NCO ..... A debt collector that uses various numbers to call from. I have received calls from numerous different area codes which originate in numerous different states. Either they are using spoof cards or cell phones that will not take an incoming call from a restricted number. (we all use *67 to block) Please for your own good do not call them back at any toll free number they direct you to call if they leave a message. This is a trap to get the number you are calling from. When calling a toll free number *67 does not block out the number you are calling from and they know this. If you inadvertently call them from your job they will start calling you there. By returning a call to that toll free number you are also subjecting yourself to liability for the debt, and also possible discpline at work if there is a no incoming call policy at your job. These people are ruthless and will use any scare tactic available to get you to cough up money. They could care less if it's your food money. A debt collector can threaten you from now till king-dum-com, but after three years there is no legal recourse to collect a debt. In other words if it is over three years old you can tell them to go f#@k themselves and mark all written correspondence "return to sender, not paying" at their expense and there is not a thing they can do about it. Don't get your feathers ruffeled and just hang up on them if they continue to call. I have been ignoring them for 2 years now. They do not have a clue that they are calling a line that I use for my alarm system and nothing else. I keep it listed for that purpose. I watch them relentlessly calling all day and evening on my TV screens caller ID with a ringer off. I laugh at them.
Can I sue them for causing a panic... My mother and father are in there 70's and sick over this company bullying me to pay a debt I never created. As am I. They somehow call forwarded using the local police station... Then I called the police Statuon and no one knew anything???! Then I called the lady back and she forwarded my call to some guy. I told him I was going to the court house to get the corrected tomorrow and he advised me not too and to call a number... I told him I was going to court house and he hung up.
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.