[Demko]

I have a situation that has come about as a result of some old debt that I have, and I'm looking for advice from people who've potentially dealt with this situation before me.

Let's go back about 4 months... my grandmother had recently passed away, and we found ourselves inheriting about $10K. I went out to FreeCreditReport.com and pulled all three of my credit reports, showing all of the negatives on my report, looking for the places where I could make settlement payments. I found all of the people I owed money to, called them all, and made settlement offers to all of them, all of which were accepted. So I considered my poor credit situation resolved for now. I've been making regular checks on my credit to ensure that these items were being shown as settled, and they have. No new items have shown up either. We had some money leftover from the 10K, so since we thought we were free & clear, we sunk that money into the house repairs/remodeling.

Now let's go back about a month ago. I get a phone call from my mom saying that she's being served a subpoena for ME. First of all, is this even legal? Don't they have to serve me personally? Anyways, the server gave her the papers. She signed nothing and only received a legal document requesting my presence today (July 13th) at Marcadis & Associates (a junk debt collector here in Tampa) for a deposition. They requested that I bring my tax documents, my bank statements and my pay stubs for the past 5 years. I don't have all of that, but I've printed out and collected what I do have.

Here's where it gets weird. I looked at my credit report again, thinking that this MUST be showing up somewhere where I didn't see it. Nope. This particular debt doesn't show ANYWHERE on any of my 3 credit reports. So I called the law office to see if it was a valid debt. The rep claimed that their client (the bank collecting on my debt) doesn't report to the credit companies. They also claim that they last received a payment from me in the Fall of 2005. I know for a fact that I hadn't made a payment on any of my credit card accounts since at least early 2005. The Statute of Limitations on debt in Florida is 4 years, which means that if I'm right, and I haven't made a payment to this particular credit card in over 4 years, then they have no right to collect anything from me.

So my questions, at this point, are:

Do I have to provide my bank/tax/paystub info to them without proof that I actually owe this debt? Do they have to prove to me that the debt isn't out of the Statute of Limitations, and if so, what constitutes proof of that? Why would they NOT put this somewhere on my credit report? And if it's not on my credit report, can it possibly hurt my credit score when it comes to applying for a mortgage?

I did wind up going to the deposition today, prepared with a Debt Verification letter, at which point the REALLY SMARMY lawyer told me that she couldn't accept the letter, because they already had a judgement against me in court. They said that I could bring this all up with the judge. I'm seriously starting to smell scam here. Any thoughts?

[The Jewish Cunthead]

This might sound weird but what if they're looking for a different Michael Demko? You know, like the Lebowski mixup?

[Chris Eco]

Only thing I can say, which you probably already know, is go to every court appearance no matter how obnoxious. I'm pretty sure they can get a judgment against you in absentia even if the statute of limitations runs against them.

[The Canadian Content]

Sounds completely off to me, Demko. I wouldn't show them anything -- especially anything with billing/banking info on it -- until you're 100% sure they have a legit claim against you.

[salmonjunkie]

a Google search for Marcadis & Associates brings up these fun links on the first page :

www.debtconsolidationcare.com/collection-agencies/stipulation-agreements.html

www.ripoffreport.com/reports/0/205/RipOff0205659.htm

I think they'll be of good help. Fuck those scam artists.

[The Jewish Cunthead]

Poor The Demko. Somewhere there's a Nigerian doctor who is promising him a million dollars if he cuts him a check for $20K.

[The Canadian Content]

Jul 14, 2009 13:00:17 GMT -5 The Jewish Cunthead said:

Poor The Demko. Somewhere there's a Nigerian doctor who is promising him a million dollars if he cuts him a check for $20K.

Demko getting scammed is not funny. Solly's comment is.

[Byrntrigan]

Something tells me that this collector saw Demko paying all his debts off and thought "hell, we ain't entitled, but lets try to get some of this money that he has now"

That's why I don't pay any of my bills. I don't want them to get their hopes up...

