We have all heard the news of outsourcing American jobs to Mexico with their cheap, almost free labor costs, and of course the transition of skilled computer related jobs to countries such as India. Why would any company pay $40 or $50 an hour for something that can be done in another country at a fraction of the price? Many companies have indeed done just that. I for one wonder how much of this out sourcing has contributed to the current credit crunch. If people here in the US do not have jobs, they can not buy the goods?
Today I found a new twist on the off shore adventures by a company registered in Mill Valley, California, Astra Business Services. My wife took the call, some lady calling herself Angela Cook called and asked if we could deliver an important message to a neighbor. “Please tell her to call 866-823-1670 as soon as possible.” My wife is a kindly soul, and wrote down all of the information.
I have to admit that my ’spidey senses’ were alerted. We have only just moved into this house, our telephone number is not secret, but it certainly is not in the local directory.
I had some questions for my wife, the fundamental one was ‘how did they get our number’? My wife thought about it for a while, and she agreed, something was amiss.
Well, I decided that before I played the part of Good Samaritan I would do a little investigating. A quick Google revealed that the call back area number 866 is a toll free number. Now I have lots of friends, but I can’t name one that wants to pay for incoming calls. My wife assured me that the young lady on the phone was very nice, and sounded very sincere.
I just wasn’t buying into the game. I decided to call the number and see what I could extract. It was answered by a gentleman in the name of Astra Business Services. I asked for Angela Cook, who I explained had called a few minutes prior. There was what can only be classed as a pregnant pause. Not being easily led away from Red Meat, I plowed on. If Angela is not available, can I talk to her supervisor?
As if by magic, Angela is suddenly located.
It is a very erudite and educated young lady that is put on the line.
So what is it that Astra Business Services do?
Well we are involved with Personal Business Information.
I am not sure what that means, my wife took a call from you a few minutes ago asking if we would relay a message to one of of neighbors. Clearly this is not a personal message, I know of few individuals that offer 1-800 service. So what are you selling?
Oh, we do not sell anything, that is not our thrust.
So tell me about Astra Business Services? Where are you headquartered?
Our headquarters are in Mill Valley, California.
So what kind of business are you in?
umm, well we are a financial services organization, we are in the personal business information industry
I am curious as to how you obtained my number as you do not even know my name, and the person you are actually trying to locate apparently is my neighbor.
Oh, I got it from 411.
That doesn’t seem entirely credible, it stretches my imagination that you can call 411 ask for Joe Smith in some town, and then also ask if they can also supply the telephone numbers of his neighbors, it just doesn’t work that way.
We might have got it from a skip tracer.
Skip Tracer? You said that this message was business related but did not concern money. So you are in the skip tracing business?
Oh, no, we are not skip tracers.
You mentioned that you are headquartered in Mill Valley, California, is that where you are calling from?
No, I am calling from India
Needless to say, by this time it was abundantly clear that this was some kind of collections call, even though the young lady was insistent that this important message was not connected with money. It didn’t take a whole pile of research to track down this company, and on their web site is this illuminating piece of information:
Together, this deeply experienced American/Indian management team has launched a one-of-a-kind company with a singular focus on American consumer delinquencies.
A further few minutes on Google revealed that these folks have a modus operandi of annoying people who are not connected in any way with the person involved. So here is a piece of advice, if you receive a call from 866-823-1670 don’t bother calling it back. It is just a call center in India, if you want to have some real fun though, call the company in Mill Valley at (415) 384-0730 and ask to speak to Feroze Waheed, he is the CEO. I am sure that he would love to chat with you.
Update: Feroze Waheed is actually located in India. This makes this company even more suspicious. This is not out sourcing, this is predatory. How can a company be based in the US when the major players are some place else?
I have also received no reply from the company, no doubt they are just to busy calling people from their 866-823-1670 number. I would love to hear from any reader that has suffered from this organization, so if you have a story, drop me a line. The big black box on the right hand side of the page that says Writers Wanted will get my email addy.
