Debt Defense Against United States Credit Adjustment Corp

Have you received a call from the United States Credit Adjustment Corporation? Did they tell you they were going to serve you with a lawsuit? Or, did they tell you they would settle your $1500 debt for $500? If so, you may not know why they are contacting you, or what debt you owe. Or, you may remember the original debt as being only $200 to begin with. If this is the case, United States Credit Adjustment Corporation (USCAC) has purchased your debt from the original creditor or company.

While hearing from USCAC is frustrating and annoying, it is not all bad news. There are steps you can take to protect yourself, and defenses you can raise. Below, our Florida debt defense lawyer explains further.

Who is the United States Credit Adjustment Corporation?

United States Credit Adjustment Corporation is a third-party debt collection company that collects debts in a variety of industries. They attempt to collect on short-term loans, consumer loans, lease-to-own goods, credit cards, auto loans, retail credit, and other consumer debts. USCAC purchases borrowers’ accounts for a small fraction of the original debt. If they can then collect the debt from you, they make a massive profit because the debt is theirs to keep.

USCAC is located in Vero Beach, Florida, but they try to collect debt from consumers throughout the country. If USCAC has been contacting you, it is important to speak to a lawyer who can make sure your rights are upheld.

Send USCAC a Debt Validation Letter

There is a chance that the debt the United States Credit Adjustment Corporation is stating you owe is inaccurate, or even fraudulent. Before doing anything, it is important that you ask USCAC to validate the debt. You can do this by sending a Debt Validation Letter, which you must do within 30 days of being contacted by the agency.

Many debt collectors give up when they receive a Debt Validation Letter. This is because they cannot verify the debt. By the time USCAC obtains your account, it may have changed hands many times. Debt collectors sell bundles of accounts to other debt collectors all the time. As your account changes hands, important documents proving ownership of the debt become lost, or were never valid in the first place. After you have sent the Debt Validation Letter, USCAC is prohibited from contacting you until they have validated the debt.

If the company cannot prove that it own the debt, it may also have to remove it from its records entirely. This happens more often than many people think.

Another reason it is important to send a letter is to learn more about the debt. You should never pay any debt that you do not fully understand. It is also a good way to determine that the agency contacting you is not a scam.

The Statute of Limitations

If the statute of limitations, or time limit, expires on your debt, USCAC can still contact you about the debt, but they cannot take legal action against you or otherwise force you to pay the debt. Most debts are based on contracts. In Florida, the statute of limitations on contract actions is five years. This means that USCAC only has five years to collect on the debt. The statute of limitations is not as straightforward as it seems, though.

Each time you make a payment on the debt, it can restart the statute of limitations, giving debt collectors five years from the last date of payment to collect. For example, you may have taken out a debt on February 1, 2021. It may seem as though the statute of limitations expires on February 1, 2026. However, if you started making regular payments and then stopped on May 1, 2022, the statute of limitations would expire on May 1, 2027. This would be five years from your last payment.

Negotiating a Debt Settlement

United States Credit Adjustment Corporation may be willing to negotiate a debt settlement with you. Again, they purchased your account for very little and so even if you do not repay the full amount, they will likely still make a sizable profit. When negotiating a debt settlement, you typically have to repay at least 60 percent of the debt. Still, it can greatly reduce the amount and you can even negotiate a waiver of interest and other fees, which also makes the debt more affordable to repay.

While USCAC may agree to negotiate a debt settlement, many people are not comfortable doing this on their own. Attorneys are skilled negotiators and do it every day. As such, you should always work with a lawyer when trying to negotiate a debt settlement with USCAC.

Bankruptcy

Bankruptcy should always be a last resort, but it can clean your financial slate and give you a fresh start. If you are eligible to file Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you can discharge, or eliminate, the debt you owe USCAC and other creditors and debt collectors. To qualify for Chapter 7 bankruptcy, you must pass the means test showing that you do not have the ability to repay the debt.

If you do not qualify for Chapter 7, you can still file Chapter 13. Through a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, you can restructure your debt into a repayment plan. Chapter 13 repayment plans extend between three to five years. So, while you will still have to repay the debt, this type of bankruptcy can give you more time to repay it and make monthly payments more affordable.

Contact Our Debt Defense Lawyers in Florida Today

If United States Credit Adjustment Corporation has been contacting you, it is important to seek legal advice. At Loan Lawyers, our Fort Lauderdale debt defense lawyers can provide it. We can advise on the defenses available, determine if USCAC violated your rights, and give you the best chance of a favorable outcome. Call us today at (954) 523-4357 or fill out our online form to schedule a free review of your case and to get the legal advice you need.