More Michiganders are concerned about improving their credit scores than ever, and that’s a very good thing. Having a bad credit score can prevent you from getting a good interest rate on a loan. It can also cause you to … Continue reading →

Not all credit repair “law firms” are the same. It would be nice to think that any company that calls itself a “law firm” would be 100% trustworthy, but this is unfortunately NOT the case. There are well-known credit repair … Continue reading →

Michiganders who disagree with any part of an unpaid account that has gone to debt collections can and should file a dispute with the credit bureaus. Once reported, collection accounts can severely damage credit scores. So, if they are not … Continue reading →

There are reasons why payday loans are heavily regulated or banned entirely in most states. In Michigan, payday lending is heavily regulated, but the industry still causes a lot of problems in the Mitten State. Cash-strapped consumers living paycheck to … Continue reading →

The courts take violations of the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) very seriously, especially when they are willful violations. Recently, a federal jury in California awarded $60 million in damages for willful FCRA violations allegedly committed by TransUnion. Related posts: … Continue reading →

Smart identity thieves in Michigan know that most smart phones harbor a treasure trove of consumer data. If you’re like most Michiganders, you use your smart phone for communication, entertainment, and possibly transactions. It’s highly likely that you regularly check … Continue reading →

Unfortunately, Michigan consumers are no strangers to fraud. Yearly statistics indicate that identity thieves and other types of scammers operate in the Great Lakes State. However, Michigan isn’t alone. Florida, for example, has certainly seen more than its share of … Continue reading →

Michigan consumers who want to rebuild a bad credit score can use credit cards to help them reach their goals. They have to be careful though. For many Michiganders, credit cards are what got them in trouble with their credit … Continue reading →

Payday loans have been bad news for a lot of Michigan consumers. Payday lenders prey on people who have bad credit or no credit and need money fast. Also, the interest rates attached to these loans are typically outrageous. In … Continue reading →

Unfortunately, some debt collectors have been known to abuse their status and take a walk on the sleazy side, and it appears that Equity Experts is just this kind of debt collection agency. A number of consumer complaints have been … Continue reading →

Michiganders really love their cars, and, apparently, so does the rest of the country. According to recent data, almost half of the adult population in the U.S. currently has auto loan debt. The fact that consumers have been buying cars … Continue reading →

In recent years, there has been a large increase in tax refund fraud cases. Identity thieves file false tax returns using a victim’s social security number and personal information. Tax return information may appear legitimate, but the person filing it … Continue reading →

Equity Experts and its sleazy practices Equity Experts is a collection agency that focuses on collecting for condominium and homeowner associations.  As a debt collector, its practices fall far short of what a decent debt collector’s practices should be.   … Continue reading →

In 2012, Bank of America reached a $16.65 billion settlement with the United States Department of Justice over its mortgage practices. If you had a home equity line of credit with Bank of America, you may have received a letter … Continue reading →

Yahoo was recently hacked and millions of identities were stolen.  Was yours?  If you are a Yahoo user and are unsure of whether you are a victim of identity theft, here are some tips for you to minimize any potential … Continue reading →

Have you received unwanted text messages on your cell phone?  Those text messages may violate the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA).  In plain English, we may be able to get you compensation of between $500 and $1,500 per text message … Continue reading →

Picture this:  A beautiful Christmas Eve with your family, a fire in the fireplace and Uncle Henry (everyone has one), doing his best to behave himself. Your home phone rings and it’s a debt collector.  Or, you might be spinning … Continue reading →

Most Americans own a Smartphone.  We use Smartphones for everything from posting to social media to email and mobile banking.  Some of our most personal and private information is accessed and sometimes stored on our Smartphones.  While most Smartphones have … Continue reading →

As we approach the biggest shopping day of the year, it is important to remember that it is also a big day for thieves to cash in on unsuspecting victims.  Black Friday and Cyber Monday are big days for shoppers … Continue reading →

Mr. Urbanski has filed a complaint in the US District Court for Middle District of Florida alleging that Enhanced Recovery has called him approximately 150 times on his cellphone.  If Enhanced Recovery did not have Urbanski’ s permission to call … Continue reading →

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act is a federal statute that protects consumers from debt collectors.  But just when is a debt collector NOT a debt collector under the FDCPA? The Ninth Circuit recently held that a trustee, foreclosing on … Continue reading →

In a classic David v Goliath case, Mr. and Mrs. Spanovich sued BMO Harris Bank over a debt that was not their obligation.  Despite having sent dispute letters to Experian, Equifax and Trans Union informing them that they no longer … Continue reading →

Identity theft is still one of the fastest growing problems in America.  It’s not showing any signs of slowing down.  As an identity theft attorney, I can tell you that most identity theft that we see happens with one family … Continue reading →

We usually think of banks as conservative, upright corporate citizens simply doing their best to screw the public.  Far fetched?  Not today.  http://www.usatoday.com/story/money/2016/09/08/wells-fargo-fined-185m-over-unauthorized-accounts/90003212/ The Consumer Financial Protection Board has fined Wells Fargo $185 million for trying to boost up its demand … Continue reading →

If you are a credit repair professional, come join ACRED.info. It stands for “Attorneys and Credit Repair Experts Dialogue.” We work with credit clinics to teach them the law and best practices for helping consumers better their credit scores. Learn … Continue reading →