Simon Barrett
(13 votes, average: 3.92 out of 5)
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45 users commented in " Astra Business Services – Debt Collection From Afar "
Follow-up comment rss or Leave a TrackbackThey have called me. Our number is unlisted and has been for years.
They asked me to have a neighbor call and knowing who they were from news reports, I told them that the neighbor was dead after going to the local collection agency and shooting somebody who had called him and asked him to tell the neighbor a message about an important call. I told him it seemed like an excellent solution to all and that after I practiced on the range, I would be over. He hung up.
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I too have received many many calls from this company. When I answered after a minute or so of silence it started ringing and a woman answered, “Astra Business Services, May I help you?”. She insisted multiple times I called her. This has got to be a computer routed call that makes it look like I called them so they can get around the No Call list law and harrass people. I told her in no uncertain terms her information for my number was incorrect. Had I called her she would have known my information! I asked her to please remove my number from her call list. They still call me at all hours of the day and night. I just don’t answer. I hate my cell phone because of it.
u guys are retarted. just jealous cuz u cant run a business
I pride myself on my grammar and spelling skills more than I do my business skills. This is so I don’t look like a dumbass when I post responses on the internet. I doubt you run a business either, at least one where the spoken language is English.
I got a call too. But who cares? just hang up. wipe your tears and stop whining about it like a bunch of sissies
its outsourcing guys, get used to it. just another business strategy. trust me, there are much worse
I recieved a call from them wanting me to verifiy my social securty #. I precisted on them to tell me how they got my #. I asked to talk to someone that soke clear English, they couldn’t. They wouldn’t talk to me until I verified it. I didn’t tel them yes or no. They ended the call. today recieved a letter from them trying to collect money for a old card, that I paid in full after an agreement with the companys contact.
I work at Astra Business Services…I know what u guys mean by harrassment but please understand it is our job to call and verify a consumers ssn.Its not that we want to but to protect the privacy of the consumer we need to make sure were speaking to the right person.
We cant jst disclose info to just ne1.
We dont steal ssn’s but we get them from our clients and ur ssns were infact given by you while u were signing up for the card or watever the service.Please give us a break.
We are a legitamat company and we are bound by the FDCPA.Every call is recorded and if u ask us not to call you we immidiately mark ur # do not call.
Maybe if u paid ur bills on time we wudnt have to clal u so much.Were jst tryin to help in gettin ur problem resolved.We offer good discounts to make it easier for you as well.
And by the way calling a neighbour is not something we want to do its something we are told and infact allowed to do by law in a few selected states in the US.
We call a neighbour once and by the way and we only contact them again if we are given permission by them to do so.
Angela Cook was just doing her job and she did it well.And Mrs Barrett was kind enough to help us out and we wud be grateful if the msg was conveyed.If Mrs Barrett told us clearly that she will deliver the msg but not to call her again then we would have done that without an issue.
As for the consumers….
Instead of hanging up all the time jst speak to the reps n hear us out and see what we have to offer you.We jsut want to help and we are here to hear you out as well.
One more thing to add that Mr Waheed is located in India however he travels to the US very often for Business development purposes and to keep an eye on HQ and to attract new clients…Atleast 5 times a month.
So give me a break Mr Barrett.You dont need to make an issue out of something so small.Please…
Hey Dmjs,
If you’re going to do business in the US, you need to understand our Laws and Regulations.
4 words: “Do Not Call List”. It is illegal to call persons on that list (a government list). Your Co. called me and I have no outstanding debts whatsoever (my FICO is 750+). So I reported you to the Government Agency who handles harrassing cold callers/debt collectors (er uh, that’s you), the Dept of Commerce. I urge everyone to report this company as credit harrassment is MAJORLY illegal.
No one wants to deliver a message to a neighbor as it is as rude as cold calling your customers neighbor to have the message delivered. If you have a debt and you can’t collect it, try the next step in our system…take them to court.
We don’t have debtors prison like some third world nations in the Far East who shall remain nameless (but not blameless). We only have bankruptcy. If you want blood from a turnip, you get it from an American.
