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Report: #163409

Complaint Review: American Reading Club - Cumming Georgia

  • Submitted:
  • Updated:
  • Reported By: GaRDENA California
  • Author Confirmed What's this?
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  • American Reading Club 515 Performance Drive Cumming, Georgia U.S.A.

American Reading Club Trying to bill me for $1084.00! I never ordered, never received anything! Ripoff Cumming Georgia and Aston Illnois

*UPDATE EX-employee responds: your way out

*Consumer Suggestion: Demand Validation from the Lawyers

*UPDATE Employee: Call me! 770-844-2109

*UPDATE Employee: Call me! 770-844-2109

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American Reading Club
5175 Performance Drive
Cumming, GA, UNITED STATES, 30040
or at:
PO Box 185
Aston, Illinois 61006

I stupidly joined when they called me. But I called and cancelled my subscription in July 2005.

I NEVER ORDERED A THING.I NEVER RECEIVED A THING!!!

Now a Lawyer-Luebke Baker & Associates, PO Box 9398, Peoria IL (800-258-6587) say are debt collectors and want me to pay for things I never ordered, never received and I already cancelled my subscription. They say I owe American Reading Club $1084.00 and they will settle for $300.98!

I did some research (PEOPLE, DO THIS STEP FIRST before joining anything!!!):
Better Business Bureau already has many complaints against this company.

Complaints.com, there are 14 consumers with similar predicaments as I.

Why are companies like this allowed to exist? They are fraudulent rip-off company.

Desired Settlement Explanation :
I would like a letter from American Reading Club and/or the Luebke & Associates that states my account is closed and that I do not owe them any money. Furthermore, in order to protect other consumers, this company should be shut down.

Rocket Dog
Gardena, California
U.S.A.

This report was posted on Ripoff Report on 11/04/2005 06:16 PM and is a permanent record located here: https://www.ripoffreport.com/reports/american-reading-club/cumming-georgia-30040/american-reading-club-trying-to-bill-me-for-108400-i-never-ordered-never-received-anyt-163409. The posting time indicated is Arizona local time. Arizona does not observe daylight savings so the post time may be Mountain or Pacific depending on the time of year. Ripoff Report has an exclusive license to this report. It may not be copied without the written permission of Ripoff Report. READ: Foreign websites steal our content

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REBUTTALS & REPLIES:
0Author
4Consumer
0Employee/Owner

#4 UPDATE EX-employee responds

your way out

AUTHOR: Dwight - (United States of America)

POSTED: Friday, December 23, 2011

I just ran across your post so hopefully you're past this now. If not, I used to work for the company and have some things to share with you. This company follows the letter of the law, but they operate on what they CAN do, not what they should do. That's why their sales process is so fast and why they don't ask any questions. They push the sale down your throat and many of their customer don't realize until they are being charged that they actually sign up for something.

Your payments were likely set up on a credit card. One thing that would have helped in your situation is to dispute one or all of your charges by them if it was on a credit card. They receive so many disputes that their merchant account is always in jeopardy- a few complaints away from them losing the ability to scam others. They were also probably pretty rough on you with their in-house collection efforts since they don't have to follow FDCPA while it is still their debt.

Since it is with their collection agency you should just ask for is proof of the contract. Company employees will use their "recording" to get you to pay, but their record keeping is so sloppy that they usually don't even have it. If they can't prove the dollars are owed, this can't negatively impact your credit. If you want to get them back, either reach out to their owner Rich Maresco or file a complaint with GA state attorney general and the bbb. 

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#3 Consumer Suggestion

Demand Validation from the Lawyers

AUTHOR: Robert - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Thursday, August 16, 2007

OK Here's what you can do to force the collection agency to back off and validate the debt:

FIRST - Read the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act at ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpa/fdcpact.htm.

It is important to understand the definitions used in the FDCPA, so I have included that section of the law. Many collectors do not fall under the FDCPA, so please read paragraph 6 and its subparagraphs very carefully:

803. Definitions [15 USC 1692a]
As used in this title --

(1) The term "Commission" means the Federal Trade Commission.

(2) The term "communication" means the conveying of information regarding a debt directly or indirectly to any person through any medium.

(3) The term "consumer" means any natural person obligated or allegedly obligated to pay any debt.

(4) The term "creditor" means any person who offers or extends credit creating a debt or to whom a debt is owed, but such term does not include any person to the extent that he receives an assignment or transfer of a debt in default solely for the purpose of facilitating collection of such debt for another.

(5) The term "debt" means any obligation or alleged obligation of a consumer to pay money arising out of a transaction in which the money, property, insurance or services which are the subject of the transaction are primarily for personal, family, or household purposes, whether or not such obligation has been reduced to judgment.