Chances are that Bank of America has damaged your credit by reporting this debt as past due. This debt was forgiven. Bank of American should not be reporting anything outstanding since the debt was forgiven. We filed several lawsuits against … Continue reading →

If your finances have been suffering for a long period of time, you have no doubt been served by creditors. Although this may be somewhat of a nuisance for you, creditors are just trying to get back the money they … Continue reading →

The credit reporting agencies and lenders, in the last few years, have picked up a new trick designed to hurt you.  They are turning single charge offs into multiple charge offs.  They take a singular charge off and report it … Continue reading →

Credit repair companies have gotten a bum rap from just about everyone from Congress to states attorneys general to Yelp.  The industry has received these black eyes from some bad apples in the bunch, no doubt.  Unfortunately, these few had … Continue reading →

Identity thieves are running rampant in the United States. They used to target individuals only, but in recent years, have set their goals much higher. Just ask Target, Blue Cross and even United State Department of Office of Personnel Management. … Continue reading →

Michigan Consumer Credit Lawyers (“MCCL”) obtained a ruling against Xerox Educational Services in the case of Scharf v Xerox Education Services, (Docket no 5:14-cv-14322 USDC – Michigan) that it had willfully violated Ms. Scharf’s rights under the Fair Credit Reporting … Continue reading →

We can get errors removed from your credit report for free. Using the Fair Credit Reporting Act (“FCRA”), our credit repair lawyers can fix your credit for free. We will write the appropriate letter to the credit reporting agencies to … Continue reading →

You should ask them and find out.  Ever since Experian has been sending out its “suspicious request” response letters, I have been flooded with calls and contacts from credit repair organizations around the country.  I have been telling people that … Continue reading →

Credit repair organizations (“CROs”) have a pretty bad reputation.  Well, some of them do and it’s enough to really tarnish the entire industry.  Hell, Congress had to step in and create the Credit Repair Organization Act that severely regulated these … Continue reading →

If  you have something on your credit report that does not belong to you, the Fair Credit Reporting Act requires you to send a dispute to the credit reporting agency, such as Experian, Equifax and Trans Union (“credit reporting agencies” or … Continue reading →

OK, so every now and then a runaway verdict makes headlines.  In this case, Time Warner cable is required to pay $230,000 to a consumer for making 153 robocalls to him.  This may be one such case or, may be … Continue reading →

Junk faxes are the bane of most businesses that have fax machines.  Heck, in my home fax was deluged with faxes from advertisers that I never asked for or wanted.  Enter the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (“TCPA”). The TCPA is … Continue reading →

Adrian Rubin of Jenkinstown, PA has been charged with Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO).  From 1998 to 2012, Rubin has been involved with multiple businesses that make usurious loans commonly known as “Payday Loans.”  He allegedly attempted to … Continue reading →

Everyone in the U.S. who has ever applied for credit or used credit to purchase something has a credit history on file with one or all of the three main credit record agencies: Experian, Transunion, and Equifax. However, many people … Continue reading →

An approximate 80 percent of the population have damaged reports. About 40 percent of the population has a lower credit score due to inaccurate information on their credit reports. This inaccurate information happens for several reasons, but the root of … Continue reading →

When consumers review their credit reports, they are often amazed by the inaccuracies being reported yet confused by what should be disputed. At first glance, people may become horrified to notice misspelled names, outdated addresses or strange inquiries to view … Continue reading →

Posting resumes on job boards is a common practice amongst job seekers. Job seekers continuously update their resumes with detailed and accurate information targeted at prospective employers. Unfortunately, not only are employers viewing your qualifications but identity thieves are also … Continue reading →

The Department of Education has turned a blind eye to the collection harassment and debtor abuse that  debt collectors that it has hired collect student loan debt.  Well, no more.  On Friday, February 27, 2015, it announced that its firing … Continue reading →

According to the Federal Trade Commission, its number one complaint from consumers in 2014, was identity theft.  This crime has been on a meteoric rise since the 1990s.  You can blame computers and the internet for its stellar rise in … Continue reading →

The scenario of a debt collector from a Michigan creditor knocking on the door of a Virginia debtor is so surreal that it could occur only in an imaginary situation. In reality, interstate debt collection activities are by remote communications … Continue reading →

With the accumulating information available on eah person, identity theft has become an increasing threat. Thousands of people a year are affected by this crime. Their personal information is used in a myriad of ways without their consent. Here is … Continue reading →

There are many ways to commit identity theft. Unfortunately, identity theft happens every day all over the world. Some of the most popular ways to commit identity theft are filing false tax refunds, medical identity, through credit cards, and even … Continue reading →

Since the inception of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (“CFPB”), I had expected the Federal Trade Commission to put its proverbial feet up on its desk and collect is federal funds.  After all, the FTC unloaded a lot of the … Continue reading →

Identity theft is a real problem that millions of Americans face on a yearly basis. Not only does identity theft lead to severe intrusion into your personal life, but it can have repercussions on your finances too. According to Daily … Continue reading →

I thought this was really interesting.  TheFederal Trade Commission keeps a list of Banned Debt collectors.  You can click on links and see the pleadings in each such banned debt collectors case. Today, I learned that one banned debt collector, … Continue reading →