So you’ve written a dispute to the creditor or debt collector who is asking you to pay money on an account you never opened or for purchases you never made.  And you’ve placed an initial fraud alert on your credit reports and reviewed them and written dispute letters to the credit bureaus.  Now what can you do if the creditor or collection agency is still asking you for money?

That’s when it is time to hire a consumer credit attorney.  You’ve already done everything that could reasonably be expected of you and put them on notice that they’re pestering you about someone else’s debt.  If they won’t leave you alone even after you have told them that it isn’t your debt, then the only way you can get them to comply with the law is to hire a lawyer who knows how to deal with them.

If it is the original creditor, then their failure to respect your Fair Credit Billing Act dispute can render them liable to you for up to $5,000 plus attorney’s fees.

If it is a debt collector, then their failure to answer your Fair Debt Collection Practices Act validation request can render them liable to you for up to $1,000 plus actual damages, plus attorney’s fees.

If the credit reporting agency won’t remove items that were placed on your credit record because of identity theft, then they can be liable to you for any damages, plus $1,000, plus attorney’s fees.

You get the point.  Once you’ve written them to explain the situation and given them the chance to do the right thing, you can take them to court without having to pay your lawyer up front.  I handle credit reporting, identity theft, and FDCPA cases on a contingency fee basis – meaning I don’t charge you a dime unless I win you money.

 

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