Creditors may sell unpaid balances to New York debt collection firms in an effort to get at least a portion of what they are owed. If one of your unpaid debt balances was sold to a collection firm, you may receive letters or phone calls seeking payment. Although there are many strategies that you might be able to use against these companies, a no contract dispute may not be one of them.
What’s a no contract dispute?
A no contract dispute means that you’re claiming that the debt is no longer valid because you don’t have an agreement with the firm that currently owns it. However, the truth is that a debt collection firm has purchased whatever agreement you had with the original creditor. Therefore, unless you never owed the debt to begin with, the terms of the deal are likely still valid.
Should you say anything?
Just because a collection firm owns your debt doesn’t mean that it’s planning on taking action against you. Without a court order, a creditor can’t garnish your wages or seize funds from your bank account. However, disputing a debt may cause a collection agency to file a lawsuit or take other aggressive steps to compel payment. Therefore, it may be best to remain quiet until there is a legitimate need to defend yourself.
If you owe money to a creditor or collection firm, that entity may have several years to obtain what it is owed. However, if it cannot verify that the debt is valid or that you are the one named on the account, it may be limited as to what action it can take. Furthermore, if you have filed for bankruptcy, an automatic stay may postpone any planned collection activities until your case is over.