Why Do They Keep Repeating This Question?

[SobStory]

I stopped paying CC about 2 months ago. Incessant phone calls. I answered for a few days because I was planning an open house to try and sell the house that we can't afford and I didn't want the phone ringing off the hook.
Now in some cases, they have called just 2 or 3 days before. And they all ask the same question: "Can you confirm your mailing address?" I finally started to tell them that it hasn't changed from the phone call 2 days before.
Why do they keep asking this idiotic question??? I have up to now just kept repeating my address but really, why keep repeating this?

[Overmylimit]

They are just confirming that they have the party they are looking for, I know its annoying though. Also for people like me my main phone line they call was a business cell so if they do get a hold of me (which they never do since I have all the creditors names in my caller I.D.) the 1st thing they do is confirm an address to see if its the same as before.

[magyar123]

The most annoying question is "When is your birthday"?
My usual response - "why, do you want to buy me a gift"?
I might five them the day and month, but whenever they ask what year I just say "as long as I'm alive every year", or "sometime between 1900 and 2000".

[Overmylimit]

the most annoying question is "when is your birthday"?
My usual response - "why, do you want to buy me a gift"?
I might five them the day and month, but whenever they ask what year i just say "as long as i'm alive every year", or "sometime between 1900 and 2000".

lol

[CompTweaker]

Hey guys and gals, SERIOUSLY, just stop talking to them!

Unless you are in the fortunate position of negotiating $1000 or so debt, and you have the means to pay it, just stop talking to ANYONE about the debt over the phone. You need to learn to rules of "STATUTE OF LIMITATIONS" (SOL for short).

Find out your own state's SOL and try to use it to your advantage! Please realize that when you talk to them on the phone, you give them the chance at renewing the SOL when you admit the debt is yours since many of them record the phone calls.

[BigJohn]

I stopped paying CC about 2 months ago. Incessant phone calls. I answered for a few days because I was planning an open house to try and sell the house that we can't afford and I didn't want the phone ringing off the hook.
Now in some cases, they have called just 2 or 3 days before. And they all ask the same question: "Can you confirm your mailing address?" I finally started to tell them that it hasn't changed from the phone call 2 days before.
Why do they keep asking this idiotic question??? I have up to now just kept repeating my address but really, why keep repeating this?

They ask you "Can you confirm your address" which normally carries with it an answer of "YES" or "NO".

Just tell them "YES". Make them feel stupid..

Then they will probably want to know what your address is. Tell them "I don't give out my address to strangers. I need to verify who you are."

"First, what is your phone number. I need that to call you back.
Next, i need to know what is your name,
followed by what is your address,
and the last item I will need is what is your Social Security Number."

[catleg]

Remember the movie "Blues Brothers?"

1050 West Addison, Chicago IL 60613 (wrigley field)

You've got to have some fun with them, otherwise you'd just cry.

[SobStory]

Thanks for all the info which is very helpful. I know I should pull a credit report but it's depressing. Gotta face up to it, tho.

[CompTweaker]

Look if your going to dole out advice at least make it factual.

I'm following the advice of lawyers, and I'll take their advice over anything read on a forum on the internet.....whether its right or wrong, you really do no harm by NOT talking to the ca

[HHM]

Please realize that when you talk to them on the phone, you give them the chance at renewing the SOL when you admit the debt is yours since many of them record the phone calls.

Yep, that little nugget of a statement is absolutely false. Verbal acknowledgement is insufficient to toll the SOL; to reset an SOL, you need an overt act. In the debt collection field, that usually means payment and sometimes can include written acknowledgment.

[BigJohn]

Well this actually depends on your situation. If your not worried about them calling anyone they can find in an attempt to locate you thats fine, if your going to be filing soon and your not trying to buy sometime to file thats fine also. Also there is a big difference between talking with your OC and a CA. Buy avoiding the OC your account gets pushed off to a CA a lot faster. See things are relative to if your employed, own a house have assets you need to protect. There is not a one size fits all for every situation.

I have talked with everyone one of my creditors and none of my accounts when to CA (and some are still in house 14 months later) until I was at least 5 months past due. But I have yet to be sued and I had a bunch of assets I needed to sell off. I have been able to do that. So yes I talk with every CA make sure they have my current PO Box, know the address of my house thats about to go into foreclosure and this way they won't call any relatives. Plus no one has tried to sue me yet, so I bought the time I needed to do what I needed to do. I don't think going "underground" would have yield the same results as to what "I" needed.

