Consumer complaint received 2018-04-04
Company: WELLS FARGO & COMPANY
State: VA
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other debt
Issue: Took or threatened to take negative or legal action
Sub-issue: Threatened to sue you for very old debt

Complaint:
I received a call from an " unknown '' caller stating that they were contacting me in reference to a legal complaint and that I needed to call the agent handling this matter at XXXX with a specific reference number. They specified that it was time sensitive and to contact the case manager immediately to avoid further action being taken. I automatically assumed this was a scam based on the no-named caller, but called to see what it was out of curiosity. A receptionist answered the line and put me in contact with XXXX XXXX who works for XXXX, XXXX, XXXX, and XXXX  out of XXXX XXXX. Apparently, they are a collection agency handling a debt from Wells Fargo. I asked what the debt was and from when, and he replied that it was for an overdrawn checking account that I had that was sold to the collection agency in XX/XX/XXXX. I did, in fact, have a checking account with Wells Fargo when I was in high school many years ago, but I do remember closing it before I moved into my first apartment ( I think well before that ) because my university did not have a Wells Fargo in town ; however, I legitimately do not remember closing it with any kind of delinquency. 

Allegedly, the debt was passed around to 3 different creditors and I was sent a written notice about the debt 45 days ago. He claimed it was sent to the address I lived at when I last had the debt, but it was an address I didn't live at until XX/XX/XXXX. He went on attempting to legitimize himself by reading off the last 4 of my social security number and other accounts on my credit report. That's when I got freaked out -- the man had my personal information. After he said he was willing to settle for a lesser amount ( {$600.00} verse the {$1100.00} ) I asked him to send me an email regarding the validation of the debt, but he was unwilling to send it without an agreement of settlement, which I refused to say over the phone. He said that he was filing my account as failure to pay and that I should wait for civil action to take place. He even referenced my credit report, saying that I had nearly perfect credit and that him making these inquiries was " already hurting my credit '' and that I should check my credit report if I didn't believe him. I smelled the scared tactics a mile away. 

I got off of the phone and immediately called Wells Fargo Fraud Department. They put me in contact with a couple of different debt collectors that validated that my Wells Fargo account was actually closed in XX/XX/XXXX with no notes of delinquency or being sold to a creditor. After that, I called a local law firm from my resident state and briefly discussed my story. In a nutshell, the information that was passed to me under several FDCPA 807 and 809 federal laws, was the false threats to bring civil action to me after the expiration of the state 's statute of limitations ( which in my state is 6 years.. ) is illegal. Also, that they are required to send a dunning/validation notice in writing to me within 5 days of contact. 

So first a foremost, when XXXX refused to send me any validation of the debt before agreeing to a settlement price was a red flag. Also, when he said that I should expect to be served if I do not accept the settlement for a debt that is nearly 10 years old ( but actually on an account that was closed 13 years ago ... ) also a red flag. Lastly, when he threatened to ruin my credit if I didn't settle in a timely manner, also a red flag. I immediately pulled all three of my credit reports after that. The soft inquiries that I pulled from the bureaus came up, but nothing from his agency, as he proclaimed. 

I decided to call XXXX back up once I had this gouge. I said I wanted a certified letter requesting validation of my debt and he said that he didn't have my case anymore. That it was out of his hands and I should expect to hear back if the agency decided to take legal action ( which why would they spend court fees on such a minimal piece of debt? ). I  told him my address was wrong the first time, so how am I going to find that out? Again, he didn't have a clear answer. I threw the FDCPA laws at him and stated that I spoke to a lawyer and what he was saying about civil action was illegal. His response was that if the case was so far outside of the SOL that I could easily fight it in court, especially with my " lawyer. '' I then asked him which collectors owned my debt, and he stated Wells Fargo..instead of his agency. I asked for his agency 's name and address and stated that Wells Fargo validated that I closed my account in XXXX. At this point, he said all I needed to do was fax over the validation letter and he was sorry for causing all of the stress. 

Fax number : XXXX Address : XXXX, XXXX, XXXX, XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX  XXXX XXXX XXXX, CA XXXX ... except, I just moved from XXXX XXXX after 4 years. That address is actually a XXXX address. So that is a fraud as well. The dude is a smooth talker.. I will give him credit for that. No doubts he could have been a creditor. However, this whole situation is fishy. I am reporting it in as many places as I can.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation