Collection/Threatening Lawsuit

Back in April, someone called my ex-brother-in-law, claiming that I was being sued and they needed to get in touch with me to serve papers.  I did a little research on the phone number, and lo and behold, there were tons of complaints stating that this was a scam.  Therefore, I ignored the message and didn't return the call.

Yesterday, my ex-mother-in-law called me with the same message.  She seemed genuinely concerned, so I called this company with the intention of telling them to stop harrassing people who know me and disclosing my personal information.

When the phone was answered, the person who picked up said, "Corporate Office."  I explained the reason for my call and he transfered me to "an attorney" who is handling my case.  This "attorney" stated that I owed $1200 and would be sued, or I could pay $500 today to stop the suit.  I proceeded to question her and she claimed that the debt was on a $146 balance that I apparently have with Fifth Third.  Well, I did have a car loan through Fifth Third six years ago, but I traded that car in and never received notification from them that I still owed anything.  I told the "attorney" that I would be happy to pay Fifth Third the $146 but not a penny more.  She explained that paying that amount was no longer an option and that the debt was now $1200 due to acrrued interest and fees.  Of course, if I paid $500 TODAY, I could make this whole thing go away.  If I didn't pay, someone would be by to serve papers, but incidentally, they didn't even have my address.  She asked for it, and I said that there was no way that I was giving my address.  She said that if they served papers to the address that they have on file (which is incorrect) and I am not at that address, I would have a "failure to appear" judgement issued against me.  At that point, I would have my check garnished for the $1200.

I thought this whole thing sounded fishy for more than a couple of reasons, so I said that I would first contact an attorney and get back to them.  Really, why would a legitimate company/law enforcement agency need me to tell them my address?  I'm a home owner; they could go to my county's court and look up the information.  It's public record.  Also why would I be issued a "failure to appear" judgement if a subpoena was never handed to me?  Finally, how the heck could $146 balloon out to $1200?  My experience in dealing with collections (I used to work for a collection agency) is that they are happy to get what you owe them, and they don't usually try to con you out of more money.

So, I decided to call their bluff, and I filed a complaint with the FTC.  I will do the same with my state's Attorney General office.

Incidentally, the name of the company is Prime Western Filing Agency, and the phone number I called is 1-866-676-2140. If this happens to you, DO NOT give them any information.  I'm actually sorry that I called them from my personal cell phone, because they probably have that number now.