But, yes I talk with them let them call and talk to me 3 or 4 times as I wait for the dunning letter to arrive and then send off a DV with a "its inconvenient to be called from 8:00 am to 9:00 pm seven days a week" in the letter or I do a flat out C&D.

But there is a BIG difference between what you just said in post about not talking to a CA and telling people that talking to them can reset the "SOL".

You know this is the second or third time I have corrected something you posted and then you tell me your following what your lawyer(s) said about this or that. All I know is if you are repeating what your "lawyers" told you about the "SOL" you either need to pay more attention to what they are saying or get some new "lawyers".

Look I am not your enemy, I just want others to realize this is not a bad thing to deal with a CA and when done correctly you can be in control. And yes its true for some people they should not talk to a CA, I know some people get scared and would talk like they were in Guantanamo Bay...LOL But then again I don't need some CA ass&^$% calling my 76 year old mom (and yes my mother knows where I am at in my financial life) but calling her and scaring her that her son will go to jail or something if she doesn't pay it for me. Its not fair to her to have to deal with my issues. So no I refuse to put my head in the sand, and I will use the rules and laws to help me as I need. Even if that means you have to sue me. Fine waste your money cause I am going to push the big red BK nuke button in the near future.

Lets be honest, there are really only a handful of things you can say to CA that will make any difference.

1. I work here and please don't garnish my wages.
2. I have _____ disposable income to pay you and ----> see above.
3. I own _________ and its worth this much ________ (seize my assets please).
4. Let me get my checkbook and give my account number(s) to make a payment.
5. Here is where I bank, I only have a couple million left to get by on.
6. You won't put a lien on my vacation home in ________.


But sadly, I realize that people give out that info all time and people on SS get bank accounts drained daily for giving out this info. So, no I won't disagree that not talking to them is worse, but its all relative. By all means get an attorney to help you if you need it.

I haven't talk to any of my creditors. It was over 5 months after not paying before anything was sent to a collection agency. I did receive one summons after not paying for more then 9 months. That creditor is known for suing so it did not surprise me one bit. None of my relatives have been contacted by creditors.

Each person is different then another person. I have a store that we plan on keeping. We have a house, a truck and car we also plan on keeping. Creditors know this especially when they look at our credit report and see we have been making payments on the house and vehicles.

[treehugger1]

Well, I cannot agree that "lawyers" (actually attorneys) are the folks to always turn to. They are capitalistic as much as any of us. I have taken the time to sit in on many debt related court hearings in my district, and I have come to realize that most of the attorneys in my district seem not to know "shit" about my state or federal statutes. What they do seem to know is that most "common" folk will not show up and form a defense, and they can tell the judge whatever they like.

If you believe in YOUR position (or sort of believe as a least-sophisticated consumer,) then answer the damn*d calls and request written information via USPS mail. When the "dunning" letter arrives send a DV and cease-and-desist letter.

If it is your intent to not have family, co-workers, or employers involved, then you need to take charge of the situation. If you can think back to references you might have listed on an initial application, then you should consider this. I don't consider this since most of my initial application records are at least a decade old. In other cases, answer the phone and take responsibility for dealing with the situation. Otherwise, many of the CA's will find other methods of "contacting" you.

In terms of SOL in my state, the statute of limitations begins once the account has charged off; so six years + 180 days. I would guess that most local creditors will act much sooner than a 6 1/2 years down the road! In fact, I have personal experience that most of my local creditors acted before charge-off.

In addition, (I have said this, HHH has said this, and BB has said this) the SOL issue is a defense YOU have to raise in most states! You can be sued far after a SOL claim, but if you fail to make the SOL answer to a suit, then you are TOAST. Furthermore, it is not always free to answer a summons. In my state, it costs $180+ to file an answer with the court, and it will cost an additional amount to have your answer served on the plaintiff. My best guess, in my state, is that the SOL defense could cost you up to $500. I would guess that most folks considering BK do not have the time or money to file a SOL answer to a suit.

It is unfortunate that we live in a system where it costs us money to "defend" ourselves. But, that's the way life is at times. Incredibly, I have heard of capital crimes in my district where the DA is unwilling to prosecute because the defendant has provided an answer and the costs of trial and human resources out of the DA's office do not justify the aditional cost to the state of long-term incarceration (should the defendant be found guilty; not a given.)

My take is that the bottem line will coat you money unless you are willing to file BK. If you are not filing BK, then roll the dice, exercise your rights, and see what the roll adds up to.

