Bud Says…
What a difference the past two years has made on this
organization. Bay Area Credit Service was purchased by HOV Services, a
multi-national conglomerate out of INDIA and the entire organization has changed
drastically. Consumers are still being called from their Englewood, CO location
that still has a small staff formerly called True logic/Genesis Financial.
The majority of dealings are with INDIA callers who think they can imitate
American accents.
Bay Area/HOV is buying junk debts from a variety of sellers who have already
diluted many of the accounts. Expect the typical reaction from the INDIA
collectors (with bad accents) who are easily frustrated in their attempts to
make you understand their dialect. I strongly oppose any
U.S. company sending accounts to INDIA call centers where your personal
information is at risk for anyone to steal your identity or use that information
for illegal purposes. It is unbelievable that these organizations are
allowed direct access to our most personal information and that of our families
without our consent or knowledge. An attorney who represents the
collection industry and travels to INDIA told me these collectors are highly
educated, many with MBAs,reduced to a trivial hourly rate to work in a debt
collection call center for some scavenger who is taking American money on debts
they bought for pennies. I strongly urge anyone who is contacted by this
organization NEVER to give out your bank or credit card information. As I told
the attorney, it is just a matter of time until some crime organization figures
out how to gain access into these organizations and American are in a nightmare
of identity theft throughout Asia and Europe. It is not a matter if ‘IF’ but
‘WHEN’ it will happen, with no one to accept responsibility.
When dealing with these organizations, make them work and work hard. Use the
law, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) the way it was intended.
Make them prove each claim with documents that give validity to their (alleged)
claim. I am not talking about the bogus affidavits churned out by the junk debt
buyer mills either; I am talking about legitimate documents that likely no
longer exist.
I also think that Congress should be pressured to reign in information that is
freely given to foreign owners without our consent or knowledge. It is appalling
to me that organization such as HOV Services can buy these accounts, and then
use the purchased debts to gain access to our personal information. Surprised?
Experian, Equifax, Trans Union, Accurint and others will sell to anybody who can
sign a check. Is your medical information floating around some INDIA call center
because you did not realize you owed a deductible on your claim? It may be. Did
you know that your social security number and those of your family members could
easily be obtained by these foreign collection organizations? Of course, you
realize they have full access to your credit reports and those of your spouse
and perhaps other family members. The real scary part is that you have no say in
who sees it, where it goes and who may be able to steal it.
Bay Area Credit Service is one of many organizations that buy our charged off
debts, ship them overseas, and then attempt to collect at highly inflated
profits. Many use the same lies, threats and bully tactics so pervasive here in
America. Bay Area is not alone; this practice was started because labor in INDIA
is far less than what they would pay an American worker. The hourly wage in
INDIA for debt collectors starts at around $3.00/hour with no taxes or benefits
paid to the employee. One thing that U.S debt collectors and their INDIAN
counter parts have learned is the lesson of greed and it is all at the expense
of the American consumer. WHAT IS WRONG WITH THIS COUNTRY?