It would be the understatement of the year to say debt collector Reliant Financial Services (RFA) picked on the wrong woman in Diana Mey.

As detailed in this expose by ABC’s Nightline – http://abcnews.go.com/US/va-woman-fights-collect-10-million-debt-collectors/t/story?id=16205697#.T5hslsTUO8A – RFA’s egregious abuse just cost them a record $10,860,000 judgment.

RFA’s misconduct included:

- Attempting to collect on a debt not owed by Ms. Mey

- Threatening legal action of seizing Ms. Mey’s home

- Spoofing caller ID numbers so collection calls appeared to come from the local sheriff

- Use of threats and vulgarities

Fortunately Ms. Mey recorded the calls so there was no disputing what she went through. Unfortunately, collecting on this debt is going to be a lot more difficult than winning the case as RFA is apparently a fictitious business name.

A tip of the cap to Nightline for bringing this story to light and Ms. Mey’s attorneys, Martin Sheehan and Patrick Cassidy for taking a case they may never be compensated. You’ve likely saved many others from being victimized. Thank you for stepping up and giving a powerful voice to someone in need.

Join with Bill Bartmann as he works to change the debt collection industry.

Bill

Hi, I'm Bill Bartmann and I am on a mission to reform the debt collection industry in America. Please join with me as we bring a petition to Washington D.C., and make Congress close all the legal loopholes in debt collection practices. It's time to stop these debt collection abuses and stop these criminals. Join with me! Sign the petition today! http://stopthesecriminals.com/petition

Website - More Posts

This week Bank of America begins the process of helping distressed homeowners stay in their homes. BoA announced Monday that they are sending the first letters offering a restructuring of mortgage debt, by reducing the principal, this week. This will save 200,000 BoA homeowners an average of 30% on their mortgage payments. This will make a significant difference in the lives many families and their support systems.

This comes on the heels of a Bank of America revamp of their short sale process (when homeowners owe more on the home than its current market value), cutting their approval time in half from 45 days to a maximum of 20 days.

Big banks are easy targets to knock. They should be recognized, too, when they do the right things.

Bill

Hi, I'm Bill Bartmann and I am on a mission to reform the debt collection industry in America. Please join with me as we bring a petition to Washington D.C., and make Congress close all the legal loopholes in debt collection practices. It's time to stop these debt collection abuses and stop these criminals. Join with me! Sign the petition today! http://stopthesecriminals.com/petition

Website - More Posts

Reporter Tina Jordan, did a phenomenal job of telling the disturbing story of Darrell, a disabled gulf war veteran, who has been pursued for a debt (that has a high probability of not even being his) by an unlicensed collector. Here’s my insider color commentary to Tina’s “play by play”:

• Darrell was contacted in January 2010 for a delinquent bank credit card debt from 2004-2005.

Darrell’s account was no longer owned by the original bank. They had sold it to debt buyer Asset Acceptance LLC. Asset Acceptance in turn outsourced the collections work to Daniel N. Gordon Professional Collections (DNGPC). DNGPC is unlicensed in Oregon and do not have the legal right to collect debt in the state where they were pursuing Darrell. Why would Asset Acceptance contract an unlicensed firm to collect on their debts? They are hoping that since they bought the debt and are the current debt owner, that they fall within the loophole of debt “owner” instead of debt “collector” which allows them to collect and get around most all legal debt collection restrictions. However, how Asset Acceptance can argue that their proxy, DNGPC, is a debt “owner” too is a bit baffling. But, unless local authorities step in (unlikely in most jurisdictions today), they’ll end up getting away with it.

• The original debt principal was $6,854, DNGPC/Asset Acceptance tacked on fees to make the amount they were trying to collect over $14,000.

Interesting tactic especially when you consider that Asset Acceptance likely purchased the debt for around $350. These extra charges, even if eliminated in a negotiated settlement, still leave them with a windfall and enough “juice” to make DNGPC’s “commission” lucrative relative to the minimal purchase price. However, if this debt was past the statute of limitation, the extra fees have a more sinister implication. By making the debt more significant there is a greater likelihood they could persuade the debtor to pay “something” to get the harassment calls to stop. If the debtor pays ANYTHING, the debt would instantly re-age to become legally collectible again.

• Darrell disputed the debt by certified mail and asked for verification.

Savvy move. Debt collectors often have shoddy records and take the approach to throw a lot of s#@* against the wall and see what sticks. In Darrell’s case the collector didn’t respond directly to this request, it got worse as they went into full deep pocket bully mode.

• DNGPC sues Darrell, presenting the court with an UNSIGNED cardholder agreement as evidence along with a document claiming their original complaint was delivered to a “John Doe” who was a 45 year old brown haired man, 5’10 and weighing roughly 180 lbs. Darrell is older, graying, 6’1″ and around 240 lbs.

Shaky evidence, sure. But since most defendants never show up in court to defend themselves, the collector receives a quick default judgement, even though there was never real verification that the true defendant never even knew there was a complaint filed against them. This is a practice known as “sewer service” because for all you know the notice of suit was thrown down the sewer, never even being attempted to be delivered to the proper person.

The real scary thing is that this is not uncommon. What Darrell is going through is a common everyday happening to millions of people within the U.S. and around the world.

Darrell commented to Tina, “I proudly served in the United States Air Force for 13 years, including two missions to Saudi Arabia during Desert Storm.” “I certainly didn’t think the America that I felt so honored to represent — at the time — would ever allow a megabank’s collection agency to harass ordinary people like me.”

Well Darrell, you’re not alone. You represent what might be the tipping point voting block in this coming election. Keep speaking up because an election year is when politicians really are listening.

Bill

Hi, I'm Bill Bartmann and I am on a mission to reform the debt collection industry in America. Please join with me as we bring a petition to Washington D.C., and make Congress close all the legal loopholes in debt collection practices. It's time to stop these debt collection abuses and stop these criminals. Join with me! Sign the petition today! http://stopthesecriminals.com/petition

Website - More Posts