I was contacted by an old co-worker from my previous job stating someone was calling up to three times daily leaving voicemails at my old extension saying I needed to call back regarding a "formal complaint on several different matters." They left a "claim number" of 9666 to refer to when calling back. I called the number back on Friday, January 20, 2017 and spoke with a Monica Brown. She stated she was contacting me about a payday loan that was taken out in the amount of $300 in 2011 and that said loan was never repaid. She further stated that with late fees and interest the amount due was now at over $1600. She then stated that "paperwork" was being filed to take the matter to court but that I could avoid court proceedings if I paid the $300 over the phone with her that day. I told her I had no knowledge of the debt and she went on to verify that I had a bank account with PNC Bank at the time, which is true. She stated that the lender attempted to withdraw the funds from said bank account but that it had been closed. I asked her to send me something in writing about all this but she stated "it's too late for that, we're already past that." I told her before paying anything to anyone I needed to verify my records and see if I had anything on this. She put me on hold and told me when she came back that her "legal counsel" has told her that I can call back but that the matter needed to be resolved before 5:00 pm that day. I continued to get calls and voicemails throughout the day from different numbers. When called back, each number reached the same place (National Litigation Services). After researching a bit, I called back several times and spoke with different representatives each time on January 27th. I asked each representative a series of questions and was able to determine the following: 1. The name of each representative. 2.That they could not provide the name of the original lender. They stated the lender's parent company was "Knox" but could not provided the name of the actual lender. 3. That the supposed debt dated to January 14, 2011, which was outside of the NJ statute of limitations for debt collection of 6 years. 4. They could or would not provide a mailing address so that I may send them correspondence. When asked, the first representative I called became angry and yelled "You don't tell me what to do, you can't ask me for information!" and hung up. The next one I asked placed me on hold and never returned. I hung up the call after about 6 minutes. The next one stated the company was paperless and could not accept anything in writing. The next one stumbled a little and just hung up. The final call, was answered by Monica Brown again, the representative I first spoke with the Wednesday prior. I asked her for the mailing address and was told I could have it but she'd have to ask her legal counsel again. When she came back to the phone she told me she couldn't give it out but that she needed my address. I refused to supply her with anything until I had a mailing address of theirs but never got one. With the exception of the one that put me on hold and never came back, all representatives disconnected the call when I pressed for a mailing address. I her to take me off of their phone list. She said she would but that she would be sending the sheriff and said "we'll see you in court" before hanging up. The calls and voicemails continue. I have logged complaints with the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
I was contacted by an old co-worker from my previous job stating someone was calling up to three times daily leaving voicemails at my old extension saying I needed to call back regarding a "formal complaint on several different matters." They left a "claim number" of 9666 to refer to when calling back. I called the number back on Friday, January 20, 2017 and spoke with a Monica Brown. She stated she was contacting me about a payday loan that was taken out in the amount of $300 in 2011 and that said loan was never repaid. She further stated that with late fees and interest the amount due was now at over $1600. She then stated that "paperwork" was being filed to take the matter to court but that I could avoid court proceedings if I paid the $300 over the phone with her that day. I told her I had no knowledge of the debt and she went on to verify that I had a bank account with PNC Bank at the time, which is true. She stated that the lender attempted to withdraw the funds from said bank account but that it had been closed. I asked her to send me something in writing about all this but she stated "it's too late for that, we're already past that." I told her before paying anything to anyone I needed to verify my records and see if I had anything on this. She put me on hold and told me when she came back that her "legal counsel" has told her that I can call back but that the matter needed to be resolved before 5:00 pm that day. I continued to get calls and voicemails throughout the day from different numbers. When called back, each number reached the same place (National Litigation Services). After researching a bit, I called back several times and spoke with different representatives each time on January 27th. I asked each representative a series of questions and was able to determine the following: 1. The name of each representative. 2.That they could not provide the name of the original lender. They stated the lender's parent company was "Knox" but could not provided the name of the actual lender. 3. That the supposed debt dated to January 14, 2011, which was outside of the NJ statute of limitations for debt collection of 6 years. 4. They could or would not provide a mailing address so that I may send them correspondence. When asked, the first representative I called became angry and yelled "You don't tell me what to do, you can't ask me for information!" and hung up. The next one I asked placed me on hold and never returned. I hung up the call after about 6 minutes. The next one stated the company was paperless and could not accept anything in writing. The next one stumbled a little and just hung up. The final call, was answered by Monica Brown again, the representative I first spoke with the Wednesday prior. I asked her for the mailing address and was told I could have it but she'd have to ask her legal counsel again. When she came back to the phone she told me she couldn't give it out but that she needed my address. I refused to supply her with anything until I had a mailing address of theirs but never got one. With the exception of the one that put me on hold and never came back, all representatives disconnected the call when I pressed for a mailing address. I her to take me off of their phone list. She said she would but that she would be sending the sheriff and said "we'll see you in court" before hanging up. The calls and voicemails continue. I have logged complaints with the Federal Trade Commission and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau.
I received a call from my father that this number listed was calling about a debt that needed to be paid. In panick, I called the number and they are calling about a debt that needed to be paid from 2012. I asked for the company that this debt is from. They gave me the name of "Riverside Financial". I asked for the specific payday loan I apparently have to pay off and they wouldn't tell me. They informed me I owed a significant amount of 1,600 but they can put it down to 500 one time fee. I asked them if their is a way to settle this debt and they informed me no. They said they would send a summons to the sheriff the next day if I didn't pay it off.