Debt collector
Complaint
James
Country: United States
Academy Collection Service, Inc.
10965 Decatur Rd
Philadelphia, PA 19154
800-220-0605
I have received notices regarding this debt which belongs to my half-brother. We have the same name, with the exception of our middle name (I'm James Alan; he's James Allen). I have told this company previously that the debt is his and not to contact me again yet they continued via mail and phone for quite some time. I moved in June 2007 and today I get this mail from them. I called and was yelled at and harassed. I asked for a
supervisor and after several requests, and being yelled at, I got one, who then hung up on me. I am sending them a formal letter today to stop this annoyance. This debt is not mine and they need to prove it is or leave me alone. Otherwise I’m entitled to compensation.
10965 Decatur Rd
Philadelphia, PA 19154
800-220-0605
I have received notices regarding this debt which belongs to my half-brother. We have the same name, with the exception of our middle name (I'm James Alan; he's James Allen). I have told this company previously that the debt is his and not to contact me again yet they continued via mail and phone for quite some time. I moved in June 2007 and today I get this mail from them. I called and was yelled at and harassed. I asked for a
supervisor and after several requests, and being yelled at, I got one, who then hung up on me. I am sending them a formal letter today to stop this annoyance. This debt is not mine and they need to prove it is or leave me alone. Otherwise I’m entitled to compensation.
Comments
Someone keeps calling my number in Bossier City, La. looking for a Jason Kagle. I have told this person that the man doesn't live here. They ask, do you have a phone number? I say, no. This man said he would keep calling untill I tell him where Jason is at. Sir,---,tell this employ of yours, that we do not know Mr. Kagle. And we already called the law. The last four calls from your worker, was a harrassment call. He would not talk to me. He would pauss for a minute or two and the hang-up. The police officer called the number on my caller ID and it came back as< "Academy Services." this is all we can get out of the company operator. I have already talked to an atterney. Charges will be filed if it doesn't stop.
Yours Trully,
Jimmie Brown
(318) 752-1647
"For Release: November 21, 2008
Nationwide Debt Collector Will Pay $2.25 Million to Settle FTC Charges
Academy Collection Service, Inc. and its owner, Keith Dickstein, have agreed to pay $2.25 million to settle Federal Trade Commission charges that Academy and its collectors misled, threatened, and harassed consumers; disclosed their debts to third parties; and deposited postdated checks early, in violation of federal law. This is the largest civil penalty the FTC has obtained in a debt collection case.
“These defendants are responsible for their debt collectors’ abusive practices,” said Lydia Parnes, Director of the FTC’s Bureau of Consumer Protection. “They ignored people's complaints and rewarded the collectors who broke the law. This is not a business model that the FTC tolerates.”
According to a complaint filed by the Department of Justice on the FTC’s behalf, Academy collectors violated the FTC Act and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) while collecting debts, and Dickstein failed to stop the violations. The complaint also names Edward L. Hurt III and Albert S. Bastian, who oversaw Academy’s Las Vegas collection center and who are not part of the settlement with Academy and Dickstein.
The individual defendants allegedly participated in, or had the authority to control, Academy’s practices. Academy’s collectors allegedly engaged in false or deceptive threats of garnishment, arrest, and legal action; communication with third parties about consumers’ debts; and calls to consumers at their workplace when the employer prohibits such calls. Other practices included frequent, harassing, threatening, and abusive calls; unfair and unauthorized withdrawals from consumers’ bank accounts; and early deposit of postdated checks consumers submitted for debt payment.
More than 1,000 complaints against the company were filed with the FTC, various state attorneys general, the Nevada and Pennsylvania Better Business Bureaus, and the company itself. The FTC alleges that, without sufficient investigation, the defendants dismissed consumer complaints or did not properly discipline collectors, and that collectors who were terminated for FDCPA violations often returned to work within a few weeks or months.
Under the settlement, Academy and Dickstein will pay a $2.25 million civil penalty. The consent decree bars them from misrepresenting to consumers that nonpayment of a debt will result in the garnishment of wages, seizure or attachment of property, or lawsuits, or misrepresenting that Academy representatives are attorneys. The settling defendants are also prohibited from improperly communicating with third parties about a debt; using false, deceptive, or misleading representations in debt collection efforts; communicating with a consumer at any unusual time or place, including the workplace; or harassing, oppressing, or abusing any person in connection with debt collection. The settling defendants are also barred from making any withdrawals from consumers’ bank accounts without obtaining the consumers’ express informed consent, and they cannot deposit or threaten to deposit any postdated check or other postdated payment instrument prior to the date on the check or instrument.
In addition, the consent decree requires the settling defendants to clearly and conspicuously disclose to consumers that they may stop Academy from contacting them about the debt. They also must notify consumers that they may contact an Academy physical address, e-mail address, or toll-free phone number if they have a complaint about the way the company is collecting the debt.
By a 4-0 vote, the Commission authorized staff to refer the complaint and consent decree to the Department of Justice for filing in the U.S. District Court for the District of Nevada. The complaint and proposed consent decree were filed on November 14, 2008. The order was entered on November 18, 2008.
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