Collection agency calls
My wife and I keep getting voice mails from debt collection agencies but pay what we can to the parties we owe and have no idea who the collection agencies are trying to collect for. Is this a smart thing to do? We have never been told by any party to stop paying and pay the collection agency instead. Also, how will this affect our credit score? Thank you.
Terry Says
If you are getting calls from a collection agency you can assume that your overdue bills have been “sold” to them. Here’s what to do. Immediately call the National Foundation for Credit Counseling at 800-388-2227, and that will connect you to the nearest local office.
BUT, here’s what you must do first:
1. Collect all your outstanding bills in a pile — I mean all of them — the latest ones.
2. Go to www.AnnualCreditReport.com to get a copy of your latest credit report from one of the three bureaus. There you will see the status of ALL your outstanding accounts. You need to know this information. It is free. Just click on one of the three bureaus when you get to that site. You only need a report from one of them. Do not sign up for credit monitoring. You will have to answer some personal questions to verify your identity.
Then armed with all this info make the call to NFCC in the morning! Do not delay.