[Jack Quinn]

In 1998 I had roommates run up a phone bill of over $5000. The phone was shut off because they never paid. I moved to Michigan shortly after that, and just before I moved, the phone company was bought out. I never heard anything else about it. Years later, I checked my credit, and it came back clean, no five thousand dollar phone bill. Then, out of the blue, in 2006 I get a collections notice from an agency demanding that I pay the entire bill. Well, at this point it is 8 years old, so fuck em. A year later I get a letter saying they will settle for 2600. This year, I get a letter saying they will settle for 1200. I figure if I wait another ten years they will settle for less than it would cost to send the letter and they will just drop it. They aren't getting a penny from me anyway.

[Demko]

Jul 14, 2009 13:00:17 GMT -5 The Jewish Cunthead said:

Poor The Demko. Somewhere there's a Nigerian doctor who is promising him a million dollars if he cuts him a check for $20K.

I swear. I sent that check 6 months ago, and I haven't heard from him since. And he actually said he was a prince, not a doctor. Does that make it not a scam?

[Mr. Dashbee]

I used to work for a credit card company, and I was a manager in the department that outsourced the collections, including attorney debt collecting.

There are certain things they need to provide to you, if you request them. Some companies require you to make that request in writing. The most obvious is the signed application. If you applied online, there is still a file created and some way that you verified the application. They'll have record of that.

You can also request the last statement that was mailed, as well as proof that the terms & conditions were sent to you. They have to prove that the T&C was mailed to you with a proof of mailing.

It's kinda like how the cop has to show the calibration certificate of the radar if you get a speeding ticket, but no one asks for that when they go to court. If they can't produce it, the ticket gets put on hold while they try to find the certificate. If they never find it, the ticket gets dropped. Obviously different states work in different ways, but they have to prove that the equipment was working properly.

And yes, despite the statute they can still come after you. And they can still report to your credit bureau as well. That statute doesn't stop a whole lot in terms of debt collecting. They make it VERY easy to get deep into debt, and make it VERY hard to get out of the depths of debt.

MTA: How much did you settle your accounts for? You hear all of these commercials for debt settlement firms. From what I gather, that method actually works way better than the $20 per month Consumer Credit Counseling option. Or bankruptcy.

[Demko]

I settled my debt for about $0.55 on the dollar. It seemed to me to be much more cost efficient than a lot of the 'debt settlement' opportunities that have been popping up more recently. Especially since those 'debt settlement' companies work on EXACTLY the same principle as you settling the debt yourself. The only difference is, they front the cash to make the settlement offers, and require that you pay it back to them instead.

It would have been REALLY nice to have settled this debt in the same way. But because they weren't listed on my credit report, they didn't get a dime. I mentioned that to the lawyer handling the deposition yesterday and ended the sentence with "I guess you guys lost out by not reporting to the credit bureaus." - She got REALLY snarky with me at that point, saying "Heh, we haven't lost anything yet, Mr. Demko." I seriously wanted to punch her in the face at that point. Seriously.

When I called the office today, the debt collector (and the cowardly attorney behind him) told me that they don't have to provide ANYTHING to me, because they have a judgement against me in the county court. Huh. You'd think that would be something I'd have been notified of?

[salmonjunkie]

Jul 14, 2009 15:57:46 GMT -5 Demko said:

I settled my debt for about $0.55 on the dollar.

I didn't even know you could do that. I'm in a lot of debt but have some cash I can spare. How do I go about doing that?

[Batman]

Current debt, or old written-off debt?

Most creditors won't settle current debt, or debt that's just a month or two behind. Though I imagine some might make an exception if your debt-to-income ratio is really bad.

But if you have old, written-off debt, just call them up and make an offer or ask them to make you a settlement offer. Haggle a little. "I just have so much money to settle old debts with, and I have other creditors too, you know." That kind of thing.


Also, keep in mind that a settlement isn't much better for your credit score than a write-off. It's a way to get debt collectors off your back, and/or avoid a judgment and garnishment. NOT a way to fix your credit record.

[Byrntrigan]

and if your credit is already shitty, bankruptcy seems to work well to clear and start over.

[Mr. Dashbee]

Jul 14, 2009 15:57:46 GMT -5 Demko said:

When I called the office today, the debt collector (and the cowardly attorney behind him) told me that they don't have to provide ANYTHING to me, because they have a judgement against me in the county court. Huh. You'd think that would be something I'd have been notified of?

