Consumer complaint received 2023-07-02
Company: PORTFOLIO RECOVERY ASSOCIATES INC
State: AR
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Credit card debt
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Attempted to collect wrong amount

Complaint:
Portfolio Recovery Associates , LLC violated most of the options listed while trying to collect an alleged debt of {$2200.00} from XXXX, but my main complaint is not one of the listed options. I know PRA has done the similar things to many people, including XXXX XXXX, who was awarded {$82.00} XXXX in punitive damages by a jury in XXXX. This issue should be addressed. 

My main complaint is that after I filed a lawsuit under the FDCPA, invasion of privacy on seclusion and outrage, on XX/XX/XXXX, PRA used litigation tactics that were unethical, illegal, deceitful and meant to inflict severe emotional distress. 

PRA was represented by outside counsel, The XXXX XXXX Firm in Arkansas and XXXX XXXX from Virginia ( AKA XXXX XXXX ). 

On XX/XX/XXXX, XXXX XXXX issued a blog post that said, in part : " According to the CFPB, entities can not take unreasonable advantage of circumstances where people lack sufficient bargaining power to protect their interests. 

" The policy statement describes such circumstances as when consumers do not elect to enter into a relationship with an entity, '' and specifies debt collectors. 

PRA used my lack of legal training, financial distress caused by the COVID related stock market crash, and my ill health, including diagnosed XXXX  disorders and XXXX 's XXXX, to bully me in court. PRA also capitalized on the opportunity of a judge who is notoriously anti-consumer and anti-CFPB, XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. 

PRA threatened me with having to pay its " significant '' attorney 's fees. A copy of the email is submitted. PRA filed a motion for the Clerk to tax {$8300.00} in costs to me. I am going to appeal the summary judgment, but thus far, PRA has ignored my request for them to stipulate to a stay of the cost motions until after the appeal. 

PRA has never produced Old Account Level Documentation that shows what was purchased to incur the debt or the vendor who was paid by XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX. PRA has never produced a credit card agreement and specified it does not have the credit card agreement. 

Before I filed suit, PRA sent its identity theft and fraud letter to me, with directions to answer the intrusive questions under penalty of perjury and notarized or witnessed. I refused because PRA did not tell me where the debt was incurred or what it was for. Even if I could deduce who committed the fraud, the statute of limitations to file criminal charges on the person had passed, and it would be extraordinarily difficult to collect evidence. The only purpose I saw in having me fill out the details, including my social security number, all previous addresses, and so on, was for PRA to use against me in trying to collect the debt. The letter was backdated. 

After I filed suit, PRA sent three more backdated letters that said it " concluded its investigation '' and closed my account and set the balance to zero. But the first letter informing me of this was addressed to " XXXX XXXX '' instead of " XXXX XXXX '' and had a different account number on it. I was fooled into thinking my account was closed. When I went to document the letter, I noticed the error. When I asked for a correction, PRA changed the wording. After my next request, they gave me another letter with the original wording and with my name and account number. Copies submitted. 

Eight months after I filed suit, PRA produced a single account statement mailed to an address where I never received mail, that showed a balance of {$1900.00}. They said XXXX XXXX gave it to them and got XXXX  XXXX to submit an affidavit, but XXXX  XXXX had told me many months earlier that it had no OALD at all. ( Recorded ) PRA withheld and altered other documents. The company records filed under seal do not have each call made on PRA 's self-generated phone log documented on PRA 's notes. A representative told me the notes have an entry that I filed for bankruptcy, though I never filed for bankruptcy. That entry is not in the documents filed under seal. 

PRA admits to calling a landline at my past residence in Arkansas hundreds of times. But, it claims it did not call my California cell phone for a seven year stretch with the first call they admit to being on XX/XX/XXXX. I recorded that call, after setting up my computer. ( There is a minute pause on PRA 's recording of the call. ) The reason I spoke to PRA on a recorded line was because they had called me about a hundred times from XXXX to XXXX. About 85 of those calls I blocked and they went to voice mail. 

PRA would not produce a third party record of its calls. I got my cell phone record and found fourteen calls that came from PRA, that don't appear on PRA 's phone log, and each of the numbers those calls were placed from were disconnected. In fact, all the numbers PRA called me from were disconnected. 

XXXX XXXX, in his order granting summary judgment in PRA 's favor, truncated a sentence to distort my testimony, then PRA repeated the falsehood. Eventually the judge admitted the sentence was truncated, and then said the complete sentence had a different meaning than the meaning given by XXXX 's OpenAI and the opposite of what I meant. 

PRA requested and XXXX XXXX approved of making many of the business records under seal, against my heavy protest. It is difficult to write this complaint and complaints to other agencies with the confidentiality restrictions and the public can not make an informed decision about who is telling the truth. That is why I am using the awkward way of saying what was not in the documents, instead of what was in the documents. 

After I filed a motion for partial summary judgment on the single issue of misrepresentation of the amount of a debt, PRA lied, saying it " waived '' my debt " in light of the litigation '', even though it did not issue a 1099-C to me in the two years since.

PRA hired an " expert witness '' who is a hired XXXX. He made a diagnosis that contradicted the diagnosis of my medical providers. The Psychiatrist they hired was not licensed in Arkansas, and the Arkansas medical board told me ( recorded ) that out-of-state doctors can review records, but not diagnose. The report is filed under seal and I am only allowed to share it with law enforcement and the various medical boards and committees on professional conduct. But I am willing to share my version of what happened during the horrific Defense Medical Exam with the CFPB in confidentiality. 

PRA posted my credit report, marked " CONFIDENTIAL '', and another document that had my full unredacted social security number and birthdate on PACER. When I complained, they said it was an accident. 

There is so much detail that I will give the case number and my blog address, where I write about the case and other instances of corruption in courts. I will then make bullet points of specific misconduct on my request for a fair resolution. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Arkansas XXXX. 

XXXX XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief