Sarah Edwards | October 19, 2022
Summary: Is Unifin suing you for a debt? SoloSuit can help you take a stand and win in court.
Debt collection notices are probably the worst piece of mail that you can receive in your mailbox. They can be stress inducing and worrisome. Following the written notice, you'll probably begin receiving phone calls from the debt collectors in an attempt to collect money. If you're juggling a lot, such as work, family, or other responsibilities, responding to a debt collector can be the last thing you want to deal with.
However, it's often best to find out exactly what the debt collector is seeking from you and why. In some cases, the debt collection notice may have been sent to you in error, or it may be for the wrong amount. So let's discuss how to handle a debt collection notice from Unifin.
Unifin is a verified debt collection agency that typically tries to collect unpaid debts related to student loans, health care providers, utilities, telecommunications, and government agencies. According to the BBB, Unifin has has 164 complaints filed against them over the past three years. Even worse, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau reported 187 complaints against Unifin in the last ten years. That's relatively high for a debt collector.
The complaints against Unifin mainly involve consumers who have indicated the debt that they are being asked to repay doesn't belong to them. The complaints also demonstrate that Unifin regularly reports fraudulent debts to the credit reporting agencies, as most of these consumers are victims of identity theft.
Let's take a look at a real complaint against Unifin.
“I just received a letter last week from this debt collector on a debt I know I paid off from 2016. It has been 6 years! My credit reports all say this credit card is paid off and the amount due is $0 and it's not in collections. I also bought my first house last year and during the process, they never said this was in collections at all! I called to dispute it today and talked to a VERY rude person in customer service that pretty much said there is no point in disputing and I have to pay it. How is this possible if even my credit reports say nothing about me owing???”
It's best to look out for abusive or harassing activities from Unifin, as they have been known to occur. Know your rights under the federal law so you can protect yourself.
The FDCPA protects consumers from abusive and harassing debt collection activities. Whenever you receive a notification that a debt collector is attempting to collect money from you, your best course of action is to immediately force them to validate the debt that you may owe them. To do so, you can dispute in writing that you owe the debt. This will force the collector to mail you a verification of the debt and the name and address of the original creditor. It will also stop all communication from Unifin until they do so.
If you receive a validation of the debt, communication efforts to collect it will probably step up. However, keep in mind that debt collectors are not allowed to harass or abuse you. This means that they cannot engage in certain activities, including any of the following:
Any of these methods to collect a debt are banned by the FDCPA. If you experience them, you can notify the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau and the BBB. In extreme cases, you may be able to file a lawsuit against the company to collect civil damages.
Before you agree to make any payments to Unifin, you should try requesting a debt validation by sending a Debt Validation Letter. This letter forces Unifin to prove the following before they continue pursuing the debt:
While this may sound like basic information, in many cases, debt collectors don't actually have the documentation to verify your debt. They may have thousands of consumers they are currently pursuing, and documentation may have been lost in the shuffle.
In other cases, they simply purchase a large number of aged accounts but don't actually obtain all of the paperwork needed to substantiate the amounts owed. In these cases, it's a numbers game—they're just hoping to get enough consumers to pay on aged debt without a lot of pushback.
Check out this video to learn more about Debt Validation Letters:
If you've received a complaint by Unifin that they are pursuing a legal claim against you, you must respond to the Complaint by filing a written Answer. Make sure to file your Answer before the court deadline, which is 14-35 days depending on which state you live in.
Save yourself the time and stress of finding a lawyer to help you Answer. You can represent yourself with SoloSuit's help. In your Answer, you should follow these six tips:
SoloSuit can help you draft and file an Answer in all 50 states.
Learn more about these six tips in this video:
If you don't respond to the complaint from Unifin and don't pay the money, a default judgment may be entered against you in court. This judgment can allow Unifin to pursue the amount of the judgment due by garnishing your wages, freezing your bank account, or putting a lien on your personal property. You don't want that—especially if you're not even sure that the debt is yours!
If Unifin is suing you for an unpaid debt, you can use SoloSuit to represent yourself in court and win! Create an Answer to the debt lawsuit Complaint (also known as a Petition in some states). The whole process only takes 15 minutes, and SoloSuit has a great track record with many of its users getting their cases dismissed entirely.
SoloSuit also offers other documentation that you can personalize to your case to help you win. For example, you can negotiate a debt settlement plan by sending a Debt Lawsuit Settlement Letter. If you're being sued for credit card debt and feel stressed about going to court, try filing a Motion to Compel Arbitration into the case to force the matter out of court. There are many options available to help you take a stand, win in court, and get Unifin debt collectors off your back for good!
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.
"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
You can ask your questions on the SoloSuit forum and the community will help you out. Whether you need help now or are just looking for support, we're here for you.
>>Read the NPR story on SoloSuit. (We can help you in all 50 states.)
Here's a list of guides for other states.
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