Help/CONFUSED!! Is it too late to use DV Letter?

[NoDebtJ]

The original creditor is CFNA/Firestone transfered the account to Alliance One as their outside credit agency.

I caught wind of this site after the fact and spoke to Alliance One over the phone (wrong) where they agreed to settle for 50%. I contacted the orgignal creditor and they said they can't make any settlement agreements beacuse the account is with Alliance One. Is it too late to send a DV letter to alliance one?

If it's , I would send the settlement letter via certified mail that ask thet "the COLLECTION AGENCY agrees to remove any listing or information that the COLLECTION AGENCY may have placed on the CONSUMER'S credit report. The COLLECTION AGENCY agrees to never at any time in the future place any information on the CONSUMER'S credit report." The fact is that after I reviewed my credit report, the collection agency DID NOT report anything negative on my account. The client (CFNA/Firestone) did. How should I proceed?

Thanks.

[debtorshusband]

The FDCPA requires that Alliance One send you a letter within 5 days of the first time you spoke to them on the phone. If they didn't, they are in violation of the law. That letter is required by law to tell you who the creditor is, how much they want, and it must inform you of your rights to dispute and request verification. Here is the text:

Sec. 1692g. Validation of debts

(a) Notice of debt; contents

Within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in

connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall,

unless the following information is contained in the initial

communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send the consumer a

written notice containing--

(1) the amount of the debt;

(2) the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed;

(3) a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days

after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or

any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the

debt collector;

(4) a statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector

in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt, or any

portion thereof, is disputed, the debt collector will obtain

verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the

consumer and a copy of such verification or judgment will be mailed

to the consumer by the debt collector; and

(5) a statement that, upon the consumer's written request within

the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer

with the name and address of the original creditor, if different

from the current creditor.

Once you receive that letter, that is when your 30 day "time limit" to request DV begins to run. If you never got such a letter, your 30 days can't have started, can it? In which case you write to them that they are in violation of the law, and that nevertheless, you are exercising your rights per the FDCPA to dispute the debt, request verification of the debt, and to request the name and address of the original creditor.

Good luck.

DH

[astiman]

Another key point is that you said they transferred it to Alliance One.

Are you 100% sure this is still owned by CFNA/Firestone?

The reason I ask is because if it is now owned by a JDB, your tactics with dealing with it would be quite different.