They call me daily. It’s very irritating. I screen my calls, Leave me a message and let me know why the heck you’re calling.
I too receive calls from Astra Business 4 or 5 times a day. They never leave a message. I don’t have any pass due debts. In the past I’ve had credit cards that I settled and paid with the credit card companies. Maybe they are trying to resurrect those account.
I will be putting a call block on their number.
Ok Mr Irsean
Dont u worry sir we are well eqiped with the laws of the United States.
We have been given detailed training on the FDCPA n HIPPA laws.
We know wat a DNC list is and if we called you then it may have been a mistake or the person we called for may have owned ur number before.
We aint sellin you anything,were callin to collect somethin that you owe!
And yes i can understand the fact that it is rude to call a consumers neighbour but it is only a request to convey the msg,thats all…And alot of people do help out.If peolple have a stick stuck up their pie hole (err you!) and dont wanna help then they can simply jst say that they dont wanna do it and stop callin,And we will do just that.
We have no intensions of takin ppl to court and become nasty,thats not the way we wanna do business.
AS for the rest i apologise for the calls but instead or ignoring them y dont u jst answer the damn phone.No1s gonna eat you.It cud be a debt for somethin u arnt aware about,if so we will help u dispute it.It may even be a wrong# adn if uv filed for bankruptcy then all we need are the details to close the acct…I dont get it,what is the harm in jst answering the phone?
If its a wrong # then jst say it n ask us to stop callin you and we will do jst that.
Watever the reason all we wanna do is help u take care of the debt as per ur own convenience.We dont wish to harras u or anything…
I receive numerous phone calls from them each day. I screen my phone calls, because I work from home. They never leave a message. I was sick of the same number calling me yesterday, so I answered the call and Brian their representative asked me if I was blank. I never answered him and then he proceeded to state “are you ???? with ss # ????”. What is legal about, nothing. I work for a company that trains my division deeply on the Fair Debt Practices Act, the Astra Business Services has no idea what the law is all about. It is only allowed by law to contact a residence where the debtor is believed to reside, not neighbors. I will be filing a complaint with the correct agency or agencies. For me personally my debt is way over the statute of limitations for them to be able to collect anything in the court system. I worked at a law firm back when the delinquency happened and the attorney advised me to just let it ride. They bought the debt from whatever company you owed for pennies on a dollar. They now want to collect the full amount, because they make a huge profit.
Hey Mr Dmjs
Why don’t you give us your name and phone number! ‘no harm’
SCREENING OUT UNWANTED PHONE CALLS
I set my phone’s default ringtone to “none”. For each of the people or businesses that I want to receive a call from (or from whom I am willing to accept a call), I assigned a ringtone to their number. So, my phone rings only when there is a call from any of those pre-approved numbers. The phone does not ring when anyone else tries to call.
When I check the list of missed calls, I can see what numbers attempted to call. Usually, those calls were attempts from collection agencies (probably trying to locate the person who had this number before me). But, of course, those calls are no longer answered.
Someone from this number called two weeks ago, and said they where Monster.com and tried to solicit information from me. I have delt with Monster.com and knew something wasn’t right(strong indian accent) gave it away. When i called them back they said there debt collectors and i owe 60 dollars,”call me in thirty days” i told them. Then they started calling every day! This gets better, This guy calls me today and says This company is calling him and sending him mail with my name on it, He called the police and told them “I stole his identidy”. If i owe, i’ll pay…This is not the way though. By the way astra, i sent your little skit to Monster.com i hope their lawers reem you good.
I too recived a call from them into my cell phone for somone ealse trying to talk me in that I’M he or know him I hang up complite morans! thier English was bad very Indian…..
I have been getting 3 -4 calls a day from them. The first time they called I answered and they were looking for a person that didn’t even live here or I have heard of. They guy couldn’t speak English at all. I just let the answering machine get it but they will not leave a message.