[CompTweaker]

My apologies if I'm wrong about the SOL starting over as a result of a phone call by itself. I brought it up with an attorney and was told that recorded evidence of a phone call, from your number, with your voice admitting to the debt, could be used against you in court. Maybe it wont restart the SOL, I thought he said it would, but it can be used against you and both lawyers told me not to speak with them on the phone, just get everything in writing.

Maybe Im biased in my response because this is what worked for me. When it all first started, the 20 phone calls per day got old quick, so I changed my number and just never looked back. I didnt even think to look at it like you guys, and you are correct about taking the calls and dealing with the debt collector directly if you do not want your relatives or workplace to know about it. Actually, if they did reveal to the person they are calling that it is about debt, then the FDCPA clearly states that is a violation, so theres an FDCPA claim to add to your counterclaims. I have one relative, who knows everything about my financial messed up situation, who they never contacted. So it worked for me, and at the time, I had no clue about cease and desist letters or anything....so I changed my number and never talked to them again. The peace and quiet, and not having the stress of talking with an angry aggressive collector was well worth the $15 to change it. But yep, now that I know a lot more than I did then, I have no problem at all speaking with them as long as Im not admitting to the debt.

BB I dont recall you ever correcting me 3 or 4 times where I fall back on using advice from a lawyer as an excuse of being wrong, and Im not really interested in participating in another argument and post search with you again. If I actually did, well what can I say, you got me, but there were no hidden intentions there. Regardless, I wish you luck with your situation.

TH its a shame that your state is not a debtor and pro se friendly state. In my state (and many others), answering a summons and complaint is free, as well as filing counterclaims.....and if you are sued on time barred debt (also an FDCPA violation), yes you must raise it as an affirmative defense, just be sure to add the FDCPA violation in with your counterclaims. And you are not necessarily toast if you dont raise the SOL defense (in the case that you cant use it). Theres other defenses, and the JDB has to provide a lot of information in order to prove you are the rightful owner of the debt, the amount is correct, and that they own the right to collect it.

Look guys, I have never had any intentions on misleading anyone, or offending anyone (other than that argument between BB and I a while back), and I'll tell you and anyone else here that the information I share is from my own personal experiences, and I hope it helps people. After all, thats why I'm here. I came here seeking help when I didnt know anything about BK or dealing with JDB's, and now that I have went through quite a lot of personal experience, reading books, speaking with attorneys, learning my state's rules of civil procedure (each state has its own), and reading other's experiences who are in the same boat as I am, I hope to return the help that I got. A lot of times, people are talked into paying on a debt that may be time barred, or may not even be theirs. Some people succumb easily to scare tactics and that was another purpose in saying dont talk to them on the phone. Now if they can and want to do what you guys did, great, more power to them and I hope they stand their ground.

[CompTweaker]

Oh, almost forgot, as far as serving the answer, I did it through certified mail-return receipt. I had to send it priority so it was $9 total.

[SobStory]

OK, here's what I do. If I don't answer the phone, the calls are incessant. It is just easier to answer the phone and then I get much fewer calls. I do not have the luxury of changing my phone number. We have a business and I need this number. Also, if I did change it, because our business number is on the web, they would find us anyway. I also work in an office and am terrified that they will start phoning me there.
They all record it and quote some numbers at me. I don't discuss the amounts but I'm sure if I got into it I would dispute it, because it is full of fees. The put you over limit with fees then charge you an overlimit fee.
They all ask why I can't pay, I tell them our business has fallen off. They ask when I can pay, I say I hope to pay mid-February. This is a lie. I hope to file by then.
Then comes the fun part. Can't we borrow from friends or family to make a payment? Can't we get a home equity line to make a payment? One just called now. "We have payment plans. Give us a post dated check." I start laughing, not to be malicious, but it is funny. The best one was some guy from India who said that we be unable to work because our credit score would suffer and I need to respect my creditors.
There is a slight chance that we won't file. If our house sells in the next few weeks, it would change things dramatically and we would need to see where we are. Most likely it won't and we will file. We have no choice but Chapter 7 and hope to file in a few weeks. Atty wants to file now. We are giving it one last college try to sell assets and pay off secured creditors. Atty says it won't benefit us but we want to simplify the debt and do the best that we can.
My husband has a harder time with the stress of our financial situation. If I take the calls, he gets fewer and I don't mind. Am I doing anything wrong?