can i sue a collection agency?

Submitted by ron2chill on Sat, 04/03/2010 - 07:37
Forums

this collection agency made a mistake reporting my credit when they first contact me they said i owed $600 wich i pay after the second time they call me i got a letter from them saying my balance was $0.00 , i went to get a car from a dealership when they check my credit there was unpaid collection of more than $5k and the $600 that i know of i was never told about the $5k i could get the car beacuse of this also i was in the prosses of buying a condo now the bank that aproved me for the loan back out on me i contact the collection agency they are sorry about the mistake but they blame the apartament complex that sent the wrong info this is a huge inconvinience for me now i have no car i will not get my condo and the tax credit the goverment was offering i ant get a loan or a credit card what can i do ? who is responsable ?? can i get compensated for their negligence??

You need to be somewhat clearer about the time line and your paper trail.

you need to look at your state law as well.

credit reporting is governed by federal law and certain state laws.

I would contact your state attorney general. I am not a lawyer but you have to prove that the CA showed gross negligence or malice in screwing up your credit.

YOu have not mentioned whether, you tried to dispute this with the CA or CRAs. If they fixed the mistake when notified then this will be tough. I would try the AG first and see what they say about it.

Sat, 04/03/2010 - 14:18 Permalink

Hi Ron,

Cinnamngrl is right. You should first try to dispute this with the collection agency. If this does not work, you can try to file a dispute with the credit bureaus. However, if all these fails, and you need to sue the agency, you may take the help of an attorney. You can also take advice from your State Attorney General.

Hope this helps.

Regards,

Aaron

Mon, 04/05/2010 - 09:44 Permalink

I have personally found that calling your attorney general is one of the quickest ways to resolve a problem. You can find the number in your phone book or doing a quick internet search typing "atty general for the state of..". Also do the dispute regardless but if you need the car quick the fastest way is through the atty gen. Hopefully your state"s atty is as quick acting as mine. Good luck.

Tue, 04/06/2010 - 12:55 Permalink

You got it fireyone,

Do you have copies of what was reported, this would be great proof.

Our attorney general is now running for governor, hope he gets it, he is one tough cookie who has always been a great consumer advocate, his office and staff are just as impressive. He surely gets my vote, go Tom!!!!!

Tue, 04/06/2010 - 14:25 Permalink