Quote:
Originally Posted by billrae
I have power of attorney for my mother. I received a message on my answering machine from United Bureau. In the message they claimed that they had called and sent written notice that She had she 30 days to dispute this claim. The message said that we must contact them now to settle this issue. I had spoken with them a few weeks ago and they had never made any mention of this. My mother does not have the assets to pay the balance off in full and there playment plan would not work. They also claim that citibank still owns the debt they are just representing them. I am positive my mother has never received anything in the mail regarding thirty days and not mention was ever made on the phone. Where do I go from here?
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I concur with the first response *barring bankruptcy.* First and foremost, I'd suggest you demand written itemization of the charges in question. After thoroughly investigating this is in fact your mother's debt, you
may then want to contact the original creditor, in this case Citibank, and see if they're willing to settle for less than the amount quoted. Ask for the "bottom line," minus interest/late charges, etc. (
That's strictly your decision.)The derogatory credit information has most likely already been entered onto your mother's credit report, so that damage is already done but if you chose to refuse any further contact with the collection agency, you're well within your rights to do so. The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, particularly § 805 on the following link should be pretty self-explanatory :
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. I'd advise any future contact between you and anyone involved here be done in writing; retain copies of your correspondence for your records.
Typically, an unpaid debt deteriorates to a chargeoff (depending on the dollar amount) and then, depending on the creditor's determination to collect the money, it may go into a judgement which could conceivably be placed against real property, etc. that your mother owns (if in fact she does.) Bottom line, she has derogatory credit that may interfere with any other credit application she should ever make and if a judgement, (public record), may have to be paid in full at some point in the future. It'll remain on her credit report anywhere from 7-10 years, depending on your jurisdiction, regardless of the date paid. Just FYI.
Good luck.