So what do they want? Just a lump sum payment? If they can't provide you with proof that you have a judgment against you, and it's not on your credit report...what point is there? It does reek of scam to me.

Jul 14, 2009 17:34:23 GMT -5 Batman said:

Also, keep in mind that a settlement isn't much better for your credit score than a write-off. It's a way to get debt collectors off your back, and/or avoid a judgment and garnishment. NOT a way to fix your credit record.

Not true. A charge off (R2) is bad, yes. But it's still open credit that hasn't been paid back, and it's not coming off of your credit report. A settled account (R1 is settled in full prior to charge off, R2 if paid in full after) might still be listed as a charged off account, but it's also an account that shows settled in full. Which means that account is no longer a liability to a potential creditor. And once you settle it in full, the clock begins on the time it will take to drop off of your credit report. Seven or so years later, it's gone.

[Demko]

It seems to me that they're claiming that there is a judgement against me, and that they plan on acting on it... garnishing my wages, freezing my bank accounts, etc. I'm going to be contacting the Clerk of the Circuit Court in the morning, because I can't seem to find any court records with my name on them. Something is definitely rotten in the state of Demko.

[Demko]

Jul 14, 2009 16:46:04 GMT -5 salmonjunkie said:

Jul 14, 2009 15:57:46 GMT -5 Demko said:

I settled my debt for about $0.55 on the dollar.

I didn't even know you could do that. I'm in a lot of debt but have some cash I can spare. How do I go about doing that?

Yeah, as others have said, if you have old debt, and can continue to dodge the collectors, do so. It turns out that my paying those debts off actually reset the negative flags on my credit report, which means it'll be another 6-7 years before I can even think of buying a house right now, sadly.

[punk/core]

Sounds to me like you need to fake your own death.

[OpTard]

why fake it?

[Byrntrigan]

Jul 14, 2009 18:18:40 GMT -5 punk/core said:

Sounds to me like you need to fake your own death.

Bad things always happen when this family fakes a death.

[Demko]

Quick update:

I contacted a law office today that specializes in debt collector harrassment. They advised me to call the Clerk of the Circuit Court to see if this company actually had a default judgement against me. It turns out, they do. But here's the bitch of it: they sent the summons to "me" at a previous address of mine, at a time when I was no longer living there. So, apparently, the process server decided that whoever answered the door was Michael Demko and didn't request any proof of such. I need to check back in with them to find out if there was a signature for this document, and may be able to prove that I never received the summons for the original court date.

Fortunately for me, though, I'm what's known as 'judgement proof', since I don't own any actual property. I don't own land, I'm buying my car on credit, and I own no assets. Neither does my wife, even though they couldn't touch her assets anyway, because the debt was originated before she and I were married.

So, I'm a little freaked out right now, but not really THAT much, because I know that I've really got nothing for them to take. Especially since my recent job loss caused me to have to take a $7/hr pay cut. We're certainly not 'broke', per se, but we're certainly not in a position to have any of my wages garnished.

Unfortunately, the lawyer I was working with can't officially take my case because the judgement was already filed against me. So I'll probably be forced to call one of the local free-law-advice lines (800-ASK-GARY, etc). I'm hoping to be able to slip past the default judgement on the grounds that they never served the summons to me. If I can do that, it means that this company will have only 3 months to try and collect their debt. And even if I can't slip the judgement, I can't see them being able to take more than $30 or so a month from me without seriously causing us to go broke.

Does anyone know what the law is on process servers identifying the person they're serving before they can officially leave the papers with someone?

[Outback Frito Pendejo]

The process servers say "If you're Federales, where are your badges?"

[Demko]

And then I say "Badges?... Badges?... We don't need no steenking BADGES!"

[Outback Frito Pendejo]

Seriously, the law in your state may vary, but in NY servers sometimes just ask for your name and hand you the paper, and then tend to run away quickly. (We used to get subpoenas for files several times a year, and most of them were sent in the mail or dropped off at reception, but sometimes some assclown server would feel compelled to sneak in to hand it over personally.)