My husand was just served a summons last night (4-4-07)for a credit card collection. The company is suing for $5551. But instead of small claims they are suing him in a civil case. This collection was charged off in 2005. So the SOL is not up in our state( california).he received a letter 2-1-07 from them stating that he has failed to respond to previous demands for payment, but this is the first letter we have received from this company(eltman eltman & cooper).
We sent a letter of validation to them on 2-5-07 since his credit report states it was charged off and sold to another lender. So I don't even know that we even owe this debt to this company and they did not respond to the certified letter that they signed for on 2-7-06 that we sent. I have all receipts and copy of the letter of validation that was sent to the company. My husband now has 30 days to respond to the summons( which we will).
The plaintiff is Erin Capitol Management, which I have never heard from before. I am guessing it is the same company as eltman? Any advice to beat these guys would be great! We have been working very hard to clean up our credit reports!

I believe that the credit card company has sold their interest in this debt to another agency and this is the one collecting. Collection agencies play by their own rules. They will say anything, do anything to collect and use a lot of scare tactics.

Yes! I looked this company up and they are debt buyers. So they probably paid pennies on the dollar for this debt, which they won't validate! Maybe it would get thrown out for that reason?? If they would show proof that he actually owes the money to these people we have no problem paying.
Thanks for the response!

I would like some advice on what papers I should file at the court house to help defend my husband. Thanks again!

Hi, I think I'm going to borrow some of your points if I may! My summons arrived with the following complaints:

Here is an a simple list of the complaint paragraphs:
1. This is an action for damages that does not exceed 15k exclusive of interest, court costs, and attorney's fees.
2. The Plaintiff is a an LLC with principal address blah blah CACH Colorado.
3. The defendant is a resident of Miami, Dade county FL.
4. The D entered into an agreement with Bank1 to obtain a credit card acct. number X.. X.
5. Commencing on x/x/95, the D accepted the CC services rendered by B1, and there4 reveived the use, enjoyment and benefits of service.
6. The D breached the agreement by defaulting on the montly payments due on the Bank1 account and it was closed for failure to pay on or about 12/31/4
7. The D expressly agreed that the if the account went into default the remaining unpaid balance would be immed. Paid.
8. The P purchased the account from the original creditor, B1, for good and valuable consideration. A copy of the Affidavit of Indebtedness and Certificate of Assignment is attached hereto and incorporated by reference.
9. The D's account has a remaining balance of $X exclusive of interest, court costs, and attys fees.
10. The D agreed to pay the P's cost of collection, including reasonable atty's fee in this matter would be a min of $600 and will seek an award in that amount if a default judgement is entered against the D. In the event the matter is contested, the P intends seek additional atty's fees based on the hours spent, services rendered and other reasonable factors.
11. The P has complied with all conditions precedent to the filing of this complaint.
12. This is an attempt to collect a debt, all info used for that purpose.

I think it could be very pertinent, if anyone has any other advice I'm sure looking for help!
Thanks all,
mes34..

Sorry to hear that I just received a letter from those dated 04/03/07. They are telling me I owe money from a visa account that doesn't even exist. I looked them up they are scam artist. There was an actual lawsuit won against them. :mad:

I have heard these people are real slime bags! But I am going to do everything that I can to fight them. I am going to the courthouse tomorrow to see what forms I need to defend ourselves. Thanks for the replies, Deena

Deena, make sure to respond in the time noted in the summons!

Also some (most?) courts have a website these days that you can track filings and the like, I easily found mine online once I knew what to look for.

Also at the courthouse, they allowed me to look at the file in it's entirety, which is another one of those rights we have I suppose. I just wanted to make sure there was something there I hadn't seen..

Also, consumers.creditnet.com has been a very good resource for the same information including letter formats and samples..
Good luck, chin up, mes34

sorry to hear that i just received a letter from those dated 04/03/07. They are telling me I owe money from a visa account that doesn't even exist. I looked them up they are scam artist. There was an actual lawsuit won against them. :mad:

orbitm23, did you have a reference to a lawsuit won against CACH? If you do can you post it?

It might be quite helpful to add that in my 'unclean hands' argument. That could be a great idea..
Thanks, mes34

Rip Off Report:Eltman, Eltman & CooperEltman, Eltman & Cooper, Erin Capital Fraudulant Bank Account Seizure, Judgement and Credit Bureau Reporting. New York New York (http://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/ripoff210375.htm)
A little ammo maybe -- I just glanced at it -- Savage

I have heard these people are real slime bags! but i am going to do everything that i can to fight them. i am going to the courthouse tomorrow to see what forms i need to defend ourselves. Thanks for the replies, Deena

It seems to me, the person you're married to who spent $5551 that wasn't his, and then refused to pay it back for years, is the "slime bag".

Oh, I'm sorry you must work for these jerks!

my husand was just served a summons last night (4-4-07)for a credit card collection. The company is suing for $5551. but instead of small claims they are suing him in a civil case. this collection was charged off in 2005. so the SOL is not up in our state( california).he received a letter 2-1-07 from them stating that he has failed to respond to previous demands for payment, but this is the first letter we have received from this company(eltman eltman & cooper).
we sent a letter of validation to them on 2-5-07 since his credit report states it was charged off and sold to another lender. so i don't even know that we even owe this debt to this company and they did not respond to the certified letter that they signed for on 2-7-06 that we sent. i have all receipts and copy of the letter of validation that was sent to the company. My husband now has 30 days to respond to the summons( which we will).
the plantiff is Erin Capitol Management, which i have never heard from before. i am guessing it is the same company as eltman? any advice to beat these guys would be great! we have been working very hard to clean up our credit reports!
I just got one of those judgements on me too. I tried to talk to those people and they wanted nothing to do with me. I guess once they file a judgement we as debt idiots they call us need to file a motion to dismiss. I never received anything I called them in 2004 they set up a payoff but never mailed me the copy so I can see it in writing . They say they did but now we have a judgement . I really wish this is easier then it says but they make you feel like garbage when their the ones making 5.15 hr to heakle people . Can I apply for that job .

What did this end with? Did you settle with them out of court and if so, for how much? Did you beat them? Any updates on this will be great... I found myself battling the same guys now.

Believe it or not I am okay with them... they bought my account from another company that sued me (capital one credit card). I was paying a lot a month in fees and interest and believe it or not they actually saved me a lot of money. They are based in NY which has strict laws on interest and other thingsand when they buy an account they have to go by NY laws. I was paying 16% interest on the account and now I am paying 6% and they waived all the late payments and penelties. I actually owe less now then I did in the beginning.

Erin Capital Management is with Capital One... if you ever had a Cap1 card then Erin Capital Management will sue you or find a debt collection agency in your area to sue you... I was actually paying through another company when I found that Eltman bought my account. I was never even notified of this until I received a letter saying they were going to garnish my wages. I called Eltman and they said that they send it to everyone to scare them. The guy was real nice and polite and worked with me even getting rid of a lot of my fees. Being in NY they are regulated on interest and other charges. I actually owe less then I did before.