HELP!! I'm Being Sued by LVNV Funding LLC in Texas for Fingerhut!

[fico7]

I was served on March 5, 2021 and the court documents state I have 14 days from date served to respond to the court. After calling my county court, I was told I can email the response. And after reading another board, I found this response which is what I emailed to my county court on March 12, 2021. 

DEFENDANT'S ORIGINAL ANSWER

Comes now, Name , the Defendant in the above styled and numbered cause and files this Original Answer in this action and would respectfully show the following:

I. GENERAL DENIAL

Defendant generally denies each and every, all and singular, of the allegations set forth in the Plaintiff's Original Petition and demands that the Plaintiff proves same by the preponderance of credible evidence.

II. PRAYER

Wherefore Defendant requests judgment of the Court that Plaintiff takes nothing from the Defendant and the Defendant be granted any further relief that she is justly entitled to.

Name

Street Address

City, TX Zip

123-345-6789

The debt is about 950.00 and is with Fingerhut. My credit report is showing last date of activity was on 2/20/19. From searching on the internet, there are several posts on different forums where the posters were being sued by LVNV Funding for a CreditOne debt. The advice they get is to file a denial response with courts and then file a Motion to Compell Arbitration. So I looked up Fingerhuts Credit Card Agreement to see in Arbitration is an optiion and their current (2021) agreement states: 

Arbitration. Please review this provision carefully. It provides that any dispute may be resolved by binding arbitration. Arbitration replaces the right to go to court and the right to have a jury decide a dispute. Under this provision, your rights may be substantially limited in the event of a dispute. You may opt out of this Arbitration provision by following the instructions below.

By accepting this Agreement, unless you opt out by following the instructions below, you agree that either you or we, at our sole discretion, can choose to have any dispute arising out of or relating to this Agreement or our relationship resolved by binding arbitration. If arbitration is chosen by any party, neither you nor we will have the right to litigate that dispute in court or to have a jury trial on that dispute. Pre-arbitration discovery will be permitted only as allowed by the arbitration rules. In addition, you will not have the right to participate as a representative or member of any class of claimants pertaining to any dispute subject to arbitration. The arbitrator’s decision will generally be final and binding. Other rights that you would have if you went to court may also not be available in arbitration. It is important that you read the entire Arbitration provision carefully before accepting the terms of this Agreement.

Here's the link to the agreement: https://www.fingerhut.com/assets/f/nonselling/metabank-fingerhut-credit-agreement.pdf

I'm not sure what to do at this point. I don't really understand arbitration. To me, it means negotiating to pay off the debt, but who am I negotiating with? If I'm able to file a MTC Arb and the court allows it, am I then negotiating with the original creditor (Fingerhut) or the collection agency (LVNV)?  The reason I'm asking is because when I was served, there was a small paper attached to the court papers from LVNV stating I could avoid court if I call them and settle the debt. So what benefit is arbitration? I want to ulitmately get both entries off my credit report, because I'm being reported by Fingerhut AND LVNV. So I'm wondering if arbirtration allows you to settle the debt with the orginal creditor and not the collection agency. I'm really confused so sorry if my post is all over the place but I don't know what to do. 

Thanks

[thornback]

Hi and welcome to the forums.

If the debt is valid, I don't see why you'd go to court. If the court finds in favor of Fingerhut/LVNV, you may be required to also pay court and legal fees.  You'll also have a judgment by the court filed against you which will be considered public record. 

If you don't dispute the validity of the debt then just contact LVNV and settle it - avoid court, and a judgment being filed against you.  You may be able to negotiate deletion of the LVNV collection tradeline from your reports (they are generally willing to delete after payment but not sure how they handle the removal courtesy once they've been forced to file suit). The Finderhut chargeoff will remain - they will not delete their tradeline - but the tradeline will be updated to reflect Paid, $0 balance  and no further updates will be made. 

[Brian_Earl_Spilner]

Arbitration is where the two of you will meet with arbitrator and present your cases. The arbitrator will make a decision and you'll be bound to it. The bad thing about arbitration is you have less protections. The last time I went to arbitration, I wasn't prepared and it didn't go well for me. Whole thing took less than 30 mins. I won't do it again.

[OmarGB9]

IMO, it's not worth it trying to fight them in court or via arbitration over $950. Are you not able to pay that in full, even over time in smaller payments? If not, perhaps you could still negotiate a lower settlement, maybe even in payments. Plus, I don't even know if the Fingerhut arbitration clause would even still apply if LVNV are the ones collecting now.

As far as the tradelines being removed, I'm afraid only LVNV would delete theirs once the debt is satisfied. The OC Fingerhut account would unfortunately stay and just get updated to zero balance. The only way to (possibly) get that removed is to try asking FH for GW removal, but the odds of that are slim (with any creditor, not just FH).

[Anonymous]

@fico7 

Sorry to hear this. LVNV is a bottom feeder. They buy debts and sometimes do not have the chain of custody or other proof they need to prove the case in court. MAKE SURE NO MATTER WHAT YOU DECIDE is that you file your answer with the court ASAP. EVEN IF THEY say they will accept a settlement still file your answer no matter what. LNVN will immediately file a motion for "Default Judgement" if you do not file an answer and you will lose the case and owe not just the original full amount but also ALL COURT COSTS AND FEES. 

You will have to contact the collection attorney suing on there behalf. Offer a lump sum settlement if your intention is to settle and make sure they agree to dismiss the entire lawsuit "WITH PREJUDICE" that means they can not refile against you ever and get it in WRITING OR EMAIL. 

Remember, even if they agree to a settlement still file your answer with the court no matter what or you will lose. 

Carefully file your answer and only use "Agree", "Deny". Do not agree that you owe the debt. It is there responsibility to prove in court that you owe the debt, interest, and that they have the chain of custody documents. If you admit you owe the debt you lose. Google how to "File an Answer" and carefully research and file the answer ASAP and send the collection lawyer a certified copy from the court. 

[vntrsc]

@OmarGB9 

You stated, "Plus, I don't even know if the Fingerhut arbitration clause would even still apply if LVNV are the ones collecting now."

It would depend upon the language in the card agreement and arbitration provision.   Agreements that can be assigned or sold usually contain a statement such as:

The words "we", "us", and "our" shall include  ____________  (name of original creditor) and any assignees of any of _______________'s rights as well as their respective affiliates, servicers, employees, agents, and further assigns.

If the arbitration provision contains similar language, a debt buyer would be subject to arbitration.  But I agree with you that unless the OP has the desire and time to fight the lawsuit, settlement is the best option especially considering the amount in question.