Wells Fargo leaves me message about irreversible decision

[IamOld]

Update guys, for your reading pleasure!

WF started calling again - four times straight to mobile phone once to google # - again, please call so and so ..."I am calling in regards to the file that was forwarded to my office and is pending..." call with your advisor or representation...

I guess I'm still pending with them...

Also, old payday loan is calling too :-)

[GoingDown]

I guess the file still hasn't left their office yet. Once it does, it will be irreversible.

It was so scary to me at first when I got phone calls like that.

Now I would just laugh at them.

[IamOld]

GoingDown, what else can we do - either cry or laugh!!!!

Also, Barclay's called me 20 times during this am :-) BUT ONLY in the AM.

[GoingDown]

Wow, that is a lot of calls.

I think Sears, Wells Fargo, and a junk debt buyer called West Asset Management were the most frequent callers for me. Sears called so much for awhile that I actually just took the phone off the hook for a few days. This was back when I had a landline phone and a physical answering machine. I was sick of hearing it ring, and I was tired of having to listen to their messages.

This is what prompted me to go out and buy a pay as you go cell phone and start using it as my phone. I later dumped the landline phone and left no forwarding number.

This has been years since then, and I tried calling that old number just to see who ended up with it, and it has still not yet been re-assigned, which is strange because it was a 602 number and they are hard to get now. So, it makes me wonder if it was re-assigned but the new customer was getting so many collection calls that they asked for a new number and the phone company just put that number on the back burner to let it cool off for awhile before re-assigning it to a new customer.

[IamOld]

That's funny - I think you're right - the new customer probably dumped the #!

Speak of the devil - Barclay's is at it again :-)

[bcohen]

...I tried calling [my] old number just to see who ended up with it, and it has still not yet been re-assigned, which is strange because it was a 602 number and they are hard to get now. So, it makes me wonder if it was re-assigned but the new customer was getting so many collection calls that they asked for a new number and the phone company just put that number on the back burner to let it cool off for awhile before re-assigning it to a new customer.

You're probably right. Getting a collection agency to stop calling you for someone else's alleged debt is often impossible. Although I have never gotten a single collection call for me on my unlisted home phone (despite having numerous charge-offs and collections), I keep getting calls for other people who used to have this number. I have had this phone number since August of 2008, and I still get at least 2 or 3 calls a week for a woman named Pam and a man named Rick that had this number in the past. Even though I tell the people that I am not the person they're looking for, they still call back again in a week or so.

I don't even know how to stop this, because it does not appear that the FDCPA applies when I am not the debtor, and am not related to the debtor. And of course, they never explicitly admit that they are calling from a collection agency, but I can infer that from the way they speak, and sometimes from the caller ID. But without them giving me the address and reference number, how can I send a cease and desist letter?

[lotsahats]

Ok........they just gave you another 15 days right? Once again, you still have plenty of time, don't bother calling them. Really, they are the only ones I answered. The idiot (could not speak english I swear) wanted me to sell my couch, ended up in an argument. That was the only time I spoke to any of them. You are already stressed, why put yourself through more, I assure you, my call was NOT pleasant.

Wow, your COUCH, Sunshine? Really? Is it made of gold? GEEZ!

Well, I must say, if there is a lighter side to bankruptcy, this thread is it. I needed a good laugh.

Good luck to you, Old. Keep us updated.

[GoingDown]

[QUOTE=bcohen;538981]You're probably right. Getting a collection agency to stop calling you for someone else's alleged debt is often impossible. Although I have never gotten a single collection call for me on my unlisted home phone (despite having numerous charge-offs and collections), I keep getting calls for other people who used to have this number. I have had this phone number since August of 2008, and I still get at least 2 or 3 calls a week for a woman named Pam and a man named Rick that had this number in the past. Even though I tell the people that I am not the person they're looking for, they still call back again in a week or so.

I don't even know how to stop this, because it does not appear that the FDCPA applies when I am not the debtor, and am not related to the debtor. And of course, they never explicitly admit that they are calling from a collection agency, but I can infer that from the way they speak, and sometimes from the caller ID. But without them giving me the address and reference number, how can I send a cease and desist letter?[/QUOTE]

You don't need the reference number. Just the phone number they are calling [your phone number].

Once you find the name of the collection agency, just send them a simple cease and desist letter, with the phone number they are calling [your phone number], and they will usually remove it from their calling list. It doesn't matter whether you are the debtor or not. MOST collection agencies will voluntarily honor a cease and desist letter, no matter what.

In this letter, I would not give them your real name, nor your real address. They already have your phone number. But there is no reason to give them your address and name as well.

This worked for me when a collection agency was calling for someone named Frank. I never even knew who this person was. He just happened to have the phone number before me. After trying to talk to them numerous times and explain that they had the wrong person, only to have them call back later on, I decided to send them a cease and desist letter, and then I never heard from them again about Frank.

If you don't know who the collection agency is, you can get it from their caller i.d. number by doing a Google search on it. It will eventually lead you to the name of the collection agency and then you can find their address by Googling the name of the collection agency. If they are not leaving a caller i.d. when they call, then make sure they get the answering machine or voice mail every time they call. They will eventually leave a message with a call back number, and you can get their address information from that by Googling the call back number.

[GoingDown]

Wow, your COUCH, Sunshine? Really? Is it made of gold? GEEZ!

