How to Beat NPAS

Dena Standley | October 19, 2022

Legal Expert, Paralegal
Dena Standley, BA

Dena Standley is a seasoned paralegal with more than 20 years of experience in legal research and writing, having received a certification as a Legal Assistant/Paralegal from Southern Technical College.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Beating NPAS feels like ^^

Summary: Is NPAS suing you for a debt? SoloSuit can help you take a stand and win in court.

Consumer debt is associated with overspending on credit cards or living above your means. But the Kaiser Family Foundation found that about 23 million Americans owe at least $250 in medical debt. If the name NPAS Solutions shows up on your credit report, it probably means that one of the healthcare centers NPAS Solutions works with believes you owe a medical bill.

In this article, we'll talk about your rights and how to deal with NPAS. But first, let's discuss who NPAS Solutions is and what they do.

Verify the accuracy of your bills

If you have medical bills to pay, you may find yourself between your medical providers and your insurance company in an uncertain and confusing situation. Understanding the costs of various procedures and what is and isn't covered by insurance can feel like full-time detective work. The problem becomes complex if you receive care from multiple providers.

If an NPAS debt collector contacts you, ensure they're not trying to collect incorrect bills.

Verify your medical bills are accurate (names, insurance, and address) and that you received the treatment listed.
Ask your provider for a plain language explanation for anything unclear on your medical bill.

Coding errors often appear on medical bills, leaving patients with more significant financial responsibilities than expected. But TransUnion, Equifax, and Experian offer one free credit report annually. You can access the reports at AnnualCreditReport.com. Monitor your credit report because mistakes can happen.

If you owe the debt, NPAS Solutions can collect the debt from your health insurance company. But before payments, explore your other options below.

Who is NPAS Solutions?

The National Patient Account Services, Inc. (NPAS) is a third-party debt collection company based in Louisville, Kentucky. It has been a leading provider of patient collection services for the health care industry since 1980 and is part of the National Patient Account Services, Inc. family. If you're trying to contact NPAS Solutions, use the following information:

Address:
111 Corporate Office Drive Ste 200
Earth City, MO 63045

Phone numbers:
866-258-1104

Website:
http://npasweb.com/

NPAS Solutions has received many complaints and bad reviews

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) and the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) report many complaints against NPAS Solutions. More specifically, NPAS has received 9 complaints in a three-year period on its BBB profile as of 2022. In that same time period, the CFPB reported 75 complaints against NPAS Solutions. Most complaints relate to inaccurate reporting, harassment, and failure to verify debts.

Let's take a look at a real example from the BBB complaints.

“I called NPAS because i was being billed twice and was told by my bank that the checks were taken out for two different accounts that were in my name. I called NPAS and they stated they only show that one payment was taken out for the last 5 months. I told them i have the proof from my bank that they other payment was going to them. NPAS agent said she was deleting the linked count and checks and will set it up to only pull out one payment now. But she stated she still doesn't see where the other funds were going. I tried several times to ask her can you find out where that money went to? She pretty much blew me off and told me it would take about 20 days to get back to me.”

If you find yourself in any of these situations, you can also file a complaint with BBB or CFPB. NPAS may be in violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, which protects you from abusive debt collection tactics. Know your rights before you agree to make any payments.

NPAS Solutions can't harass you, and you have rights

Third-party debt collectors, such as NPAS Solutions, are governed by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). The act forbids any debt collection tactic that is abusive or deceptive. The act specifies:

NPAS Solutions may not harass, threaten, or call you repeatedly.
NPAS Solutions must be honest about its identity and intentions. Collection agencies must inform you in writing that they are collecting a debt from you.
NPAS Solutions cannot threaten you with arrest and cannot threaten legal action if they do not intend to take it.
Calls from NPAS Solutions must be during business hours, not before 8:00 am, and after 9:00 pm in your time zone.

If you are a victim of any of these actions, you may be entitled to compensation. You can even file a lawsuit against NPAS and receive up to $1,000 per violation of the FDCPA.

Send a Debt Validation Letter to NPAS

You must issue a Debt Validation Letter within 30 days of receiving the call from NPAS Solutions. The Debt Validation Letter asserts your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Besides, receiving a Debt Validation Letter will cause many debt collectors to quit.

The letter requires NPAS to:

Show proof of debt.
Stop contacting you for any other reason.
Report the debt as disputed.

SoloSuit's automated software makes it easy to prepare accurate and safe Debt Validation Letter responses. Using a Debt Validation Letter, you can avoid errors like receiving aspirin and discovering later that they charged for the entire bottle ($50) instead of one tablet (roughly $4).

Reach a medical debt settlement

If you have medical debt, you can settle it for less than you owe. Debt settlement requires effort, but it's possible with the help of a nonprofit credit counseling service, a debt specialist, or a professional debt settlement firm.

You settle a medical debt in much the same way as any other debt. Your representative negotiates a settlement amount with the doctor, hospital, or collection agency.

Start the debt settlement process as soon as possible before the debt goes into collection. Thanks to the three credit bureaus, you have more time before medical debt in collections appears on your credit reports. Six months is the current time frame but will extend to one year.

If you're negotiating or paying back a medical debt, this can give you more time to work with your provider or collector to find a mutually beneficial payment solution.

Respond to a debt lawsuit against NPAS

If NPAS Solutions is suing you for a debt, you should have received some legal documents in the mail called the court Summons and Complaint. The Summons notifies you of the lawsuit, and the Complaint lists the specific claims that NPAS is making against you. The first step to winning your case is to respond to the Summons and Complaint by filing a written Answer. Here's how.

Follow these three steps to respond to a debt lawsuit against NPAS Solutions:

Answer each claim listed in the Complaint document: The first and most important section of your Answer should focus on responding to the claims listed in the Complaint document. You can admit, deny, or deny due to lack of knowledge. Most attorneys recommend denying as many claims as possible.
Assert your affirmative defenses: An affirmative defense is any legal reason that NPAS's case in inavlid. A common affirmative defense to mention in a debt lawsuit case is the statute of limitations on debt. If the statute of limitations on a debt has passed, the NPAS cannot sue you for the debt. There are several other affirmative defenses you can bring up to strengthen your side of the case.
File the Answer with the court, and send a copy to NPAS: After you've drafted your Answer, you should file it within the court's deadline. The deadline to respond to a debt lawsuit is anywhere from 14-35 days, depending on which state you live in. Make a copy of the Answer and send it, via USPS certified mail, to the attorneys representing NPAS.

SoloSuit can help you draft and file an Answer in all 50 states.

To learn more about these three steps, check out this video:

What is SoloSuit?

SoloSuit makes it easy to fight debt collectors.

You can use SoloSuit to respond to a debt lawsuit, to send letters to collectors, and even to settle a debt.

SoloSuit's Answer service is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your Answer. Upon completion, we'll have an attorney review your document and we'll file it for you.

Respond with SoloSuit

"First time getting sued by a debt collector and I was searching all over YouTube and ran across SoloSuit, so I decided to buy their services with their attorney reviewed documentation which cost extra but it was well worth it! SoloSuit sent the documentation to the parties and to the court which saved me time from having to go to court and in a few weeks the case got dismissed!" – James

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>>Read the FastCompany article: Debt Lawsuits Are Complicated: This Website Makes Them Simpler To Navigate