Help with letter to collection agency - Settle now or I elect arbitration

[sjj9166]

Hello All,

I have 2 collections on my credit report. 

Item 1 is 727 and the other is around 800.

I'd like to offer the collection agency x percentage to settle the accounts.

How should I craft a letter that states? Also what percentage should I offer? 

"Here is my offer and/or I'd also like to request arbitration please pay my filing fee"

 

 

Thanks

[Harry Seaward]

1 hour ago, sjj9166 said:

"Here is my offer and/or I'd also like to request arbitration please pay my filing fee"

This is confusing.  Arbitration is a response to a lawsuit.  What kind of debts are these?  Arbitration is only an option if it's a part of the original contract/agreement.  Even if it is, they don't have to go to arbitration pre-lawsuit unless you open your own arbitration case against them.  That's a minimum of $200 for each case.  And they don't have to pay your fee unless the original contract/credit card agreement says they do.

I would make your offer without any initial mention of arbitration and see where it goes.  If they eventually sue you, then you can use arbitration (if available per the agreement) to make them sorry they didn't accept your offer.

[BackFromTheDebt]

1 hour ago, Harry Seaward said:

This is confusing.  Arbitration is a response to a lawsuit.  What kind of debts are these?  Arbitration is only an option if it's a part of the original contract/agreement.  Even if it is, they don't have to go to arbitration pre-lawsuit unless you open your own arbitration case against them.  That's a minimum of $200 for each case.  And they don't have to pay your fee unless the original contract/credit card agreement says they do.

I would make your offer without any initial mention of arbitration and see where it goes.  If they eventually sue you, then you can use arbitration (if available per the agreement) to make them sorry they didn't accept your offer.

The usual good advice from Harry.

One tactic some have used -- if an account has an arbitration provision, offer a settlement amount similar to that of the filing fees.  For example, if the filing fee is $200 or $250, offer $150 at first but be willing to go up to $250 or $300.  It is worth the extra $50-$100 to make this go away and not have to deal with arbitration for most people.  

 

YMMV

[nobk4me]

How old are these debts?  What kind of creditors?  OCs or JDBs?  Are they being aggressive in trying to collect?

I am not a fan of cleaning up credit while the debts are within the SOL for lawsuits.  What often happens is you poke a sleeping bear and it attacks and devours you.  I am a believer in waiting out the 7 years for it to drop off the credit reports. You default on debts, it's not unreasonable to suffer some adverse consequences.  I wish this is all a creditor could do.

Also consider that we are on the verge of another Great Depression thanks to Covid and the government reaction to it.  Rather than paying old creditors, save your money.  You might need it to buy food.

[Harry Seaward]

12 hours ago, nobk4me said:

we are on the verge of another Great Depression thanks to Covid and the government reaction to it

I can't see this being the case.  The circumstances surrounding the GD and GR from 2008 are completely different than what's going on now.  People won't sit around for no good reason too much longer.  The mainstream media is already letting the 'not nearly as bad' cat out of the bag.

[WhoCares1000]

4 hours ago, Harry Seaward said:

I can't see this being the case.  The circumstances surrounding the GD and GR from 2008 are completely different than what's going on now.  People won't sit around for no good reason too much longer.  The mainstream media is already letting the 'not nearly as bad' cat out of the bag.

There are 2 issues with this:

1. The organizers of private events have already cancelled most June events and some for the rest of the summer.

2. Just because businesses open does not mean people will go out. Some will but there are many who feel the risk is too great and will continue to self-quarantine regardless of what the government does.

The restarted economy will not be the same as it was before COVID 19 and there will be issues long after the shut downs are done. I don't know if they will be as bad as the GD or GR but you cannot slam on the brakes of a speeding train and then get it back up to speed again right away.

[Harry Seaward]

9 hours ago, WhoCares1000 said:

I don't know if they will be as bad as the GD or GR but you cannot slam on the brakes of a speeding train and then get it back up to speed again right away.

The train never stopped for the vast majority of the country. The other thing is the return to normalcy depends almost entirely on the reason for the slowdown.  I'll guarantee restaurants will be completely packed the minute they reopen because, again, the vast majority of people have had enough of the nonsense. Everyone else will come out when CNN tells them it's safe, and it would be fatal for CNN to maintain a Chicken Little posture for any length of time after the decision makers lift the restrictions.

[Clydesmom]

3 hours ago, Harry Seaward said:

The train never stopped for the vast majority of the country.

Where exactly did you get that data?  Every source I have read states the polar opposite.  Only five states out of the 50 have no lock down orders at all and only 7 have partial orders.  When 76% of the country is shutdown and not operating how did you determine that the vast majority of the country was never economically affected?

https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/careers/every-states-unemployment-claims-since-covid-19-shut-the-economy-down/ss-BB136sKJ?li=BBnb7Kz

"Since mid-March, over 24 million Americans have filed for unemployment, effectively wiping out all employment gains of the last decade in only five weeks. 

The increasing number of claims is a sure sign the U.S. is facing an unemployment crisis of historic proportions. According to some estimates, the latest jobless claims suggest the unemployment rate could be nearing 20%, higher than at any time since the Great Depression. "

https://247wallst.com/special-report/2020/04/06/the-places-a-covid-19-recession-will-likely-hit-hardest/?utm_source=msn&utm_medium=referral&utm_campaign=msn&utm_content=the-places-a-covid-19-recession-will-likely-hit-hardest&wsrlui=26839202

"While public health is the top national priority, the measures taken to fight the virus have come at a steep cost, as much of the economy has effectively ground to a halt."

"While every American will feel the effects of the economic downturn to some degree, certain industries are expected to bear the brunt of the decline. According to analysis by Moody’s Analytics, these industries include leisure and hospitality, travel services, transportation and warehousing, and oil and gas extraction."

"Still, the economic devastation wrought by the efforts to contain the spread of the coronavirus will likely be felt long after the pandemic ends."

3 hours ago, Harry Seaward said:

I'll guarantee restaurants will be completely packed the minute they reopen because, again, the vast majority of people have had enough of the nonsense.

I will take that bet.  The partial re-opening in Georgia has already proved that statement wrong.  While hair salons have opened and quite a few businesses many elected to stay closed and of those businesses that opened they were not flooded with customers seeking services no matter how desperate they were for a haircut.  Many have had enough of the nonsense myself included but far more have been terrified into submission by the media and government fanning the fears of panic and anxiety.  There are small businesses that rely on the larger ones to exist that cannot hang on for months on end being closed.  The spike in unemployment is only the start.  Next spike is homelessness with people who cannot return to jobs having the mortgage forbearance or eviction moratoriums lifted.  Unable to catch up 2-4 months of payments they will lose their homes.  ALong with that will be auto repossessions with many being underwater in loans to start and huge payments for 5-7 years being impossible now.  

While some industries are going to be devastated across the board such as travel and hospitality the ripple effect across the economy from that is going to be equally as devastating.

I think you are the only person I have encountered in life at home or on the internet that maintains a posture that as soon as the switch is flipped and everyone is given a green light to continue business that everything will revert to the way it was with no fall out for anyone.  

 

 

[Harry Seaward]

13 hours ago, Clydesmom said:

Where exactly did you get that data?

I'll use your own source...

13 hours ago, Clydesmom said:

Since mid-March, over 24 million Americans have filed for unemployment

So well below 1% of the US population. Big whoop. Plus, nearly all of those people will have jobs to go back to in a couple of weeks. Again, not the same as when people couldn't work because there were no jobs to be had.

13 hours ago, Clydesmom said:

When 76% of the country is shutdown

Yeah, sorry. That dog don't hunt. 75% of states with orders doesn't equal 75% shutdown. Your own unemployment statistic unequivocally proves this to be the case. Even in states with "lock down orders" (which no states actually have), people are still going to stores, still having food made for pickup and delivery, manufacturing is still taking place, trades are still operating. The list of "essential" services is a mile long, and nearly any non-essential company can become essential with a modicum of creativity. 90% of business that have closed simply don't want to be open.

[BackFromTheDebt]

Harry, I think your tinfoil hat is on too tight.

 

[Harry Seaward]

3 hours ago, BackFromTheDebt said:

Harry, I think your tinfoil hat is on too tight.