I receive their calls daily. The guy insists he’s not ’selling me anything’ and claims he has to verify information. I have asked them to stop but they keep calling. I even called their number to aske them to stop and I was transferred TO THE SAME GUY! who on top of everything gets upset because I keep telling him I don’t care what he has to say and to STOP CALLING.
really annoying.
Just got a call asking for my son, so I googled them. You can add the name and number below to the list.
Alice
888-799-7986 ext 2176
I have recently started receiving calls from this company. I at first just ignored them but they called 3 to 4 times a day and I finally answered them one day and they just hung up. The very next day I received another one and I answered and I talked to an Alice Blake and she told me that I owe an old bill of over $3,300 from Bally’s Fitness and I have paid for a membership to this back in 1998 and never missed a payment with them and the contract expired and I thought nothing of it I was finished with them, and now after all these years this company is trying to tell me that I have an outstanding balance from them and I could not even get a word in because she would not shut up long enough for me to answer. Then, this is the kicker I asked her where did she get my phone number and she said it was on the application for Bally’s, funny thing, My phone number is a cell phone number and it is on the no call list, and I received this number in 2008 and this is a brand new number not a recycled one I have checked and I also called Bally’s about this Astra Business Solutions Company and they said it is being taking care of by the Federal Government because they have stolen old information from there computer systems and they could not tell me more information due to the investigation with them. Astra Business Solutions is a fraud company and they are getting investigated by US Government so if you are receiving phone calls from them don’t answer the phone but do report them to your local FBI agency and tell them about Astra Business Solutions and they will add the complaint to ongoing investigation they are conducting. They told me that they have been following them for about 2 years now and the call center has moved 5 times since they started the investigation and are now have a fraud alert posted on FBI.GOV web site as potential consumer fraud and this being said PEOPLE IN USA BE AWARE OF THESE PHONE NUMBERS COMING UP ON YOUR PHONE:
1-866-823-1670
1-888-799-7986
PLEASE REPORT THIS TO YOUR LOCAL FBI AGENCY!!!
To Andrew12345 (28 Feb 2010):
Is this true, stolen merchants’ computer files? Well, that would certainly be illegal in spite of the best conceivable intentions.
The calls I get are from 888-679-9741. It’s Astra Business Solutions all right. Is this included in the numbers the FBI is tracking?
Our phone(s) are all DNA registered. The calls come at times outside of legal hours. Even 10p. I’ve never so much as dialed their number as it occurred to me that to do so could be used by Astra to show I have/had some business relationship them.
I’ve had a rotten medical debt from 12 years ago that, like another poster, a lawyer friend advised I just let ride. (same exact phrase.)
We know that’s been long ago sold and written off. There is no legal standing to support further attempts to collect it.
And now, how can they possibly be calling with anybody’s actual social security number? I’m incredulous that they’d even ask for it BUT HOPE TO HIGH HEAVEN that nobody would ever give or confirm a single digit of theirs.
Sheesh. And now this dude “Dmjs” claiming to work for Astra? That’s a joke, yeah? One of us clowning around? The nasty tone is pure Indian tele-terrorist. I hope it’s a joke, otherwise pathetically sad.
Anyhow, thanks Andrew for the helpful information.
Whoops.
No, our phone(s) are not DNA registered. That would be a new science.
They’ve been DNC registered for years.
Do Not Call)
1-888-799-7986 called my cell phone but did not leave a message. They then sent a text message to call them. Is this even allowed. My phone is registered on the DNC.
I’ve been having the same problem with these people they have been calling me all hours of the day i put my number on the Do Not Call list can these people leave me and my family alone!!!!!
