The information provided on this website does not, and is not intended to, act as legal, financial or credit advice; instead, it is for general informational purposes only. Information on this website may not be current. This website may contain links to other third-party websites. Such links are only for the convenience of the reader, user or browser; we do not recommend or endorse the contents of any third-party sites. Readers of this website should contact their attorney, accountant or credit counselor to obtain advice with respect to their particular situation. No reader, user, or browser of this site should act or not act on the basis of information on this site. Always seek personal legal, financial or credit advice for your relevant jurisdiction. Only your individual attorney or advisor can provide assurances that the information contained herein – and your interpretation of it – is applicable or appropriate to your particular situation. Use of, and access to, this website or any of the links or resources contained within the site do not create an attorney-client or fiduciary relationship between the reader, user, or browser and website owner, authors, contributors, contributing firms, or their respective employers.
Credit.com receives compensation for the financial products and services advertised on this site if our users apply for and sign up for any of them. Compensation is not a factor in the substantive evaluation of any product.
Apparently the collection firm they had hired, Rumson, Bolling & Associates, didn’t know about the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, or California’s Rosenthal Act—or perhaps just didn’t care. Not only did they apparently violate state and federal laws to collect debts, but then they decided to keep some of that money for themselves rather than paying the firms that hired them to collect on their behalf.
[Infographic: What to do if a Debt Collector Calls]
The FTC’s complaint against the firm is as graphic as many crime novels, with the firm allegedly calling debtors “white trash,” “crackerhead,” “scumbag” and other names too graphic for me to print. The collectors also reportedly resorted to threats of violence. When a debtor couldn’t pay the balance due to a funeral home for her daughter’s funeral, the collector allegedly threatened to desecrate her daughter’s body, and kill the debtor’s dog—as well as the debtor herself. “Are you going to pay this bill right now…or am I going to have to kill you?” notes the complaint.
The collection agency allegedly called debtors repeatedly, and ignored letters from debtors telling them not to contact them again. (Consumers have the right to send a collector a letter instructing them not to contact them. After the collection agency receives the letter, it must not contact the debtor again except to notify them of legal action.)
[Tool: Quickly assess your risk of identity theft for free]
At the FTC’s request, a U.S. district court has halted the operation, frozen assets and appointed a permanent receiver to run it while the FTC moves forward with the case. The complaint names as defendants Forensic Case Management Services, Inc. (doing business as Rumson, Bolling & Associates, FCMS, Inc., Commercial Recovery Solutions, Inc., and Commercial Investigations, Inc.), Specialized Recovery, Inc. (doing business as Joseph, Steven & Associates and Specialized Debt Recovery), Commercial Receivables Acquisition, Inc. (doing business as Commercial Recovery Authority, Inc. and The Forwarding Company), David M. Hynes II, James Hynes, Kevin Medley, Heather True, Frank E. Lindstrom, Jr., and Lorena Quiroz-Hynes.
NOTE: The Commission files a complaint when it has “reason to believe” that the law has been or is being violated, and it appears to the Commission that a proceeding is in the public interest. The complaint is not a finding or ruling that the defendant has actually violated the law.
[Featured Product: Get a free trial credit score]
Image: Iain Watson, via Flickr.com
May 30, 2023
Managing Debt
September 7, 2021
Managing Debt
December 23, 2020
Managing Debt