supreme Court opinion that says that the ability to bring a lawsuit, “standing”, must be in existence at the time the lawsuit is filed.  In Kocher v. Campbell, the plaintiff had been in a car wreck in 2004, filed Bankruptcy in 2005, and not listed the asset of the potential personal injury claim in his Bankruptcy.  He eventually voluntarily dismissed the lawsuit, then reopened his Bankruptcy to  show the asset of the personal injury claim.  Before the trustee abandoned the PI claim (personal injury money is exempt in Virginia pursuant to Virginia code 34-28.1), the plaintiff filed suit again.  However, because he still did not have the right to bring the claim (because the trustee had not abandoned the claim) he was not the right party—he did not have “standing”. The Virginia Supreme Court ruled that the lawsuit, when brought by someone who does not have the right to bring a lawsuit- because they are not the right party- the lawsuit is a legal  nullity—it does not exist.  You can read about the case here.

What is the lesson we should learn from this?  That EVERYTHING that you MIGHT have a right to—car accidents proceeds, inheritance, wrongful death proceeds, ANYTHING, must be disclosed to your lawyer when you are filing for Bankruptcy.  This plaintiff lost the right to get anything out of that lawsuit because he did not have the right to bring it.

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

OUR FEES: Our fees are controlled by the local rules and your situation.  They may vary from “free” or probono representation to a flat fee to an hourly fee, depending on your situation.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.303.0204

You can fax us: 804.303.0209

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

5310 Markel Rd. Suite 102

Richmond, VA 23230

Everyone knows that you have to pay for the products that you purchase.  Some you pay for with cash (or cash equivalent- checks, debit cards, etc).  Some you pay for with credit- credit cards, loans, etc.

The “story” of a cash purchase ends there.  You have paid for it, it is yours.

The “story” of a purchase made with credit does not end there.  If you don’t pay the lender back, they have the right to repossess the thing you bought.  The most common examples are cars and houses.  Theoretically, your credit card purchases at Best Buy are in the same category, but not always.

In the case of a car loan, there are specific rules the lender must follow.  These rules are governed by Virginia Code’s version of Revised Article 9 of the Uniform Commercial Code, codified at VA Code sections 8.9A-100 through 8.9A-709.

When a car loan is defaulted, they have the right to repossess, but they must give you certain notices.  They must tell you that they are going to sell the car, and how long you have to get the car out of “hock”. They must tell you that if the car is sold, that you will be responsible for any short fall (“Deficiency balance”), and that if there is an overage (“Surplus balance”) that you will get that amount back (surpluses are very rare).  After they sell the car, they must send you an accounting, and tell you how much the deficiency or surplus balance is.

If they don’t there are 2 consequences.  The first is the one that is most important- you are not responsible for any deficiency. The second is that you have the right to sue them for the entire amount of the interest charge, plus 10% of the principal.  VA Code 8.9A-625[c]. You are not entitled to attorney fees and costs.

This includes when a car dealer sells a car, and fails to obtain financing. The Virginia Supreme Court recently held Victory Nissan of Chesapeake to that in Cappo Management V, Inc. v. Britt., and awarded damages to Ms. Britt.

This is common in yo-yo sales.  If you are the victim of this kind of abuse, you do not need to file for Bankruptcy protection.  Let us help turn the tables on the collectors for you.

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

OUR FEES: Our fees are controlled by the local rules and your situation.  They may vary from “free” or probono representation to a flat fee to an hourly fee, depending on your situation.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.303.0204

You can fax us: 804.303.0209

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

5310 Markel Rd. Suite 102

Richmond, VA 23230

The Fair Credit Reporting Act is designed to protect consumers from inaccurate or outdated information on credit reports. But there is a more insidious problem looming.

Tax Return ID Theft is on the rise.  Yahoo News has a story about how it is getting bigger.

Tax Return ID Theft is when someone else uses your social security number and other personal identifiers to work or obtain other government benefits.  Usually this is done by an illegal alien, who needs your personal information to give to an employer so they can work.