@jsb….wow! indian tele-terrorist!!! that is a strong phrase… how abt trying to pick up the phone? i promise you won’t get killed!!! so anyone who doesn’t speak with your accent doesn’t know how to speak english, huh? listen, i take around 1200 calls on an average, where arnd 900 of them are either wrong nos or answering machines… if you think that i’m gonna leave messages on 900 machines, o boy, you are so mistaken… give us a break, ok… american collectors are prob school droupouts, who get the job coz they can terrorize pple into paying them… indians get the job coz we can speak english and we are educated… do you know that there are laws in India which prevent school drop outs from entering skilled jobs which include call centers… nah… u don’t know much about india, do you? you can just come for holidays here and ooh-aah at the monuments and the poor pple here, right??
let me tell you the shit i face everyday from Americans, pple from a country which is considered to be a global leader in every arena… i call a lady and ask if i can speak to XYZ… she tells me… “go back to your country, you terrorist”… wow!
“you guys call everyday and blah blah blah…”- have you ever tried calling us back and telling us that this is a wrong number? no, you do not…
initially, when i used to get abused, by people, mostly like the ones commenting here, i used to get upset… i used to even cry, yeah, actually shed tears… now, i just laugh it off…. and i thank you guys, for making me tougher in life…
people in BPOs are human too… get a grip, a heart and a life!!!!
Debashree,Wow,you are on the defensive,I am so sorry.I am on the dnc list too but get calls all the time for a neighbor I don’t even know.
I answer everyone of them and explain the situation.But they still call,I am on here now because they called again last night.
I have nothing against India or it’s people,in fact,2 of them are my dr.’s.I have a great relationship with them.
But don’t you see how irritating it can be when you get calls like this and they have nothing to do with you?I am a very sick lady and these people wanted me to go out at night,down the stairs in pouring rain to tell this woman to answer her phone.She is on her phone all the time anyway.My landlord won’t do anything about it so I have decided to give them his number the next time they call for her.
I don’t think race has anything to do with this anyway.
@Peanut, ma’am, i appreciate your concerns… the next time anyone calls, pls ask for an address or a fax no… tell them that you will be sending them a “cease communications” or a “cease and desist” letter… and also say “do not call”… do not phrase this in any other way since the law requires that the person should specifically say the mentioned three words… then, after the rep on the phone says that she/he has removed your number, call back and make sure that they actually have… every BPO has caller id on the incoming calls… ask them to pull up records with your phone number (the one on which you get calls from Astra)… if they can’t pull up any record, it means that your phone number has been removed…. i think doing the above should work… and i think u guys still get calls even when you are on the DNC list, because collection calls or skip tracing calls are not classified as “solicitations”…. only solicitors can’t call numbers on the DNC list… anyway, pls lemme know if what i suggested worked….
Hey I have worked with Astra for around 4 years. Spent enough time talking to people all across the U.S of A. Some of you are really genuine BUT ONLY WHEN YOU NEED A LOAN APPROVED or WHEN YOU HAVE TO GET A DEBT OFF of your CBR (CREDIT BUREAU REPORT).
Except for these two conditions, I find almost the whole country either on ‘Social Security Income’ or ‘Single parent’ or on ‘Medical Aid’ on ‘Food Stamps’ or ‘Disability income’. Oh the best one for medical debts “MY INSURANCE WILL PAY IT”. Like you are educated enough to know whats written in your insurance contract.
When we call to collect, THEY DON’T EVEN KNOW WHAT A CREDIT CARD IS :O
They have never had one in their life… (HEY ITS NOT YET TIME FOR GUINNES WORLD RECORD LIAR AWARD)
Americans can really pretend till they can pretend no more and lie till there’s nothing left to back it up anymore.
Believe me, with the kind of experience and expertise I’ve had in the language as well as the accent, be it AL / MI / MS / LA / NY / TX… I did crack all these peculiar ones, and was able to manage the rest.
YOU JUST KNOW WHEN A COLLECTION COMPANY CALLS… as a result:
Fathers haven’t heard from their sons in years, mothers don’t know where their daughters are. Family members answer the phone calls without the Individual being asked for ever returning from work.
For real is there any end to this. Would you people ever wana confront what you have done wrong. Its not a crime to owe a debt, but it does take some rotten ethics to deny owing it.
