Debt collector claims they are not a debt collector.

[FixMyCredit1992]

Sent a DV to a leasing company, who has placed an item for collection on my TU report. 

They simply said "we are a creditor, not a debt collector, as defined by blah blah blah".

BUT, they are the ones reporting the DEBT, and they are trying to COLLECT it, I don't know what you would call it, but I would call it a debt collector.

I did get a collection letter in regard to the debt from TRS (Telecheck), but TRS is not reporting on my TU, the leasing company is.

Any advice?

[lmfields84]

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@FixMyCredit1992 wrote:

Sent a DV to a leasing company, who has placed an item for collection on my TU report. 

They simply said "we are a creditor, not a debt collector, as defined by blah blah blah".

BUT, they are the ones reporting the DEBT, and they are trying to COLLECT it, I don't know what you would call it, but I would call it a debt collector.

I did get a collection letter in regard to the debt from TRS (Telecheck), but TRS is not reporting on my TU, the leasing company is. At least not *yet*... they will be soon.  You need to DV them, not the OC. And do it soon!

Any advice?

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[FixMyCredit1992]

I don't think two collections can report for one debt, and the funny thing is...the amount owed to TRS is $100 different than the leasing company.

I don't care what is NOT reporting, I need to get the item of that IS, but they are claiming they are not a debt collector.

[lmfields84]

They are not a debt collector any more than Capital One or Wells Fargo are debt collectors, but they CAN report on your CR if you default.  And 2 companies CAN report the same debt as long as one is the original creditor and is reporting a zero balance once they have sold/transferred it to a CA.  TRS is a collection agency and WILL report also, especially if you don't act now (they may report anyway, even if you paid it before it reported).  The difference in balance is likely collection fees and/or interest.

[FixMyCredit1992]

The OC is reporting $231, the collection agency is saying $131 in the letter.

If the collection agency wants money, and the OC want's money, then I'm in a bind.

[lmfields84]

Gotcha- I misread, I thought the CA was reporting more of a balance, that would make more sense.  I would still DV this CA that sent you a letter ASAP, and perhaps you can speak to someone in the EO of this leasing company to resolve the issue?  You definitely don't want to pay both- paying the OC is usually best because there is a possibility the CA will never hit your report that way since they have nothing to collect. 

[lmfields84]

Also- is the debt yours?  Or do you have no clue what it is?  If you don't think it is yours, filing a direct dispute with the CRA's may be the best bet, if they cannot prove the validity of the debt, they must remove it.

[FixMyCredit1992]

The debt is mine, but the leasing company started charging ahead of time, tacking on NSF fees when they charged ahead of time (did not have money in the account when they did that), would not take a lump-sum payment when offered, took money out of my old account when I switched banks and gave them a 2 week notice, causing more fees they would not remove.

The company is a scam, and has numerous complaints, the reason they turned me into TRS is because the payment they took out of my old account bounced (I told them 2 weeks ahead of time I closed it). 

[gdale6]

File complaint with the CFPB.

[RobertEG]

Reporting by both a creditor and debt collector is proper, and is not the reporting that you the debt twice.

Under the FDCPA, any attempt to collect on a debt does not make the party a debt collector.  A debt collector is a parthy other than the one with which the debt initiated.

When a creditor reports, the balance they report is of the amount of debt owed to them.

If they assigned collection assistance to a debt collector for collection, the collection reports the amount they are authorized to attempt to collect on behalf of the creditor, and not a statement of debt owned to them.  If you pay either, both must update their balances to $0.  The creditor update to $0 reflects no more debt owed to them, and the debt collector update to $0 reflects there is no longer a balance under their collection.

If the OC sells the debt to the debt collector, the OC must promptly update their reporting to $0.

The reporting by the debt collector then reflects both the amount they are attempting to collection, and additionallly the amount they now own.

If the debt is legit, a DV might not be the next step.  If it is timely, it will impose an automatic cease collection bar on them, thus precluding any negotiations on payment of the debt.  You would then be in limbo until such time as they choose to send verification.