Paging NGERASIMATOS & Mods re: CMI Group

[Anonymous]

We GW'd CMI group last week via e-mail for an old TW account of my husband's. Please read the reply we received.<br>

Nikolas - was it  you or someone else who was in the EXACT same position of a CA claiming a payment was returned due to insufficient funds MONTHS after the payment was submitted? I've included my tentative reply, but have NOT sent it yet. I want input from the forum before proceeding.

A) He says we haven't paid when Experian says we have, and even gives the date.

B) He says the payment was returned, but not until FOUR MONTHS LATER and this is just plain shady.

<br><br>

Dialogue below:<br>

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

My tentative response:

Good afternoon Mr. Wilson,

My first concern is that my Equifax credit report, as of 6 March 2008, shows this account as status "Paid", and as you yourself state below, your company has an "obligation to report accurate information to the credit bureaus." In that case, CMI is either misrepresenting to me that the account has not been paid when it has, OR you are not upholding your own policy to report to the credit bureaus. Secondly, I find it hard to believe that a payment would take four months to be returned as "insufficient funds". As any payment presented by check or credit/debit card cannot be processed after 90 days of the date of submission, I am now presented with a situation which requires a much more in-depth explanation than has been offered thus far.

Due to this gross discrepancy in credit bureau reporting, and alleged payment submission and processing, I will be conducting a further investigation for validation of all correspondence with this account.

Sincerely,

ivyalmighty's husband

Thank you for alerting me to this circumstance.

Nelson Wilson <nwilson@thecmigroup.com> wrote:

* This is an attempt to collect a debt and any information obtained will be
used for that purpose. *

Mr. ivyalmighty,

Thank you for permission to respond to you via email!

Because you spoke about the $129.00 payment that was made on 11/23/04, it
seems apparent that you are unaware that your payment to Time Warner was
reversed on 3/21/05, due to insufficient funds. Although we attempted to
follow up with you by phone at 910-265-4221, we were unable to contact you
at that time. As a result, Time Warner added a $27 NSF fee to the total
due, making it a total due of $156.00. This amount is still showing as
unpaid.

Since we have an obligation to report accurate information to the credit
bureaus, as it happened, we cannot remove the item from the credit bureaus,
but we can show it as 'paid', upon receipt and clearance of replacement
funds from you in the amount of $156.00. You may make that payment in
certified funds, such as a money order, and mail it to Credit Management,
LP, at 4200 International Parkway, Carrollton, TX 75007.

I've also left a message for our client contact at Time Warner, to double
check to see if you might have already made this good with them, without
our knowledge. If you have, then we can show the account as 'paid' at the
bureaus.

Please feel free to contact me directly, if you have any questions.

Sincerely,

Nelson K. Wilson

The CMI Group
A Professional Collection Agency
Phone: 800-377-7713 (x348)
Fax: 972-862-4373
nwilson@thecmigroup.com





----- Forwarded by Nelson Wilson/STAR/TheCMIGroup on 03/28/2008 04:04 PM
-----

Fred
Gerber/Sales/TheC
MIGroup To
Nelson
03/24/2008 09:52 Wilson/STAR/TheCMIGroup@TheCMIGroup
PM cc

Subject
Fw: ACCT #27XXX

Nelson,

Here is an email I recieved today

fg
----- Forwarded by Fred Gerber/Sales/TheCMIGroup on 03/24/2008 10:53 PM
-----
 To
FGERBER@thecmigroup.com
03/24/2008 08:27 cc
PM
Subject
ACCT #27XXX



Acct # 27XXX


Please accept this communication as permission to discuss and resolve this
issue via e-mail.

Mr. Gerber,

I used Time Warner for cable service until I unexpectedly deployed for an
overseas tour to Haiti. Unfortunately, as you saw, though I thought I had
covered my final expenses with this account, I somehow missed my last
payment. It is very common for me to go on deployments with such short
notice, but not common at all for me to leave financial responsibilities
open when I deploy. I returned to the United States in November of 2004,
and immediately paid this balance as soon as I received a collection
notice. The delinquent amount was paid by December 2004. At the time, I
requested a deletion of the account from CMI on my credit reports, because
of the circumstances of my military service and my sudden absence to an
overseas location making it impossible to notify me of this debt in a more
timely manner. I ended that conversation with the impression that
forgiveness had been requested and received, and this account would not
stay on my credit reports.

As an Active Duty Marine with 19 years of service currently, I fully
recognize my responsibility with respect to payable accounts.

I am requesting that you give me a second chance at a positive credit
rating, as I was initially offered upon payment in 2004, by revising the
status of this account as reported to the three major credit bureaus. I
sincerely hope that there is redemption at Time Warner Cable and/or CMI,
and I beg you for such consideration. It is vital that my credit report
remains positive, as my billet in the Marine Corps has requirements to that
effect. Other than this account, my credit report remains in good standing
and I intend to exhaust all avenues to keep it this way. Please let me know
if any additional documentation would assist in reaching a positive
outcome, and I thank you again for the time you have spent reading this
letter. I hope that you will deeply consider my request. I look forward to
your reply.