You don’t want us to call at you work, and you wont answer your cell phone or home phone coz you know we are calling for an unpaid debt, HEY GUESS WHAT, your neighbour’s gonna pay you a visit soon
Charge off huh… you know what that is… Yea right, don’t pay a debt for 7 years (in most of the states) and you don’t owe it anymore. Damn right. Do you really not.
Really wonder why your economy suffers, pay your debts. IT WON’T ANYMORE!!!!! DA……. :O
Personally I loved talking to the people because some of them were really genuinely in trouble and God is my witness that I did what I could possibly to help them out of their misery.
But hey lets be responsible.
ADVISE:
- Your banking system, the way its designed, is a legal robbing machine.
- Never take credit cards when you know you wont pay them, and we wont call you.
- If a company is contacting you mistaken for someone who they think you are and you are not, tell them and get rid of the calls.
- Please don’t think if we speak plain english, we are dumb. The moment you answer the call, we know if you are gonna lie or pay
- Be responsible and actively take care of the matter till you have written documentation of them being resolved. IF ANY DEBT IS IGNORED, it comes to collection.
TRICKS:
- ONLY WHEN YOU HAVE CASH, Ask all debt collection companies to settle for 25-30% (saying this is all you have)… You will see they will actually doing something out of their reach to get it over with.
- Never think you have paid a debt until you have a document in your hand saying it.
God bless India & America…
- ONLY WHEN YOU HAVE CASH, Ask all debt collection companies to settle for 25-30% (saying this is all you have)… You will see they will actually ***doing*** something out of their reach to get it over with.
typo- the word is ‘do’
Astra buys old debt pennies on the dollar.
If they call you do your homework. Figure out if they are trying to collect a legit debt. If so let your conscience be your guide.
NEVER agree to anything over the phone. NEVER confirm anything over the phone. Make them send you proof in writing that you have a debt. Find out whether the statue of limitations (in your state of the state where you incurred the debt) has run out. If you admit to the debt the clock starts running again.
Astra Business Services
9550 Regancy Square Boulevard, Suite 500
Jacksonville, FL 32225
That is the address that the woman gave me. She has called twice and I have asked for an itemized list of claims. She said they could not provide it. I said for them to get it from the source. I will not blindly pay something without source information or items listed. (Fed Law) She refused. I said I talked to someone else, she said I had and that she was handling things now, later she confirmed it was her I talked to.
I said for them to mail me something as I would send them the legal Cease and Desist letter with mandatory clause to now put everything in writing.
Have yet to receive information. Will double check with credit reporting agencies to see if changes occur. Did not find them listed on http://www.fbi.gov as stated in other comments.
All for $43.00….so they say….
SCAM IMHO
Another link you can see how tangled this web is…:
http://www.corporationwiki.com/California/Mill-Valley/astra-business-services-private-limited-corp-2779091.aspx
Enjoy…
Heres a lil advice….find a templete of debt validation letter and send it to them. They must,by law provide you proof of debt within 30 days. VALIDATION OF DATE DOES NOT MEAN A COPY OF A LETTER OR BILL. Validation of debt is the ORGINIAL CONTRACT SIGNED BY YOU! Since many of these old debts have been sold and bought over and over again they cant even really prove it belongs to you. You send a copy of debt validation letter to this company as well as to the ATTORNEY GENERALS OFFICE in the same city they are headquartered in(Calif). Trust me,The Attorney General also sends an investigation letter to the company,and you will see how fast it is closed and removed off all three of your credit reports. These seedy debt collects think they know the law,and 1/2 dont. Ive done my research and used this on a few fly by night collectors. If they call,hang up on them.
No one should ever ask you for your s.s number,and certainly laws protect you the consumer,especially from calling YOUR NEIGHBORS and airing your private buisness. Unless they want to land in court under a law suit,they may want to brush up on their work ethics!
A little free advice is worth exactly what you pay for it,nothing.If you want to know your rights speak with an attorney. If you want to do what is right then pay your bills. It is seedy not to pay your bills not to be asked to do so. If you owe it then it’s yours. Verfying your social security number is what is asked of you every time you contact a credit card company, service provider, etc. Call AMEX, call Discover, call Chase, they ask for and confirm your SS#.