To combat this growing scourge, it is important for you to safeguard your information and documents. Just as the advertisements suggest, you should destroy documents with your full social security number rather than just throw them away.  You are even better protected by not disposing of them at all.

If you are the victim of tax return fraud, you should contact the IRS, and send in a Tax Form 14039, a tax ID theft Affidavit.  This will help some in your efforts to control the damage.

But you should also be checking your credit file. Identity thieves rarely limit themselves to just your work records.  You should be ordering your consumer disclosures from the 3 national credit reporting agencies. You can do this by mail, or phone.  Download the form for requesting your credit report by mail, or call the central number for ordering by phone-  877-322-8228.

NO FEE IN YOUR FCRA CASE UNLESS WE RECOVER!!

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the FCRA and the FDCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.303.0204

You can fax us: 804.303.0209

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

5310 Markel Rd.

Suite 102

Richmond, VA 23230

It is legal to record phone calls, but we advise that you do not, and we suggest that this article is a good starting point on why not.

A summary of Herring and Watts article is that in some states where collectors operate, it is illegal to record without the consent of all parties, and it is not strictly necessary- your testimony is admissible.

Virginia law is that any party to a conversation may record.  VA Code §19.2-62.

Federal law is that any party to a conversation may record.  18 U.S.C. §2511.

There are 10 states that require that all parties to a conversation must consent, or the recording is criminal.  California, Connecticut, Florida, Illinois, Maryland, Massachusetts, Michigan, Montana, Nevada, New Hampshire, Pennsylvania, and Washington each require the consent of all parties to record.  The balance allow anyone who is a party to the conversation to record.

In ALL states and by Federal law, recording a conversation that you are not a party to (eg: recording your next door neighbor’s conversation) is criminal.  There are exceptions in criminal justice, when the government obtains a warrant for a wiretap, but generally, it is illegal.

It is often very difficult to determine what state the collector is located.  Further, even if you are located in a 1 party state, and they are located in a 2 party state, the question then becomes what law applies.

As a result, we agree with Herring and Watts, and say that even though it is legal, we advise that you should not record your conversations. In the event that you do record, we advise that you disclose that you are recording, and tell the collector that by staying on the phone that they are consenting to being recorded.

Your notes of a call are perfectly good records of what happened.  Here is a link to a form for tracking calls, and making notes of what happened.

Also, you can have other people listen to your side of the conversation, or even participate in the conversation.

If you have been impacted by anything we mentioned here, you can make an appointment to see us.

NO FEE IN YOUR FDCPA CASE UNLESS WE RECOVER!!

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the FCRA and the FDCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.303.0204

You can fax us: 804.303.0209

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

5310 Markel Rd.

Suite 102

Richmond, VA 23230

Attorney debt collectors are not exempt from the law just because they are lawyers. They actually have a slightly higher standard of care that they must engage in to comply with the law.  They must make sure that what they do to collect not only complies with the rules of collection, but also the rules of ethics.

The statute of limitations is a rule that sets the time for a someone to sue to collect. It is not a time limit to collect, or garnish, or take other collection activities, but to file the lawsuit.  And the time varies from jurisdiction to jurisdiction and circumstance to circumstance.  The time to sue on a credit card in Virginia is different from the time to sue on a defaulted car note in California.  Beyond that time, the debt is barred by the statute of limitations.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prohibits misrepresenting the amount, character or legal status of a debt in an effort to collect on that debt.

But on a regular basis, they do sue on debts that are time barred.  For example, in this article, National Credit Adjusters threatened to sue on time barred debt. Here is another article on time barred debt.

When they sue, they are representing to you and the court that they have the legal right to sue.  That the time has not passed.  But if it has passed, they are making a false representation.

It is not unethical to sue on a time barred debt in Virginia.  Do not make the mistake of making a complaint to the state bar.  This is because in Virginia, the statute of limitations is an affirmative defense.  That means that YOU must bring it up to be an effective bar against collection.

