Hiya,
First thing's first. There are several variables that you should be aware of before you go down this road. If there's a lien against you, then they should be able to provide you with documentation. At the very least, they should be able to tell you where said lien was filed. A lien does not happen unless you've been sued. So, if you were completely unaware, then they are either lying about the lien altogether, or else they performed sewer service and lied to the court about having you served the summons. Either way, that's illegal. Many courts do allow service by publication but only if they attempted to serve you in good faith and could not locate you. Too often, the affidavits for these things are falsified because they know you're most likely never going to find out what they did. And Midland is one of the worst when it comes to shady and dishonest debt collection practices. I would call them back, personally, and demand that they provide to you info about the lien. If they are not willing to send you a copy of the judgment, that would raise big red flags for me. At the very least, they should be able to identify what court they sued in, so you could check that court clerk's office and obtain the case info. If they did actually sue you, you're going to want to check the proof of service documentation in the docket. They must state to the court that they attempted service properly, or that they completed it properly. Often times, shady collectors falsify the proof of service, I've personally been involved in such a deal with Midland where they claimed to have done what was not even possible--i.e. personally serving me after proper identification at an address I not only never lived at, but had never even heard of.
If they used those dirty tricks, you can file a motion to vacate the judgment due to fraud upon the court and improper service.
Next, you'll want to make sure that the debt is still within your state's SOL. If it is not, then that's an important detail, because it gives you some potential leverage in settlement talks. You see, if they can no longer sue you over the debt, then the only real chance they have to collect any money on it is if you're willing to pay. That extra leverage could be enough to force their hand and get them to accept a lower amount.
Third, keep in mind that the person on the phone has one goal--and only one goal. That's to get as much money from you as possible. If they feel that you're willing to pay a certain amount, they will often act as though they are doing you a big favor by accepting that amount. At the end of the day, since they usually pay pennies on the dollar for these debts, it's almost all still profit for them anyway. Don't let them bully you. If there's an amount you're comfortable with paying, stick to your guns. At the end of the day, I suspect that there is no lien against you. And if you find out that there is no lien, don't offer to pay them anything.....you can catch them on a violation of FDPCA if they lied about this. If it all comes together the right way, and you catch them violating the FDCPA, then you might be able to make them go away without paying at all....you MIGHT even find yourself in a position where they might have to pay you for their lies.
