Consumer complaint received 2018-08-06
Product: Debt collection — Payday loan debt
Issue: Written notification about debt — Notification didn't disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt
Company: Torriere Holdings INC (TX)

Got a voicemail on my cell phone last week while I was working from an individual named XXXX XXXX calling from a company called XXXX. He mentioned also in the voice mail that I had to call him regarding a serious concern regarding a client who was referred to his office and that theyre offering me to do a statement from me or my attorney. And if I didnt call him back they were going to take further action without my input. He never identified himself as a debt collector or said it was an attempt to collect a debt on the voice mail so it left me wondering. He just identified himself as an advisor. 

I called to leave a voicemail asking what it was in reference to and what is this XXXX  company about. He called and left another voicemail stating that due to privacy laws he cant state specifics via voicemail. 

So I called back on the next business day and Mr. XXXX answered. I asked him what he company was and he just said its called XXXX, and that its a prelegal collections company. He didnt state it was an attempt to collect a debt, they just straightforward said that they wanted me to pay a debt from a payday loan that was 8 months old. They demanded payment upfront and I couldnt pay. They said that they can do a payment plan. I told Mr. XXXX that I can agree to a payment plan but that I will manually call to pay via phone or mail in the payments. Mr. XXXX stated that there was no option but auto pay because the account was 8 months defaulted, and was persistently saying that only autopay was the only option now. And he then asked for my card information and I honestly felt coerced to give him my information due to fear of legal action. I never received a letter from this collection company before. I have been a victim of fraud before and I was very hesitant to give them my information. I also asked for the company address and Mr. XXXX was hesitant to say it, he just said it was located in XXXX, NY. 

I was then transferred to another person who got my payment details and emailed me a schedule of payments that I had to sign online and email back. I havent signed the documents yet because I dont feel secure that this a legitimate company because their actions and practices raised red flags to me. 

I then called my law firm and spoke to them regarding what happened and they initially looked into it and. They discovered that he company was not located in XXXX, NY, but in XXXX NY. And also they discovered that their website features an online portal to Pay and that it didnt matter how old the debt is, that they shouldve offered me options to pay, not just with autopay. They also said that I shouldve gotten a letter beforehand but I never did. The law firm called the same number to verify if this a legitimate company and the same number Mr. XXXX called me from and had his voicemail on, and another person with a different name answered. They are going to look further into this matter and they suspect it could be a fraudulent company. I fear now that they can use my account information. Online they are under the name XXXX XXXX XXXX, not XXXX. They never mentioned to me it was called XXXX XXXX Solutions