You have it backwards.  I'm one of the ones NOT wearing a tinfoil hat (AKA a mask, whether driving around alone in my own car or otherwise).

[Clydesmom]

18 hours ago, Harry Seaward said:

So well below 1% of the US population. Big whoop.

Way to try and shift the focus from the obvious.  Not everyone who is unemployed actually files. Hence the second part of the problem:  all the small business owners and self employed who are not working but cannot file for benefits either.  The actual rate of total unemployed is over 20% not less than 1% as you want to believe.

https://fortune.com/2020/04/23/us-unemployment-rate-numbers-claims-this-week-total-job-losses-april-23-2020-benefits-claims/

18 hours ago, Harry Seaward said:

90% of business that have closed simply don't want to be open.

Have a source to back that up?  So far you have not posted one source to back up any of your claims.

Your willingness to bury your head in the sand and pretend nothing bad is happening is the same attitude and lack of action that allowed Hitler and the Nazi party to rise to power.  No, those aren't concentration camps they are labor camps.  No, we aren't exterminating people they just work.  No, the country isn't in an economic free fall everything is fine.  No, the majority of people aren't out of work you just don't know how to count.  Eventually you will be hit and probably hard by the economic forces but sadly like the German people you will continue to salute and pretend everything is just fine.

[Goody_Ouchless]

Most interesting part of this exchange is that no one has responded in horror to the suggestion that this was all self inflicted hysteria. I wonder how they phrase the poll question that shows this vast majority that would prefer to maintain this state of affairs.

There will be some people (I know one, personally) that will never leave the house again, but she was a hypochondriac before all of this - our "lock down" just provided the perfect justification for inflicting her madness on her poor husband. I would bet (no pun intended) that when my favorite casino in Laughlin, Nevada, reopens that it will be tough to get a room. 

[Harry Seaward]

On 4/26/2020 at 12:48 PM, Clydesmom said:

The actual rate of total unemployed is over 20% not less than 1% as you want to believe.

I left a 0 out of my math.  My bad.  But what I said that you took issue with is that the train never stopped for the vast majority of the country.  80% is still "vast majority".

And again, the "vast majority" of the jobs those people "lost" are waiting for them as soon as the citizens collectively decide they've had enough sitting around.

On 4/26/2020 at 12:48 PM, Clydesmom said:

Have a source to back that up?

Yeah - common sense.  Read the mile long list of essential services in your area, and 'retool' to become one of them.  My wife's boss bought a $500 piece of equipment that converted them into "fabricators".  They have thus far remained essential under their primary business because they have contracts with hospitals, but if that were to change, they now have a plan B.

On 4/26/2020 at 12:48 PM, Clydesmom said:

Your willingness to bury your head in the sand and pretend nothing bad is happening is the same attitude and lack of action that allowed Hitler and the Nazi party to rise to power.

You've gone off the deep end.  Your comparison is insulting to victims of the holocaust.

Not to mention, I'm not taking a "nothing bad is happening" stance.  My main message is that citizens are 100% in control of how much longer this BS goes on. What's happened to this point is reversible. If people are happy being unemployed because 'the government said they had to', then you'll be right.

[Harry Seaward]

2 hours ago, Goody_Ouchless said:

I wonder how they phrase the poll question that shows this vast majority that would prefer to maintain this state of affairs.

Yeah, I'd love to see that poll.  "Are you willing to not leave your home for a few days if you knew that leaving it would result in the certain and agonizing death of someone you love?"

Judging by what I see when I'm out and about, people that want to stay busy have found ways to do it low key so they don't get frowned upon or even snitched out by self righteous do-gooders.

[Goody_Ouchless]

2 hours ago, Harry Seaward said:

...found ways to do it low key...

Ha - I was wearing a mask at the store just to keep others from freaking. Harry and I have been lucky, as people around here seem to be keeping calm - most people I've met on my daily shopping excursions have been in good spirits, and if someone is out in their hazmat suit, folks tend to give them a wide berth. Still makes no sense that I can hit a half dozen nasty Goodwill's, but I can't have lunch in my usual restaurant.