Buffalo NY Collector Shut Down

Over the past several years, many Arizona consumers have called with stories of harassment and threats by collection agencies or debt buyers from Buffalo New York. The threats include arrest, criminal action, legal action, loss of one's home and car, contacting employer, etc. Though these threats seem obviously illegal, many debtors get scared and pay these criminals money.

The Syracuse.com website recently posted a news article on Maurice Sessum, a Buffalo debt collector and owner of the collection agency 4 Star Resolution, was sentenced to 7 1/2 years in prison for fraud. Sessum was operating a collection which scammed thousands of consumers to overpay their debts by $31 million. 

The article outlines many of the false statements used by 4 Star and Sessum to defraud consumers, including:

• that 4 Star was affiliated with local government and law enforcement agencies

• that debtor had committed crimes, and if debt was not paid immediately, they would be arrested

• that driver's license would be suspended if debt not immediately

• false threats of legal action

Anytime you receive a call from a collector, make sure you know who they are, including the name and address of the agency, and that they have a legitimate claim that you owe them money. You can check to see if they are licensed by the Arizona Department of Financial Affairs here. (A company collecting its own debt does not have to be licensed.) Most importantly, if there is any doubt that the company is legitimate, contact a consumer protection lawyer. 

You can always call the Bybee Law Center, PLC at (480) 756-8822 to discuss a collection call. 

COLLECTION AGENCIES USE FAKE CALLER ID TO DECEIVE ARIZONA CONSUMERS

Collection agencies are increasingly disguising their real identity by using fake caller ID to get Arizona consumers to pick up the phone. When a debtor fails to answer collection calls, collection agencies are using local numbers or common business names in the caller ID line to get people to answer the calls.

Even though there are regulations and laws against “caller ID spoofing,” collectors use it as a way to get consumers to pick up their phone.

However, a collection agency violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) if it “spoofs” its identity in a call to a consumer to collect a debt.

If you are an Arizona consumer who has been contacted by a third-party debt collector or debt buyer and feel that their collection actions were deceptive, unfair, harassing, or abusive, please call attorney Floyd W. Bybee at (480) 756-8822.