Turn The Collection Lawsuit Into A Suit Against The Debt Collector


Turn The Collection Lawsuit Into A Suit Against The Debt Collector.

wrongful collectionYou’ve been sued by a debt collector (debt buyer) like Asset Acceptance, LVNV, Midland or Portfolio Recovery.

You know that you don’t owe any money to the debt buyer and you know the debt buyer normally either can’t or won’t prove it owns the debt.

Do you just have to accept that you have sued by some bogus debt collector?

Or is there anything that you can do about it?

Let’s explore some options to turn the tables on abusive debt collectors.

The main laws we will be discussing are Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA).

Was The Collection Lawsuit A Bogus Suit That Violates The FDCPA?

Do you owe the debt?

If not, then it is likely a violation of the FDCPA.

Because the collector is taking an unfair action against you by suing you on a debt you do not owe.

Has the debt buyer lied about who you opened an account with?

Often we see lawsuits that say “Plaintiff (Midland, LVNV, etc) extended credit to Defendant (consumer).”

This is a false statement as you never borrowed money from Midland or LVNV or Portfolio.

Or the suit will say “Defendant (consumer) requested credit from Plaintiff.”

Which again is a lie as you did not request money from the Plaintiff debt collector.

Did the debt buyer sue you after the statute of limitations expired?

We had a recent case where the debt buyer collector and the collection lawfirm filed suit against someone more than five years after the statute of limitations had expired and both the collection agency and the collection lawfirm knew it.

Did the debt buyer sue you with no intention of proving its case?

Did LVNV or Midland or Portfolio just sue you hoping you would default but having no intent to bring witnesses and documents to trial that could be admitted?

Then it may have violated the FDCPA by doing so.

This is fundamentally unfair and deceptive and is the ultimate type of frivolous lawsuits that businesses complain about.

The way to respond to these types of bogus lawsuits is to sue the debt collector under the FDCPA and Alabama state law.

This is one way to turn the tables on these debt collectors who file frivolous lawsuits against Alabama consumers.

Did The Collector Do False Credit Reporting On You?

If you don’t owe the debt, did the debt buyer still report that you did on your Equifax, Experian, and/or Trans Union reports?

Make sure you have pulled your credit reports so you will know.

Even after the judge ruled in your favor, that you do not owe the debt, did the collector continue to report you as owing the debt?

If so, you may can sue under the FDCPA which prohibits false credit reporting by collectors.

Did The Collector Mark Your Credit Report As Being “Disputed”?

When you answered the lawsuit and said you deny owing the money, the debt collector has to tell the credit reporting agencies that the debt it is reporting is “disputed” at least when it updates your credit report.

This can help your credit report which is one reason why debt collectors hate to mark your account as disputed on your credit reports.

But if this is not done, then you can normally sue under the FDCPA for violating Section 1692e(8).

You can also be entitled to money damages (statutory and actual) and your attorney fees can be paid.

Some of these debt buyers, or at least the defense lawyers that defend these collectors, claim that your “answer” denying the claims of the collection lawsuit doesn’t count as “disputing” the debt.

Let me ask you this.

What could be a more effective and clear indication of disputing a debt than putting it in your official answer that is filed in court and served on the debt buyer?

Nothing.

Like many of the excuse arguments of the debt buyers when we sue them, this one is so bogus.

I’m not even sure how the lawyers say it with a straight face…

Has The Collector Continued To Collect After You Won Your Case?

Some debt collectors are beat at trial and just can’t accept their loss.

They want to continue to collect against you.

Will continue to credit report which is illegal.

They will call you or write you or have another collection agency call or write.

All further collection activity on the account they lost at trial is illegal and should be met with a strong lawsuit.

You can read about this in our article on the debt buyer LVNV which has a nasty habit of collecting after losing.

If The Debt Buyer Violated Your Rights, Take Action And Recover Damages You Are Entitled To Receive From The Collector!

If you don’t, these collectors will continue to break the law.

When you stand up and fight back, you can do heroic things and make a difference.

You may also receive money damages.

That really gets their attention and will be the thing that finally makes the debt buyers change their ways….

Give us a call at 205-879-2447 or contact us through our website.

We’ll be happy to chat with you.

Have a great day!

John Watts


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