Sincerely,

ivyalmighty's husband

[Anonymous]

P.S. The phone number he mentions calling was by that time turned off because DH was stationed in Guantanamo Bay at that point. So he can't even say he tried to contact - if he truly had, then the notes would have stated the phone was disconnected or something like that....

I'm throwing up the BS flag!

[ngerasimatos]

My issues with CMI are the due to identity theft, I believe it was another member here that had the issues of payment not being applied to the account. Hopefully that person will chime in.

[ngerasimatos]

I like your reply.

Question, do you have copies of the check?

[Anonymous]

You know, I have no idea. He actually had to close that account when we went overseas because they didn't have that bank (Marine Federal) on the island. I'm not sure how we'd go about it.

[Anonymous]

As active duty,  you have more rights than the avg JOE.

Do you have a copy of you travel orders or can you ask you command for these. When you get travel orders they have to hold off on your account and can not chase you for money.

I am a contractor myself and i know from talking to JAG officers.

Talk to you Legal Office for all of the up to date laws and you might try to get a letter from them to scare the OC, CA, or CRA.

The military is no joke and i think that would be your best route as it might scary the collector

Best Wish's

[Anonymous]

chuck -

When he went to Haiti, it was with his unit, so they were cut group orders, not individual orders

But we may still have his orders for Gtmo Bay... I'll have to look around. Thanks!

[Anonymous]

If you talk to a JR Comanding Officer you will have some good luck there.

Dont forget the mind set of a JR CO. They are fighting for Rank, so they need to prove them self.

Its all on how you present  your case to them. If they think they can win then it gives them something to brag about to there highers or equals..

I had some issues that i took to them as a contractor and they acted fast by pulling out case law and other info.. ect..

I still think that as an active duty family yall consult with JAG or equal as there to help you.....

Best Wish's

[ngerasimatos]

Good point Chuck, a CA unwilling to assist an active duty member could be viewed as disgraceful, and tasteless. I would try and "pull rank".

To put it plain and simple. Active duty members are out risking their lives every day to protect all of us, and ensure our safety. This unwillingness to assist active duty members when they are trying to "make things right" is insulting.

I would remind them that the next time they need assistance from a peace officer or the military, always remember who protects them without fail.

[Anonymous]

ivyalmighty wrote:

We GW'd CMI group last week via e-mail for an old TW account of my husband's. Please read the reply we received.

A) He says we haven't paid when Experian says we have, and even gives the date.

B) He says the payment was returned, but not until FOUR MONTHS LATER and this is just plain shady.

I work for a financial institution and "sometimes" the process of submitting checks to be paid can come back where your bank paid it but for one reason or another the receiving bank gets the money...but later the Federal Reserve comes back and says "you weren't supposed to get that" and takes it back.  (I can't explain it better than that but I deal with having customers needing to get proof from their bank that it was paid to go back to the federal reserve and reclaim it.)

This doesn't put the money back into your checking but it does leave the receiving company left having to PROVE that they were to get the funds and this WILL SHOW AS A RETURNED PAYMENT on their records just not NSF but they might not be technical enough as to understand the REASON it was returned.  I would go to the old bank and ask to see if they have those statements showing the paid item and then the next 5 months to see if it was ever returned. (such as an unauthorized debit chargeback might leave them unpaid and the funds returned to you)

My first concern is that my Equifax credit report, as of 6 March 2008, shows this account as status "Paid", and as you yourself state below, your company has an "obligation to report accurate information to the credit bureaus." In that case, CMI is either misrepresenting to me that the account has not been paid when it has, OR you are not upholding your own policy to report to the credit bureaus. 

Dont tell them it's reporting paid then they'll report it unpaid. And if they report a new account as being unpaid DV both and show that the second is over the same debt.

Secondly, I find it hard to believe that a payment would take four months to be returned as "insufficient funds". As any payment presented by check or credit/debit card cannot be processed after 90 days of the date of submission, I am now presented with a situation which requires a much more in-depth explanation than has been offered thus far.

Credit cards can have charges from more than a year old post.  It isn't good business but it does happen.  I believe debit cards are the same way however I doubt they would show as returned...charged back as unauthorized maybe.

Due to this gross discrepancy in credit bureau reporting, and alleged payment submission and processing, I will be conducting a further investigation for validation of all correspondence with this account.

Why not DV them showing where the payment was returned.  Don't just threaten it make them get off their butts and work for a living.

I used Time Warner for cable service until I unexpectedly deployed for an
overseas tour to Haiti.

I was in Haiti in 1999...

P.S. the phone thing....they said they just tried to call there they didn't say it wasn't disconected.