Collection letter asking why you appealing

[BROTHER]

Well this is a 'parking collection company'. I sent them a 'debt validation' letter when I got their bill/fee/penalty over a false debt. Their response was not what I expected. They are asking me for 'The reason why you are appealing this parking penalty'.

I thought this was funny, cause to me its obvious from the first letter I sent them, because I dont owe it. Should I even respond to them?? What should I do now??

[Robert Nashville/Savannah]

What is your basis for saying "you don't owe it"/that this is a "false debt"?

What exactly generated this "debt"?

[BROTHER]

What is your basis for saying "you don't owe it"/that this is a "false debt"?

What exactly generated this "debt"?

I will repeat my question. Should I even respond to them?? What should I do now??

They have not responded to me about this 'debt' when I DV them. Who is the original creditor? What's their address?? Where's the verification of this debt they were suppose to send??

I believe these people are in violation of the FDCPA. They have to have a 'basis' for trying to bill me a 'debt', they can't just send me another 'question' asking ' why am I appealing this penalty. Its my right to question this penalty. Thats why I appeal it.

[Robert Nashville/Savannah]

I will repeat my question. Should I even respond to them?? What should I do now??

They have not responded to me about this 'debt' when I DV them. Who is the original creditor? What's their address?? Where's the verification of this debt they were suppose to send??

I believe these people are in violation of the FDCPA. They have to have a 'basis' for trying to bill me a 'debt', they can't just send me another 'question' asking ' why am I appealing this penalty. Its my right to question this penalty. Thats why I appeal it.

I can’t help but wonder why you bothered to quote my questions when you obviously intended to ignore them completely.

I was not asking to pry – I was asking because it’s difficult to offer salient advice while almost completely in the dark about the situation for which the advice is being sought.

So…I guess you can ignore this company or not…maybe they’ll go away or not…maybe whoever the creditor actually is will sue you or not…maybe the actual creditor, if it’s a government agency of some kind will find some way to make your life miserable or not…maybe this “false debt” will get passed on to someone else or not. Maybe you would get better responses to your threads if you offered some real information; or maybe not.

Have a nice day.

[nascar]

Well this is a 'parking collection company'. I sent them a 'debt validation' letter when I got their bill/fee/penalty over a false debt. Their response was not what I expected. They are asking me for 'The reason why you are appealing this parking penalty'.

I thought this was funny, cause to me its obvious from the first letter I sent them, because I dont owe it. Should I even respond to them?? What should I do now??

What's wrong with calling them and informing them that you never received the parking violation they are trying to collect on?

I can't tell whether the terminology you are using in your post is yours or if you are quoting the so-called "parking collection company." Terms such as "penalty," "appealing the penalty," etc., indicate some type of statutory violation, not a consumer debt.

If in fact it is some type of parking fine, the procedural requirements for appealing it typically will not include any obligation to respond to a validation request under the FDCPA.

[admin]

Are they a collections firm? That's really what you need to know. If they are, they must respond to your debt validation request with validation, or just go away.

If they are not, then you can argue your case. Or is it with the city where you got the ticket?

[cjtx]

I second nascar. Sorry admin. This CA does not have to respond to your DV.

FDCPA applies to debt collectors that are collecting "debts" as defined under FDCPA. What this means is that not all debts are covered by FDCPA.

The term "debt" means any obligation or alleged obligation of a consumer to pay money arising out of a transaction in which the money, property, insurance or services which are the subject of the transaction are primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, whether or not such obligation has been reduced to judgment.

A parking ticket is not a transaction for money, property, insurance or services so it is not considered a "debt" under FDCPA. Therefore, this CA is not a "debt collector" under FDCPA because it is trying to collect something other than a debt.

If they are reporting information to the CRAs, they are subject to FCRA, so they have to report accurately and investigate disputes.

[admin]

I second nascar. Sorry admin. This CA does not have to respond to your DV.

Uh, yeah, that's what I said. If they don't respond to your debt validation request, they just have to go away.

A parking ticket is not a transaction for money, property, insurance or services so it is not considered a "debt" under FDCPA. Therefore, this CA is not a "debt collector" under FDCPA because it is trying to collect something other than a debt.

If they are reporting information to the CRAs, they are subject to FCRA, so they have to report accurately and investigate disputes.

Really? Never heard that one. examples, please.

[BROTHER]

Are they a collections firm? That's really what you need to know. If they are, they must respond to your debt validation request with validation, or just go away.

If they are not, then you can argue your case. Or is it with the city where you got the ticket?

Im sorry If i did not make it clear from the start. This is NOT a ticket. Its a type of 'penalty fee'. This 'agency' that is sending me the bill is a 'private' contractor NOT a government/city doing this. Thats why they can't do tickets.

They are claiming I owe them for $50.00 penalty fee for some parking issue im not to sure about. This is from their 'collection department' . I believe they 'do fall under the definition of a 'collection agency' under the FDCPA because thats their 'primary job' is to collect debts.

[cjtx]

Really? Never heard that one. examples, please.

