As a client, what are my responsibilities?

Upon enrolling in our dispute program, you are required to submit one collection letter from a third party debt collection agency per account you have enrolled to begin the processing.  You will know that is the correct documentation we use because the letter will come from a company you have never heard of before and contain the phrase: “Unless you dispute the validity of this debt or any portion thereof within 30 days, our office will assume this debt is valid”. In addition, you are required to forward to our processing center all subsequent written letters for each account enrolled you receive as soon as possible.

How long does the dispute process take?

From the time you submit a collection letter from a third party collection agency to our processing center, you can expect the timeframe for invalidation to be about 90 days. Please note that enrolling several accounts may stagger your time frame for each lender has different tolerance periods until they sell your information to a third party and you receive a third party collection letter.  This transition period can take 60 to 90 days.

Lenders do not sell one account at a time to third party debt collection agencies.  Instead, lenders wait for tens of thousands of hardship clients to accumulate to create a portfolio they can sell in bulk for five or six cents on the dollar. They may make millions of dollars at one time with this method so if you are in the transition period waiting for a third party collection letter, this is the reason.

How will the dispute process affect my credit rating?

With relief options such as this, you may have already experienced a decrease in your credit rating due to high balances and over the limit balances on your lines of credit or for non-payment.  This is temporary which will continue throughout the dispute process.  Upon completion of our program, you will be transferred to a credit restoration program which will remove derogatory information from your credit report leaving you with clean credit rating. Typically, the credit restoration portion of the process can take 4 to 6 months.

What types of accounts can be most effectively disputed?

Unsecured lines of credit such as credit cards and signature loans along with medical bills and automobile/truck/motorcycle/RV/ jet ski and ATV deficiency balances.  A deficiency balance occurs when the original vehicle is repossessed and the lender who issued your loan sells the vehicle at auction.  The difference between the outstanding loan and the amount the lender re-sold the vehicle for is considered the deficiency balance. If you have any questions about exactly what this balance may be, you should request from the original lender the bill of sale that they obtained at the time of re-sale.

Since the FDCPA does not include business loans that are guaranteed at the time of issue by a tax ID number, these accounts do not qualify for our dispute program.

How is the dispute process different from debt settlement?

Debt settlement is a method of negotiating a lower payoff amount than is currently owed for debt balances. Debt settlement programs collect a monthly payment from consumers that is held and accumulates in an escrow account until the funds reach an amount high enough to negotiate a settlement with a creditor.  This method has repercussions including 1099s issued to the consumer for unpaid portion of the balances along with no sight of improving one’s credit.  Debt settlement companies also keep any interest that may have accrued on the client’s funds as they accumulate.

The dispute process focuses on incorporating laws that force third party debt collectors to prove that they have any validity to their claim that the client owes them any money at all.  We demand proof that there is or ever was a relationship between the client and the third party agency.  Proof would include providing a bill of sale, a signed and completed Debt Collector Disclosure Statement, a financial connection such as prior debit and credit transactions and /or a signed contract indicating the client has willingly entered into a business relationship with the third party debt collection agency.  In addition, there are no tax implications as a result of the dispute program.

How do I get the harassing phone calls to stop?

As you may already know, when any bill goes unpaid, the original lender will send your account to an in-house collection agency where their staff pick up the account and attempt to contact you multiple times to either set up a settlement action or repayment plan of some type through a barrage of phone calls. You do have options that will help curb these calls or stop them altogether.  While your account is still with the original lender’s in-house collection department, you may pick up the phone and and sternly inform the agent that you know the call is being recorded and that you are demanding that the agency not contact you at that number again.  Then, you may hang up.  The other option is to utilize the Cease and Desist order provided to you in your New Client Package, provide necessary information on the forms and send certified mail to the creditor responsible for the harassing calls.  Since original creditors are not subject to the FDCPA, this option has success in stopping calls about half of the time.

Once you have received your third party collection letter and you have forwarded it to our processing department, they will prepare the initial dispute package to include a notarized Cease and Desist order that is sent certified mail to your third party debt collection agency and calls from that agency are to stop.  In cases where phone calls from third party debt collection agencies continue after they receive the notarized Cease and Desist orders, you are to keep a detailed record of these calls on your Call Sheet and notify AAG who can connect you with a network of FDCPA attorneys who may represent you at no charge and recoup reward monies for each infraction.

What about debt consolidation?

Debt Consolidation is applying for a loan to enroll 100% of your account balances into one with one payment.  This option requires a high credit score and solid, verifiable income to qualify.  Sometimes, clients who apply for a refinance on their home’s mortgage will include unsecured debt into the new loan.  If so, the client is now transforming unsecured debt into secured debt and when the mortgage balance has increased, the client may be stuck with a longer term or underwater in equity regarding home value. Most consolidation loan terms are anywhere from ten to thirty years. This is the most expensive option available.

Why not just file Bankruptcy?

Bankruptcy is a valid option in the marketplace that may seem “quick and easy” at first.  It may even seem a cheaper alternative.  This option does require the client to disclose assets and be under court order for the duration of the filing.  The real expense of a Bankruptcy is on the backend when you apply for future financing of any kind and you find that if you are approved, the interest rates and new payments on loanswill be much higher than if you didn’t have a Bankruptcy on your record.

Bankruptcies can remain on your credit report for seven to ten years. The simplest way to find out if you would be better prepared for the future would be to contact Credit Shield and speak with one of our knowledgeable representatives who can compare all the options available with you.