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Question
Thank you in advance for any help you can give me. Last Nov. 2010 I received a summons from an attorney concerning a medical bill I received. I called the attorney and made payment arrangements and have been paying ever since. Today I received a letter from the attorney saying that they had a default judgement against me filed in 6/2011. Of course it had a bunch of fees tacked onto it.
So my questions are, can they do this since I have been paying? Would they have needed to serve me again to get this? Is there anything I can do about this? If I am wronged I would be willing to fight it. Thanks again!
Dave
My first question to you is do you have something in writing stating that you have a payment arrangement with this attorney to make payments. If you do, then you have a case. In some states merely making payments each month establishes a payment agreement. If that is the case, you have rights available to you. If I were you, I would get with Legal Aid and see what your rights are in this situation. If you tell me where you live, I will try to research this further for you. Good luck with this.
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Answers by Expert:
Ray A Miller
Expertise
I am qualified to answer questions on the following subjects: FDCPA, FCRA and HIPAA as well as medical collections, general collections and collection agency related issues. I trained these subjects at a nationwide collection agency and customer service call center and audited around 150 representatives for compliance to the laws. I have been in the Collections Industry for over 30 years. I feel that everyone deserves to be treated fairly and with compassion and that is the way I trained collectors. Even though I worked for a Collection Agency, I get great satisfaction in helping those who have been mistreated or in need of help with these confusing issues.
Experience
I was the Compliance Administrator with a nationwide collection agency and customer service call center-I have trained hundreds of collectors on the above referenced topics. I have been in the medical collections industry for over twenty years and research these topics on a daily basis.
Organizations
ACA International
Education/Credentials
Some college
ACA Certified Collection Specialist
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