US Asset Management Collection Letter for Time-Barred Debt FDCPA Class Action

This class action brings suit against EOS CCA, which does business as Collecto, Inc. (EOS) and US Asset Management, Inc. The complaint alleges that the companies have violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) for sending a misleading debt collection letter that attempts to collect a time-barred debt without mentioning to the consumer debtor that even a small payment could restart the statute of limitations on the debt.

Plaintiff Moshe Blumenberg incurred a debt to Verizon for personal cell phone service. While the complaint calls Verizon a “creditor,” it does not specify the relationship between that company and EOS. Both EOS and US Asset Management allegedly are collectors of consumer debt, that is, debt incurred for personal, family, or household purposes. However, it does surmise that “Defendant EOS contracted with Defendant US Asset Management to collect the alleged debt.”

On or around July 2, 2020, a collection letter was sent Blumenberg as an initial contact about the debt. The letter says that the balance of his loan was $40.14 and that it was past due.

According to the complaint, however, the statute of limitations for taking legal action on that particular debt was two years after Blumenberg’s default, and that that date had already passed. The complaint thus asserts that US Asset should have informed him that he could no longer be sued for the debt and that any payment on the debt could revive the statute of limitations so that he could once again be sued for the money he allegedly owed.

The FDCPA says that debt collectors may not use false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in attempting to collect a debt. The complaint alleges that not mentioning that the debt was “stale” or time-barred, and that even a small payment could mean was a material omission, so that the letter “fails to clearly and adequately inform the consumer of the true legal status of the debt and potential ramifications of making a payment and restarting the statute of limitations.”

The class for this action is

• All individuals with address in New York state
• To whom EOS sent a collection letter
• On US Asset Management’s behalf
• Trying to collect a consumer debt,
• Where the debt was past the statute of limitations for the debtor to be sued,
• Without revealing that this statute of limitations had passed, and
• Without disclosing that any payment made on the debt could restart the statute of limitations,
• Where the letter was sent between November 27, 2019 and December 18, 2020.

Article Type: Lawsuit
Topic: Consumer
Tags: FDCPA, Misrepresentation or Omission re Time-Barred Debt, Unlawful Debt Collection