Phone calls and other communications from debt collectors can be incredibly frustrating. They will cause some to change numbers and even move just to avoid it.
This frustration will quickly be multiplied if the debt is not a valid debt. It is not uncommon for a lender mistake to cause your account to go to collections. Unfortunately explaining this situation to someone that has already paid money for your debt is not a recipe for success.
If you find yourself in this position you should request validation of the debt. This is done by writing a letter to the debt collector and requesting validation. I suggest you do this by certified mail so you have documentation that they received your letter.
Do not ever request you validation over the phone. This is a very ineffective method because it is often ignored and you are only given 30 days to request validation of a debt once you are notified.
Furthermore it is becoming more and more common for debt collectors to just sell your account to another collection agency if you request validation. This will result in you getting calls from another debt collector.
Instead I suggest you hire a credit repair firm to dispute and remove the bad credit items that have been posted to your credit report. This way your credit score will not be ruined because of a lender mistake.
If the debt is valid then we suggest you settle it. This is done through a settlement letter to the collector; we suggest you offer 50% of the balance.
This is because the collector has purchased your debt for a fraction of the balance. In addition even if the collector does not accept that offer, they will see that you are willing to pay this and will be willing to negotiate a price.
Before you pay you should get the collector to agree to remove the item from your credit in exchange for your payment. If you do not do this it will only change the item to a paid collection and will still damage your credit score.
In sum, I suggest a service to repair you credit from debt collectors.
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