I got this letter back from one of the CA's I sent a pfd to:
Dear Mr reno55,
Attached is a statement of account of your debt. You now have all of the information neccessary to pay the amount due above.
If you cannot make immediate payment in full you must contact Blah Blah 555-121-1212, to make arrangements to pay this debt. If we do not receive payment in full or a written or telephonic response from you we will assume this to be your refusal to pay this obligation and take appropriate action to collect this debt.
To insure blah blah blah
This is what I sent them:
Dana & Pariser
800 E Broad St
Columbus, OH 43205
Re: Collection Account for Micro Electronics Inc
Account #: xxxxxxx
Amount: $194
To Whom It May Concern:
This letter is to inform you that I have recently discovered a trade line item on my credit report from Dana & Pariser. I have no account with you, nor have I ever. All the information that I have concerning this alleged debt is the amount which is claimed, and the alleged original creditor, who is Micro Electronics Inc.I have no recollection of any money being owed to them by me.
In the spirit of compromise, I am willing to pay this account IN FULL if you agree to immediate deletion of this account from any and all credit reporting agencies (Equifax, Experian and TransUnion). The purpose of this settlement is merely to have this item removed from my credit files. It is not to be construed as an acknowledgment of liability for this debt in any form.
If you agree to the terms and accept this agreement, certified funds for the settlement amount of one-hundred – ninety -four ($194.00) will be sent to Dana & Pariser in exchange for full deletion of ALL references regarding this account from my credit files and full satisfaction of the debt. As certified funds will be used for payment, there shall be no waiting period regarding the deletion of this account from the credit reporting agencies.
Dana & Pariser agrees to delete ALL information regarding this account from the credit reporting agencies WITHIN TEN CALENDAR (10) DAYS following receipt of payment as specified above and will not discuss the terms of this settlement with anyone, excluding your client on this account. If contacted by any third party, including credit-reporting agencies, Dana & Pariser will not acknowledge that any settlement offer was made, accepted or executed and will, in fact, deny knowledge of any such account.
If you agree to the above terms, please prepare a letter on your company letterhead explicitly agreeing to the same terms as the above settlement offer and have it signed by an authorized representative of Dana & Pariser. It will be implied that this letter shall constitute a legally binding contract, enforceable under the laws of my state.
Your response must be postmarked no later than 15 days from your receipt of this settlement offer or this offer will be withdrawn and I will request full validation of this alleged debt, as provided for by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
Anyone have any good advice where to go? They did validate and it is from an overdrawn check back in 2006. I live in Ohio.