Here are a couple of examples of CAs that collect money that is not considered a debt under FDCPA (last reference has more details of the first case):

Personal property taxes levied by town upon plaintiffs' automobiles were not "debts" within meaning of Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), and therefore, debt collection service's efforts to collect those taxes from plaintiffs were not covered by Act; there was no "transaction," as contemplated by Act. Beggs v. Rossi, C.A.2 (Conn.) 1998, 145 F.3d 511.

Per capita tax levied by a Pennsylvania taxing district was not a "debt" encompassed within the scope of this section. Staub v. Harris, C.A.3 (Pa.) 1980, 626 F.2d 275.

Personal property taxes assessed on motor vehicles were not "debts," for purposes of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Beggs v. Rossi, D.Conn.1997, 994 F.Supp. 114, affirmed 145 F.3d 511.

OP: your assumptions are wrong. FDCPA doesn't apply to your case.

[Robert Nashville/Savannah]

Im sorry If i did not make it clear from the start. This is NOT a ticket. Its a type of 'penalty fee'. This 'agency' that is sending me the bill is a 'private' contractor NOT a government/city doing this. Thats why they can't do tickets.

They are claiming I owe them for $50.00 penalty fee for some parking issue im not to sure about. This is from their 'collection department' . I believe they 'do fall under the definition of a 'collection agency' under the FDCPA because thats their 'primary job' is to collect debts.

If you re dealing with the creditor then they don't fall under the FDCPA as per Admin's post (No. 6) above.

[BROTHER]

If you re dealing with the creditor then they don't fall under the FDCPA as per Admin's post (No. 6) above.

I understand. However, I truly believe, (it waits to be seen) that this Diamond Parking Collection is NOT the 'original' creditor, they work for the creditor. They do not 'own' this building where they claim this 'parking FEE' happened at.

[jetscarbie]

This is what I found on Diamond parking Collection. They seem like a real piece of work. Tons of websites about them and the illegal fees.

But from what I understand...they do own the parking rights. Because when you get a ticket...that is who you pay, not the building. So they would be the original creditor. Maybe you could try the 623 Method with them.

If the 623 doens't get you anywhere, try the BBB or AG's office. Due to all the lawsuits against them, you could "probably" get this dismissed or get some type of resolve out of complaining. They are NOT a collection company... they are the legal owners of these parking areas. (or own the legal rights) They even ticket at the local Mcdonald's, on streets, in buildings, and other crazy places.

Good luck to you.

Diamond Parking covers all facets of car lots. The company manages more than 1,000 parking locations, including Park N' Jets near airports, hospitals, sports arenas, multi-level garages, and surface locations. Besides management, Diamond Parking provides other parking-related services, including accounting, facility design, and financing. At its locations across western North America, the company will retrieve keys from locked cars, change flats, and jumpstart dead batteries for free. Customers include landlords, airports, property managers, and developers. Founded in 1922, Diamond Parking is owned by the Diamond family, including CEO Joel Diamond and president Jon Diamond.

Lawsuits

Seattle newspapers report that 2002 Diamond Parking settled a 2.2 million class action regarding the imposition of questionable "collection fees" after customers failed to pay for using a Diamond Parking lots is Washington state. [1]

[Robert Nashville/Savannah]

I understand. However, I truly believe, (it waits to be seen) that this Diamond Parking Collection is NOT the 'original' creditor, they work for the creditor. They do not 'own' this building where they claim this 'parking FEE' happened at.

“Belief’, in this case, is irrelevant nor must they own the building to be the "original creditor"...all that matters is the legal/contractual arrangement between the owner of the building and the company running the parking and collecting this “fee”.

It is not only possible but quite usual that building owners lease the parking areas to other companies to handle their parking which will generally put the “parking lot company” into the “original creditor” position (hence, the FDCPA does not apply). If the FDCPA does not apply then the creditor/parking company has no FDCPA obligation to respond.

That does not mean, however, that you must capitulate on the fee question nor can they engage in other prohibited activities (like telephone harassment, etc) and you have a basic right to request that they fully explain/substantiate the basis for their “fee” and if you aren’t satisfied with their explanation, you have the “right” to refuse to pay – just understand that your refusal to pay doesn’t mean the matter will go away anytime soon.

[BROTHER]

This is what I found on Diamond parking Collection. They seem like a real piece of work. Tons of websites about them and the illegal fees.

But from what I understand...they do own the parking rights. Because when you get a ticket...that is who you pay, not the building. So they would be the original creditor. Maybe you could try the 623 Method with them.

If the 623 doens't get you anywhere, try the BBB or AG's office. Due to all the lawsuits against them, you could "probably" get this dismissed or get some type of resolve out of complaining. They are NOT a collection company... they are the legal owners of these parking areas. (or own the legal rights) They even ticket at the local Mcdonald's, on streets, in buildings, and other crazy places.

Good luck to you.

Thanks for the info. Ive also found some more info on Diamond parking, looks like they are a piece of work. These people are a scam. I dont know about any parking fee nor do I owe them anything. So they may not be a collection company. But i look into other avenues