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc., is happy to help consumers who have been impacted by debt collection attorneys who have sued after the expiration of the time to sue.  The facts and law vary from case to case, so it is important to contact a lawyer before the gavel falls, so if you are sued in Virginia, make an appointment to see us soon.

If you have been impacted by anything we mentioned here, you can make an appointment to see us.

NO FEE IN YOUR FDCPA CASE UNLESS WE RECOVER!!

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the FCRA and the FDCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.303.0204

You can fax us: 804.303.0209

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

5310 Markel Rd.

Suite 102

Richmond, VA 23230

The Fair Credit Reporting Act is designed to protect consumers from inaccurate or outdated information on credit reports.

CONSUMER REPORTING AGENCY REINVESTIGATIONS and The Fair Credit Reporting Act

All references to code sections are courtesy of the Legal Information Institute at Law.Cornell.edu.

The Fair Credit Reporting Act requires the Credit Reporting Agencies, or Consumer Reporting Agencies to conduct a reinvestigation and the procedures around that reinvestigation.

The section that discusses the requirements for reinvestigation of a disputed item is 15 U.S.C. §1681i.

As usual, we start with the statute.  Please note that we will only be reviewing the section on reinvestigations, so the rest of the section will not be reprinted or discussed.

This section requires the consumer credit reporting agencies to have procedures if they are unable to verify information, or if they discover that information is inaccurate.

It requires that the information that they cannot verify be deleted or changed, and that information that is inaccurate be changed or deleted.

An example of unverifiable information is where the furnisher of the information provides information that a person has failed to make certain payments (ie: been late) on a debt, but is unable to provide the records that show that the person has not made those payments.

In this case, the consumer credit reporting agencies must remove the information that the person has failed to make those payments.  They have to report that the person is current.

Another example of inaccurate information is an account created by identity theft.  Clearly, it is not accurate to report that a person owes money to a certain creditor when that account was opened by someone else.  In this case, they must delete the inaccuracy, and remove all reference to this account.

If you have been impacted by anything we mentioned here, you can make an appointment to see us.

NO FEE IN YOUR FCRA CASE UNLESS WE RECOVER!!

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the FCRA and the FDCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

The Virginia Payday Lender Act (VPLA), §6.2-1800 et seq., is a statute created to regulate the way payday lenders in the Commonwealth do business, and to protect consumers from unfair practices.

The VPLA governs the conduct of payday lenders. The law defines a “payday loan,” and then regulates the behavior of persons who “engage in the business of making payday loans.” A payday loan, then, is defined as a “small, short-maturity loan on the security of” a check, a bank account, or your income.

Businesses that make payday loans are required by the VPLA to register with the State Corporation Commission. Under the statute, this also includes payday lenders on the internet doing business in Virginia. Payday lenders are also required under the Act to follow rules regarding the loans that they make to consumers.

First, the VLPA set limits on the interest rates that a payday lender can charge. (These interest rates can vary depending on other statutes, though; for example, interest rates for active duty military personnel are different).  It also limits the fees that they can build into the agreement. Also, consumers have the RIGHT to start making payments (with a minimum of $5) before the date the loan is due without penalty.

Furthermore, there are additional rules regarding how the payday lenders can treat a consumer when they’re collecting on the loan. Like the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, the VPLA prohibits harassment or abuse, false or misleading statements, and unfair collection practices.

If a payday lender violates any of the rules outlined above, the consumer is entitled to bring suit in Virginia state court. The law entitles a consumer to actual damages, statutory damages, attorneys’ fees, and court costs. In addition, any written agreement terms that violate the VPLA are unenforceable against the consumer.

Don’t let payday lenders take advantage of you. You have RIGHTS and you should exercise them. At Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, we want to be your advocate. We will stand up to the lenders on your behalf to make sure that your rights aren’t violated, and that you get compensated when they go too far.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the VPLA and the VCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.
5310 Markel Rd. Suite 102
Richmond, VA 23230
804-303-0204
804-303-0209 (fax)

A friend of mine worked very hard to talk about the problem of debt collectors, credit reports and debt collectors.

