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Asked 12 months ago - West Palm Beach, FL
FlagIn the dispute letter, I specifically demanded that creditor stop contacting me in anyway and that I disputed the debt (which I don't owe). The creditor then sold/gave the debt to a different collection agency who is now calling and sending me letters. Is this legal? Is there anything I can do to prevent the creditor from selling/giving the debt to a new agency once I send them a dispute letter?
By the FDCPA all the creditor is required to do if you dispute is stop collecting. That does not stop them from selling, or the more likely occurrence returning it to the original creditor as noncollectable for the original creditor to give away again to another agency. You however can send a similar validation letter to the new creditor and demand they validate as well.
I would also check to see if they are licensed here in Florida to collect as well. Check out my legal guide on how to check the status of a license for a debt collector here, http://www.avvo.com/attorneys/33629-fl-shawn-pa....
Please knows that the term validation letter refers to an aspect of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and it applies to collectors, not the creditors. There is an exception to that--if a creditor buys an account that is already delinquent, then it is treated as a collector. Your letter does not indicate one way or another.
Also, assigning a delinquent account to a collection agency is NOT the same thing as giving it to a new creditor. A creditor can retain the services of multiple collection agencies to work on the claim. That means that if it is the same creditor seeking payment, and it is the original creditor, it is NOT subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, and your validation notice does not apply to it. In that circumstance, the collection agencies it hires are subject to the FDCPA when it comes to validation letters, but not the creditor itself.
The dispute letter governs the conduct of the collector, which is a collection agency or an attorney, but not the conduct of the creditor itself.
Think of the debt you owe as an asset; whatever amount you owe can be bought and sold between creditors and frankly; you should repeat the disputes to any subsequent owner of the debt. Please also make sure you check the credit reporting bureaus and file any disputes you may feel are necessary. As previous counsel stated; you can only stop the phone calls; you can't truly stop sands of time with what creditors do with the debt itself.
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