I received 2 leters in the mail, both stating that a lawsuit has been filed against me by Midland Funding LLC. the first letter is from "American Mediation & Alternative Resolutions", the other from "Ferrey & Nicholas, Inc." both want to work with me to settle my case before trial. To begin with I have not been served with a summons for a lawsuit. I called the small claims court clerk and she would only say that I have not been served yet and the address she quoted was the wrong P.O. box number on the case. From what research I have found it is for a FCNB Spiegel credit card I had a few years ago. I fell on some hard times and got behind on my payments. I then was contacted by "NAFS Collections"with whom I made regular payments that were automatically deducted from my account. Then one day they called and said that I had to settle the account and they would accept $463.02 to be paid in full and I had to do it that day because it was the end of the month. I made the payment but I never recieved anything in writing saying it was paid in full. Now this. I'm not sure if just copies of checks made out to this collection agency will work to prove I paid since there is no account number on it to reference and I never got anything in writing, also is Midland Funding LLC the same as NAFS Collections and Midland Credit Management Pinnacle Financial Group. What should I do now, I have not been served and since the address is wrong the court clerk said I can go there and be served? I don't want them to go to court and not be there, I will lose for sure.
My answer:
1. Spiegel Group Inc., went bankrupt in 2003 and effective June 30, 2003, the New York based Cardholder Management Service (CMS) took over tracking and collection of about 4 million credit card accounts, replacing First Consumers National Bank (FCNB), the Spiegel private label card issuer. DirectMag.com
2. American Mediation & Alternative Resolutions and Ferrey & Nicholas, Inc. are each debt settlement companies that were trolling public records looking for lawsuits, and trying to drum up business for themselves. These two have nothing to do with your alleged debt or the lawsuit. You can safely ignore their letters.
3. Although you have not been served with a summons, you actually know about the lawsuit. Not only do you know about the lawsuit, you talked to the court clerk and they know that you know about the lawsuit. No doubt a note was made in the clerk's file when you inquired about the case, and you cannot deny that you know about the lawsuit. Actually receiving the summons is not essential since you in fact know about the lawsuit. That's all the summons does anyway. It informs you of the lawsuit. The clock is ticking!
Except, of course, if you live in Texas. The Texas courts have made some strong statements about the necessity of actual service. Many other jurisdictions are not as picky and look to evidence of constructive notice. The best you can do when you know you've been sued, however you get that knowledge, is to act quickly. In this situation, delay is not your friend.
4. NAFS Collections (probably National Action Financial Services - Williamsville, NY) is not the same company as Midland Credit Management, and Pinnacle Financial Group is a different company yet. Midland Credit Management is likely related to Midland Funding LLC, but I'm not sure. This needs to be researched or verified.
5. What must be done immediately is to go to the court clerk's office and get a copy of the complaint, which then must be answered pronto! Remember, they have the burden of proof, and since it has been bouncing around from collection agency to collection agency for years, they might not have the paperwork anymore. Spiegel is long gone. You may also have a statute of limitations defense in addition to the fact that you already paid.
Does this Spiegel debt show up on your credit report?
No comments:
Post a Comment