If you have be the victim of a debt collector who has lied to you and told you that paying an old debt would improve your credit, or that they could remove the negative information, please contact us.

NO FEE IN YOUR FDCPA OR FCRA CASE UNLESS WE RECOVER!!

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the FCRA and the FDCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.673.4358

You can fax us: 804.673.4350

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

1650 Willow Lawn Drive

Suite 300

Richmond, VA 23230

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is designed to protect consumers from abusive or harassing conduct, false or misleading statements or unfair act by Debt Collectors.

What validation rights do you have under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?

As usual, we start with the statutory definition.  Thanks to LII.

Read the code section- 15 U.S.C. §1692g here 15 US Code section 1692g.

When the debt collector contacts you the first time, they must send a notice, called a validation notice, or 30 day letter, which gives you 30 days after you receive the letter to dispute the debt.

If you dispute the debt, they must do certain things before they get back in contact with you, but remember, if you take longer than 30 days, they do not have to do anything.  For example, if they send the letter January 1, and you don’t tell them that you dispute until June 1, they do not have to validate the debt.

But what is “validation”?  It is nothing more than confirming with the creditor that you are the correct person to collect from, and that the amount is correct.  They check just a few things.  A debt collector must contact the creditor (read here on the difference between a creditor and a debt collector), and check your name, maybe your social security number, and the balance.  That’s all they have to do.

Usually, they will send you “validation”.

On the other hand, if they fail to provide validation, and they continue to collect, they are violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

Some examples where this is a violation-

1. If they don’t ever send you a letter that explains your right to dispute. This is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. This is a case that is hard to prove, and in many cases, it is done by smaller debt collectors, often overseas.  They are hard to sue, even for good violations because they are hard to notify that they are being sued, and even if you do sue them, they are overseas, so your ability to collect from them is often very limited.
2. If they send you a letter, and you dispute, and they ignore your collection letter, and keep writing, or calling, etc.  This is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
3. If they send you a letter, and you dispute, and they ignore you letter, and sue (this is only possible if they sue, for example, lawyers, and debt collectors who sue in their own name.). This would be a violation.
4. If they send you a letter, and you dispute, and they see that you are a different person from the person who owes the money (eg: different name, or different social security number), and they continue to collect.  This is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

There are some notable exceptions.  The key one being check collectors who are parading as prosecutors.  Check collectors who are pretending to be prosecutors have their own special exemptions. They are not covered by any of the above IF the accounts are being actually reviewed by a lawyer in the office of that prosecutor. 15 U.S.C. §1692p

If you are contacted by a collector, you should keep track of all of the statements that he made (you can use our form or just write it down), and send them a letter asking for more information, called validation of the debt.  There is a sample here, and a dispute noting that you have a lawyer here.   Note that not all the questions must be answered.

If you have been impacted by anything we mentioned here, you can make an appointment to see us.

NO FEE IN YOUR FDCPA CASE UNLESS WE RECOVER!!

KCLS LIMITS THE GEOGRAPHY IN WHICH WE TAKE CASES.

YOU MUST BE A VIRGINIA RESIDENT.

If you are not a Virginia Resident, click here to find a lawyer near you.

OUR LEGAL FEES:

The rights afforded to you, as a consumer, under the FCRA and the FDCPA means that a corporation or party who has violated your rights may ultimately be made to pay for statutory damages, actual damages, and your legal fees. Therefore, if we agree to represent you in any case, you won’t pay any attorney’s fees unless we are successful and we recover on your behalf. We are here to serve and have assisted many consumers TO enforce their legal rights. Let us try and see if we can help you too. That means you pay no fee in your case unless we recover.

Contact us by e-mail or by telephone or fax or US Mail.

You can call us: 804.673.4358

You can fax us: 804.673.4350

You can contact us by US MAIL:

Krumbein Consumer Legal Services, Inc.

1650 Willow Lawn Drive

Suite 300

Richmond, VA 23230