Consumers across the country report that they're getting telephone calls from people trying to collect on loans the consumers never received or on loans they did receive but for amounts they do not owe. Others are receiving calls from people seeking to recover on loans consumers received but where the creditors never authorized the callers to collect for them. So what's the story?
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, is warning consumers to be on the alert for scam artists posing as debt collectors. It may be hard to tell the difference between a legitimate debt collector and a fake one. Sometimes a fake collector may even have some of your personal information, like a bank account number. A caller may be a fake debt collector if he:
is seeking payment on a debt for a loan you do not recognize;
refuses to give you a mailing address or phone number;
asks you for personal financial or sensitive information; or
exerts high pressure to try to scare you into paying, such as threatening to have you arrested or to report you to a law enforcement agency.
If you think that a caller may be a fake debt collector:
Ask the caller for his name, company, street address, and telephone number. Tell the caller that you refuse to discuss any debt until you get a written "validation notice." The notice must include the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor you owe, and your rights under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
If a caller refuses to give you all of this information, do not pay! Paying a fake debt collector will not always make them go away. They may make up another debt to try to get more money from you.
Stop speaking with the caller. If you have the caller's address, send a letter demanding that the caller stop contacting you, and keep a copy for your files. By law, real debt collectors must stop calling you if you ask them to in writing.
Do not give the caller personal financial or other sensitive information. Never give out or confirm personal financial or other sensitive information like your bank account, credit card, or Social Security number unless you know whom you're dealing with. Scam artists, like fake debt collectors, can use your information to commit identity theft – charging your existing credit cards, opening new credit card, checking, or savings accounts, writing fraudulent checks, or taking out loans in your name.
Contact your creditor. If the debt is legitimate – but you think the collector may not be – contact your creditor about the calls. Share the information you have about the suspicious calls and find out who, if anyone, the creditor has authorized to collect the debt.
Report the call. Contact the FTC and your state Attorney General's office with information about suspicious callers. Many states have their own debt collection laws in addition to the federal FDCPA. Your Attorney General's office can help you determine your rights under your state's law.>
GOT A CALL FROM A "ANISHA FOX" PHONE # 214-919-0167 EXT. 109. STATING SHE'S FROM CHECK & ARBITRATION DEPT AND THEIR A FELON AGAINST ME. SHE ALSO CALLED MY AUNT'S #. HOW DARE HER!! I THEN CALLED HER BACK AND ASK IN A SERIOUS TONE - "WHY ARE YOU CALLING ME ABOUT SOME FELON? WHAT IS THIS ABOUT?" AND SHE REPLIES, IS THAT HOW YOU START A CONVERSATION? OH PLEASE YOU SCAM ARTIST I SAID; I REPEATED MYSELF AND THEN SHE HUNG UP THE PHONE.
THIS IS A SCAM - DO NOT GIVE THEM THE ATTENTION. AIN'T NO ONE GETTING ANY MONEY FROM ME!! SCAMMERS!!!!
I just got a msg on answering machine from Samantha Adams, using the number 214-919-0167, saying she was with Dallas County Arbitrators. She said my husband was a "person of interest" in a case they have going against an acquaintance of ours. I googled this number and the above is what I have found out so far. Why can't all of the States work together to catch these people if this is a scam? I have done nothing so far regarding this call.
They are scammers and i have contacted police and bbb and they said they are close to closing them all they are the scum of the earth and I live with my 82 yr old mother and told her if she didnt give them money i would be put in jail because of what they did the police are very interested
I received several missed calls from the 214-919-0167 and I wasn't able to answer but then they started calling my brothers # threatning him and telling him that they were filing charges against me he kept asking where they were calling from and they would never tell him. So he gave me the same # that I seen on my phone along with a ext but everytime I called all I got was an answering service saying this is investigating services but they never said the companies name which was a little strange for me so I googled the # I this is the information I'm finding. I just hoping they don't slander my name and mess up my character. I don't appreciate false allegations and being threatned when I have done nothing.