Why beat up on someone or some thing you are so ill informed about? It makes you sound very ignorant. Without debt collections our entire economic structure would collapse.
There are bad people every where in the U.S. and in India. Asking you to pay your bill does not make someone bad. However, lying about who you are, attempting to defraud or not pay what is justly owed doesn’t make you good either.
By the time a debt gets to a collection agency, there is no point in engaging said firm. They do not have your best interest at heart and they do not ever help anyone but themselves.
Better to either contact the original holder of said debt if you have intentions to pay or engage an attorney to dispute. That said, the majority of work assigned to debt collectors is ZOMBIE debt; that which has expired under state statute. These agencies have purchased this debt for pennies on the dollar and now seek to recover 25 fold or more. The last thing you want to do is allow the clock on that debt to restart. Agencies will tell you they can arrange a plan for repayment but all that does is place the zombie debt back on your credit report and many times - even if you have paid – the debt will be resold and collection efforts start all over again. If large corps can stick shareholders on stocks and bonds when they default, where is the immorality when, as a private citizen, you face similar dilemmas in cash flow? Certainly bankruptcy is an option but taking that route results in years of recovery. Depending on your state, the debt statute may be as short 3 years and they have to fall off your report after seven years.
Now, if you borrowed money, you need to repay it – plain and simple. Just don’t let these remoras get in between you and debt holder.
As a business owner, I have engaged collection services and what I have found is that they lie. They will tell you how they will pursue, the repayment plan they will offer, and you will agree to parameters. What they tell you is quite different from what the debtor hears and I have docs and recordings to back that up. In one case, I couldn’t get activity statements or even checks from the agency until I proved (with a copy of cashed check from debtor) that money was being received but not passed to me per agreement. So in this case, who is really the slimeball?
I now just use my attorney. Much more professional and significantly better results.
What the hell is wrong with you guys! You are just looking for an excuse ti get away with they money you have rightfully used and now is the time you pay it? If you are not in a position to pay it explain it! No one can take blood out of a turnip…even debt collectors..
Second of all no one will ever except their fault…no one says yes i owe the money and according to the contracts I signed banks are allowed to put interest on the bills as mentioned in the contracts you signed..
If you think by lying or butching here you will feel good about yourselves..know yourself out..Debt collectors get paid very handsomely and they dont take this BS seriously anyways..
samy said some stuff i cant understand.
It seems there is a patern of collectors being ANGRY and STUPID. ???
I just dont know how to feel about the integrity of a person who does this work(collections) for a living.
Let me pester you till you give me money regardless of the circumstances of the debt.
THIS IS A GOOD SITE !
Contacting “nearbys” is a common skip tracing tool for people that have “skipped” out on a bill. However, asking neighbors to deliver a message is now a no-no, according to court precedence. Now that skip tracer is only supposed to attempt to get contact info on the deadbeat.
my information was stolen recently from 6pm and zappos, i was told about this from their companies. not more than 4 days later i started recieving calls from this company from number 888-799-7986. beware!!!!
I love your site - great way to have an intelligent exchange
Regarding Astra I have received calls from them for myself and for neighbors - they collect in a passive aggressive manner, are not knowledgeable and yes they lie. Mr. Hillkiller gave the best advise information. Yes if you have borrowed money you need to pay it back, however often that is not the issue and Astra is playing a numbers game buying debts for pennies on the dollar. My daughter worked in collections, she was honest, reliable and successful - which is why she is no longer doing it. The idea that anyone thinks this country needs collection agencies is ludicrous- go live in Inda-China whereever - it is not the ethnics of an individual it is the attitude that makes or breaks them
http://www.astraglobal.com/work.htm
Here is their web address. It claims they are courteous and professional. What a steaming load of horse s**t… The site also includes a mailing address for their FL office and their India office as well as an email address. Feel free to voice your complaints IN WRITING directly to the source.
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