I was contacted by James Roberts. He said that we owed money and if we did not pay by Friday they were going to give my husbands debt case to a process server and he would issue a warrant. I told him we would like to make payment arrangements. He transferred me to the accounting department. A woman named Kathy spoke with me and said that she was with Blakewood Lord and Associates. I asked repeatedly if they were a collection agency, and was told they are only a mediation firm...BS. I called Blakewood Lord and Associates back and they had no Kathy there??? I told them I would like my validation of debt which is my right throught the FDCPA. I spoke with a woman named LISA!!! Lisa Wang perhaps??? coincidence??? LOL I think not. She said she had never heard of such a thing. I spoke with a John White and he said he would look into getting it for me. 24 hours later I have not received it and cannot get John White on the phone. I believe they are owned by Anaheim Asset Management. It is just a " face company" who "hires" Blakewood for mediation...that way they can say that they technically are not the debt collector. It is some seriously shady crap. I mentioned to the investigation company- Benchmark- and to Blakewood the Finance Code that they are directly in ciolation of. For the stat of Texas it is section 392.304. It covers coersion ( telling someone they will be arrested) as well as deceptive practices. It also states very clearly that they have to communicate clearly who is owed the debt. They did not appreciate that I had done my research. I have been hung up on 5 times. Now I have debt collectors DODGING MY CALLS. Talk about irony. Do not pay these scamming, lying, pieces of human waste.
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.>
Blakewod Lord and Associates is only a Mediation Firm they don't make outgoing calls they process paper work and documents for many different companies many times people think that they are associated with the investigations itself which would be unlawful but they are only contracted to process doucmentation. Yes there are many scams out there but Blakewood Lord and Associates is a legitimate Mediation Firm. It's unfortunate that anyone can blog, often times angry people that know they committed a crime try to find any excuse to make theirselves look good or even former employees of the company that have been let go so becareful to slander companies without knowing the facts.
I got the same call from Ben Ford I did research he doesn't work for Blakewood he works for some Investigations Firm but he represented his self to work for Blakewood when I called Blakewood they were not aware of this man so be advised if this pretender calls you saying he works for Blakewood and he is an investigator...
Blakewood Lord & Associates, is just a collection agency using unlawful practices they are based out of Georgia if they don't have a license to collect you can sue them know your rights it is against the law to make threats that you can't pursue they have some so called investigation firm call on their behalf but they all work together the weird thing is the investigation firm that works with them is based out if Florida I have had the FBI research them they used an internet base phone anyone can get an internet based phone ring central is the carrier the you must report them to the attorney generals office because they are not licensed they are being surveillanced now and the attorney general will be closing them down soon. These checks can't be pursued criminally at all they are too old. This company is not licensed nor are they collecting lawfully. If you paid already go get a refund from your bank their threats are useless. I thought they were real they are not licensed to collect, mediate none of the above get your money back like I did.