Better to refuse arbitration?

[wolfhound]

Would it be better to send a refusal of arbitration letter to NAF (and W&A), or see what happens by allowing it to proceed?

I was served with the claim informtaion 4/11/07, the claim was filed 11/24/06, which is past the 90-day timeframe outlined in the NAF Rule 41.

The credit card debt may be out of SOL as well, depending on whether Washington's SOL is 3 or 6 years for CC's.

The papers I was served with include a copy of a credit card agreement with MBNA, which has a section saying that the person applying for the card agrees to arbitration in the NAF, but there's nothing with my signature on it.

[CarolinaBlueEyes]

refusing arb means NOTHING.. if you respond.. you respond with rule #10.. out of SOL, rule 41B, 90 day service.. and whatever else you can throw.. refusal means NOTHING.. that letter will only serve as a response for NAF to proceed.

do not be suprised however if they find in favor of them anyway.. I read the stats recently on NAF that in 2005 they had over 22,000 cases by one client and only 87 were found in favor of the consumer.

You might want to contact a NACA lawyer... this is what I am dealing with now.. but please WHATEVER you do dont send that stupid refusal letter.. recovering attorney on this site has posted about this many times...so dispute it before it gets to that point

I know how you feel. that 90 day rule. I was served over a year and a half later an clearly out of my SOL.. unlike court ARB starts when served , not filed

allowing it to proceed is giving you a hangmans noose.. once its been awarded most of the time it becomes a judgement.. its very hard to fight at that point once signed off on.. its not impossible but you do have a fight on your hands...

[Recovering Attorney]

I disagree with the theoiry that says you refuse arbitration. You could try to ignore it then fight when they go to confirm, but your best bet is to fight it upfront. Get a NACA attorney and put some money where your mouth is

[CarolinaBlueEyes]

I disagree with the theoiry that says you refuse arbitration. You could try to ignore it then fight when they go to confirm, but your best bet is to fight it upfront. Get a NACA attorney and put some money where your mouth is

EXACTLY!!!! Fight them up front because once its awarded its nearly impossible to change....

[wolfhound]

"Get a NACA attorney and put some money where your mouth is"

See, this is part of the problem, if I could afford an attorney, I could afford to pay the debt.

[CarolinaBlueEyes]

call a NACA attorney anyway.. if they have any federal violations you might get one to will take it on contingency.. you have nothing to lose.. the sad cold truth is if you dont get someone NAF WILL run over you... its that simple. I dont mean to sound negative but in less then 1% of cases in 2005 they found for the consumer.. out of 50,000 cases thats not pretty

[wolfhound]

I don't doubt what you say at all.

But if I've got them on SOL, how can they win?

[CarolinaBlueEyes]

YOU have to understand.. NAF doesnt care about the law.. use it by all means.. but do not be surprised if they rule against you. mine is also SOL however they are proceding right along.. NAF is a rubber stamp organization.. if you think they are fair and impartial I have some swamp land in florida for you..

I quoted this someplace.... in 2005 they had one creditor that had over 22,000 cases.. 87 cases were found for the consumer.. thats some very scary math... my point is NAF is like the wild wild west... there doesnt seem to be any rhyme or reason to what they do.. search it out on the net.. some of the stuff you read will amaze you.

There was a story not long ago about a supreme court judge in WVA who worked for NAF he resigned because they would send him a case.. told him to sign it and checkmark the box and he got a check.. THAT was their idea of ARB... thats just one of the many ways they work

[IHateCAs]

I disagree with the theoiry that says you refuse arbitration. You could try to ignore it then fight when they go to confirm, but your best bet is to fight it upfront. Get a NACA attorney and put some money where your mouth is

Well...

Only a court can determine if a valid arbitration agreement exists. If you refuse arbitration on the grounds that no such agreement exists, they cannot proceed with the arbitration until a court rules that it exists.

I used to think the "I refuse arbitration" tactic was BS too, but some recent readings are leaning me towards arbitration being yet another potential pitfall for JDBs against an informed consumer.

For starters, arbitrations are done in far off venues. I'm wondering if, absent a specific agreement stating that the arbitration can be pursued in another jurisdiction, is forcing an arb claim not in the consumer's district a 1692i violation?

In addition even if a valid arbitration agreement exists (and we know that some of those MBNA ones don't extend to JDBs thanks to O. Randolf Bragg), by ignoring it and pursuing the arbitration without a ruling in court, is that a violation of 1692d and/or e and/or f and/or g?

[CarolinaBlueEyes]

you can have a hearing in your district.. we just requested one but a nice hefty fee goes along with it (big suprise).. NAF doesnt care about alot of that and your right there are violations there and again in my case there is NO arb agreement since I never used the card once it was sold to MBNA but if you dont think they are rolling along blithly think again... anyone can refuse to arbitrate it means nothing in most states... you better have some guns to back it though... and still its possible you may lose.

the sad thing I am finding is most judges dont want to deal with ARB once its been signed off on (usually by another judge).. many will not question it.its frustrating to say the least