Well, I must say, if there is a lighter side to bankruptcy, this thread is it. I needed a good laugh.

Good luck to you, Old. Keep us updated.

Unfortunately, this is not unusual.

When you make the mistake of talking to a debt collector on the phone, they will get all sorts of information about you that you would not want them to have and then they will turn it around and use it against you.

Back when I used to make the mistake of talking to them on the phone, they found out that I had dishes and silverware, etc., and they suggested that I sell them on ebay and then wire the money from the sale to them to pay a small portion of the debt I owed the creditor.

Nothing good ever comes from talking to debt collectors.

[JackBondLove]

When you make the mistake of talking to a debt collector on the phone, they will get all sorts of information about you that you would not want them to have and then they will turn it around and use it against you.

Back when I used to make the mistake of talking to them on the phone, they found out that I had dishes and silverware, etc., and they suggested that I sell them on ebay and then wire the money from the sale to them to pay a small portion of the debt I owed the creditor.

Nothing good ever comes from talking to debt collectors.

I beg to disagree. If the aim is to stave off a collections court case, then staying in touch could help. The key thing to do is to just not divulge anything that could used against you - i.e., simply answer any such question as, "based on my initial consultation with a bankruptcy attorney, I believe that it would not be in my best interest to answer that question." For the question about your ability to make a payment, say, "currently, my evaluation of my total financial situation is such that I do not think it would be prudent for me to make up all the payments with all my unsecured creditors, and since my bankruptcy attorney has advised me that I should not make a payment to any unsecured creditor unless I were making a payment to all unsecured creditors, since that would impact any future bankruptcy filing as there would be a 'preferred creditor' issue." For your plans to file bankruptcy, say, "I have had an initial consultation with a bankruptcy attorney, but as of this time, I have not made the decision to file, nor formally retained such an attorney." When asked if an offer of reduced debt were possible, say, "I would certainly welcome any offer in writing, and would take into consideration." If asked how much you could pay in such an offer, say, "I will only respond to an offer; I will not make any offer."

I had a feeling that American Express (or their Hindi henchmen, Nationwide Credit) was getting ready to sue, so I had to keep stringing them along until I was able to file. I used the excuse that I had to get offers from my other creditors before I could make a final determination whether to settle or file.

[IamOld]

I have not talked to any creditor except the local credit union - and talking to them is past due so to speak...I'm supposed to be "go" for a Ch 7 in Sept and seeing atty for appt on the 14th to make sure - so far I haven't referred any creditor to him...I'm really hoping he will say we can go ahead...if we can't, I'm likely screwed, and then I may have to do what you did, JackBond.

I beg to disagree. If the aim is to stave off a collections court case, then staying in touch could help. The key thing to do is to just not divulge anything that could used against you - i.e., simply answer any such question as, "based on my initial consultation with a bankruptcy attorney, I believe that it would not be in my best interest to answer that question." For the question about your ability to make a payment, say, "currently, my evaluation of my total financial situation is such that I do not think it would be prudent for me to make up all the payments with all my unsecured creditors, and since my bankruptcy attorney has advised me that I should not make a payment to any unsecured creditor unless I were making a payment to all unsecured creditors, since that would impact any future bankruptcy filing as there would be a 'preferred creditor' issue." For your plans to file bankruptcy, say, "I have had an initial consultation with a bankruptcy attorney, but as of this time, I have not made the decision to file, nor formally retained such an attorney." When asked if an offer of reduced debt were possible, say, "I would certainly welcome any offer in writing, and would take into consideration." If asked how much you could pay in such an offer, say, "I will only respond to an offer; I will not make any offer."

I had a feeling that American Express (or their Hindi henchmen, Nationwide Credit) was getting ready to sue, so I had to keep stringing them along until I was able to file. I used the excuse that I had to get offers from my other creditors before I could make a final determination whether to settle or file.

[lillymarlene]

Last year when my phone was ringing off the wall for the most part I found it easiest to simply not answer. I was always afraid if I did answer of saying "too much." I did answer one though, someone from (CA) Fred Hanna for Chase just before I filed, and told the person I was thinking of filing bankruptcy. He replied that I don't have to do that, there are so many other alternatives and had me wait while he got his boss on the line. The "boss" also said that bankruptcy will cause me nothing but future trouble and really isn't the way to go, and if I didn't want them to pursue legal action I could maybe settle with them. Then she went on to try and demand my attorney's info, which I refused to give out since I didn't have permission.

I just figured most of those phone calls would probably be similar to that; would just be upsetting and a total waste of time.

[jacko]

Exactly..I got rid of the land line and went off the grid. TMI can be used against you and serves no purpose to talk to collectors.

Last year when my phone was ringing off the wall for the most part I found it easiest to simply not answer. I was always afraid if I did answer of saying "too much." I did answer one though, someone from (CA) Fred Hanna for Chase just before I filed, and told the person I was thinking of filing bankruptcy. He replied that I don't have to do that, there are so many other alternatives and had me wait while he got his boss on the line. The "boss" also said that bankruptcy will cause me nothing but future trouble and really isn't the way to go, and if I didn't want them to pursue legal action I could maybe settle with them. Then she went on to try and demand my attorney's info, which I refused to give out since I didn't have permission.

I just figured most of those phone calls would probably be similar to that; would just be upsetting and a total waste of time.