Why are collection agencies still calling?

Question

My mom receives 2 to 3 calls a day from collection agencies wanting my sister and we have gave them her new address but they say they cant reach her and they keep bugging my mom everyday. My sister lives in Europe.

Answer 1

In most states, it is completely legal for creditors to call relatives of people who owe money. It is legal in most states for creditors to call neighbors of people who owe money (although most don't do that).

But the fact that the creditor is taking the easy route in calling a stateside mom instead of trying to contact an out-of-country child goes over the line.

But, your mom should be very insistent with your sister that she get her financial affairs in order. Have mom tell your sister to pay up, which will stop the calls. After all, that's why they make them.

Answer 2

I can sympathize with that. I moved 3 years ago and got a new phone that belonged to someone who owed money to everyone in town.. I had calls day and night for more than 2 years. What they are doing is illegal and is harassment and you should first ask for their name and number and tell them if they persist, you will file a complaint with the FTC and the FCC.

More important, you need to find out who is the creditor and call them. Ask for a supervisor and tell them your sister is and independent adult and does not live there. If they do not stop calling your Mom, you will file a complaint. The problem is that most peopel won't give you the name of the creditor. But if your sister knows, get it from her.

This is what the law says... they are allowed to call the debtor 1 time. If they persist after you tell them to stop, it is harassment. So how do they get around that? They send out a list of all the people who owe them money to many many different collection agencies and pay them on a commission bases. So if one company gets yelled at by you, another company calls and it will never end until you get to the source.

Another way to screen out these unwanted calls is to subscribe to your phone companies "privacy director" service. See most of these calls are computer generated, as with all the telemarketing calls. This service will screen out all computer generated calls and let you make a choice as to whether you want to answer the incoming call or not. It caosts a few bucks but you get some peace and quiet.

Answer 3

Any company you receive a line of credit through, and default, sell the collection to collection agencies. If your mother co-signed for the credit or was an authorized user, then she is also deemed liable for any debt incurred, so they won't quit calling until they receive it.

If your sister is not willing or does not have the means to pay it the tell the agency to go ahead and charge-off the account so they will quit calling.

The poster above is correct in saying, alot of the times you can strike a deal with the agencies and offer less then the amount owed to clear the record.

Answer 4

Talk to the credit collection agency and find out about the loan. If the loan is legitimate, pay it, or negotiate a settlement. Collection agencies work with debt that isn't always reported to a credit bureau unless/until the collection company determines that it's uncollectable. Examples are medical debt and utility debt.

Answer 5

It is against the law for a collection agency to do anything that would or could be construed as harassment or threatening. Your mother does not owe them, so she can tell them not to call her anymore or she will take legal action against them. That would fall under the harassment part of the statute that governs the agencies actions of trying to collect a debt. Your sister on the other hand can be called everyday as long as they do not call her at her place of emploment. Hope this helps.

Answer 6

do you know how collection agencies work?

lets say, for example, your sister owes Sprint $3000. Sprint goes to the collection agency, and says, "hey, how about you give us $2000, and now this girl owes YOU $3000?" this way, Sprint is guaranteed to get at least some money back, instead of none. however, this way, the collection agency is now $2000 in the red. they want to get their money back. you are the only person they can call to try and get it. so they will keep calling forever.

you might consider dealing with the collection agency, ie: "hey, how about we give you $2200, and you piss off?" they're happy, because even though they didnt get $3000, they still made a little profit.

then tell your sister she owes YOU.

Answer 7

Your sister must have at one time put your moms address or phone number on a credit application. My sister did that (so the company couldnt find her) and the company started calling my mom several times a day and she finally had to call and speak to a supervisor and she gave them my sisters address and phone # and they stopped calling.

Answer 8

you need to say that according to the fair debt collection that you will now be turning them in to the attorney Generals office and the Federal Trade Commission of your state. further I will be recording any and all of the next calls you and your collection agency makes to my number to further my case with the Attorney Generals office and the FTC!!!

Answer 9

Because they are a pain in the ***! Tell your mom to find out how much it costs to change her phone number or simply tell her to hang up on them. They will eventually get the point.

Answer 10

yes, those are all good...but....you can also try, caller i.d. and call block. works like a fricken charm. they may call from several different numbers, but with a common prefix...you'll start recognizing the numbers once you get the hang of it. just remember, these are not humans with feelings and hearts...and stuff like that. let your meanest , angriest ***** loose on these cyborgs. they actually like it. say something like..."look, do me a favor, and go **** yourself you ******* *********** *****. " trust me, they like that. they'll call again and you could just hollar super loud in the phone..."fuuuuuuck youuuu" . click. super easy. it's really good for stress relief...and you get a good laugh out of it.