(6) The term "debt collector" means any person who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the collection of any debts, or who regularly collects or attempts to collect, directly or indirectly, debts owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another. Notwithstanding the exclusion provided by clause (F) of the last sentence of this paragraph, the term includes any creditor who, in the process of collecting his own debts, uses any name other than his own which would indicate that a third person is collecting or attempting to collect such debts. For the purpose of section 808(6), such term also includes any person who uses any instrumentality of interstate commerce or the mails in any business the principal purpose of which is the enforcement of security interests. THE TERM DOES NOT INCLUDE --

(A) any officer or employee of a creditor while, in the name of the creditor, collecting debts for such creditor;

(B) any person while acting as a debt collector for another person, both of whom are related by common ownership or affiliated by corporate control, if the person acting as a debt collector does so only for persons to whom it is so related or affiliated and if the principal business of such person is not the collection of debts;

(C) any officer or employee of the United States or any State to the extent that collecting or attempting to collect any debt is in the performance of his official duties;

(D) any person while serving or attempting to serve legal process on any other person in connection with the judicial enforcement of any debt;

(E) any nonprofit organization which, at the request of consumers, performs bona fide consumer credit counseling and assists consumers in the liquidation of their debts by receiving payments from such consumers and distributing such amounts to creditors; and

(F) any person collecting or attempting to collect any debt owed or due or asserted to be owed or due another to the extent such activity (i) is incidental to a bona fide fiduciary obligation or a bona fide escrow arrangement; (ii) concerns a debt which was originated by such person; (iii) concerns a debt which was not in default at the time it was obtained by such person; or (iv) concerns a debt obtained by such person as a secured party in a commercial credit transaction involving the creditor.

SECOND - send a certified letter, return receipt requested, to the DEBT COLLECTOR to dispute the debt and request written validation of the debt or any copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such validation or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor. Also, include a statement stating that you do not wish to be contacted again until you receive all the written debt validation information you have requested. You should specifically ask for the following documentation:

What the money you say I owe is for;
Explain and show me how you calculated what you say I owe;
Provide me with copies of any papers that show I agreed to pay what you say I owe;
Provide a verification or copy of any judgment if applicable;
Identify the original creditor;
Prove the Statute of Limitations has not expired on this account;
Show me that you are licensed to collect in my state;
Provide me with your license numbers and Registered Agent.

Once they receive the letter, they must cease all collection efforts until they provide the written information requested. This is in accordance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.

THIRD - Once you received the written validation information requested, contact the CREDITOR (who owns the debt) via certified mail to resolve the matter.

Please note that simply sending the letter telling them to leave you alone does not absolve a valid debt. What the letter does do is force them to provide you with written validation of the debt and to stop all collection actions until you receive the information. Once you have the information, you should act on it accordingly by contacting the CREDITOR via certified mail.

Some other notes: Any statute of limitations does not absolve a valid debt; it merely prohibits the creditor from going to court to obtain a money judgment against you. IF there is already a money judgment, the statute of limitations most likely is longer - in New York State it's 20 years.

You can check the statute of limitations for debt in your state at fair-debt-collection.com/statue-limitations.html.

In addition, a credit report listing does not in any way determine if a debt is valid or not, or collectible or not that is what courts are for. There are 3 ways a valid debt can be absolved; you pay it off, the creditor forgives it, or bankruptcy court orders it absolved.

Section 809 of the FDCPA covers debt validation nicely:

809. Validation of debts [15 USC 1692g]

(a) Within five days after the initial communication with a consumer in connection with the collection of any debt, a debt collector shall, unless the following information is contained in the initial communication or the consumer has paid the debt, send the consumer a written notice containing --

(1) the amount of the debt;

(2) the name of the creditor to whom the debt is owed;

(3) a statement that unless the consumer, within thirty days after receipt of the notice, disputes the validity of the debt, or any portion thereof, the debt will be assumed to be valid by the debt collector;

(4) a statement that if the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, the debt collector will obtain verification of the debt or a copy of a judgment against the consumer and a copy of such verification or judgment will be mailed to the consumer by the debt collector; and

(5) a statement that, upon the consumer's written request within the thirty-day period, the debt collector will provide the consumer with the name and address of the original creditor, if different from the current creditor.

(b) If the consumer notifies the debt collector in writing within the thirty-day period described in subsection (a) that the debt, or any portion thereof, is disputed, or that the consumer requests the name and address of the original creditor, the debt collector shall cease collection of the debt, or any disputed portion thereof, until the debt collector obtains verification of the debt or any copy of a judgment, or the name and address of the original creditor, and a copy of such verification or judgment, or name and address of the original creditor, is mailed to the consumer by the debt collector.

(c) The failure of a consumer to dispute the validity of a debt under this section may not be construed by any court as an admission of liability by the consumer.

Hope this helps.

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#2 UPDATE Employee

Call me! 770-844-2109

AUTHOR: Arc - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Thursday, August 16, 2007

Mr. Hotdog. Thank you for your response. Sir with all due respect to yourself please call me today so we can help you out of your situation. You ordered product from our company. We have a recording of the call and you gave us permission on this call to bill your credit card per your request we fulfilled your order. You then choose not to make you monthly payments to our company. After several calls to you we then send you to on outside collection agency to help us recover our monies owed to us.

My Dog, This is no joking matter. You are not paying your bill.

I would like for you to quit damming our company name so that we do not have to spend wasted money and get tied up ion a defamation suit against you. Next, I want you to call me ASAP. I want you to listen to yourself on the recording ordering the product. Next I also want your permission to let the media and other consumers hear your recording so that they will understand that your claim against our company is unjustified. I also want to give you a copy of the receipt that shows that our company did in fact fulfill your order and that we sent product to you.

It is not right for you to make false claims and I have other work to do. So quit wasting everyone's time and call me today.

CGC

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#1 UPDATE Employee

Call me! 770-844-2109

AUTHOR: Arc - (U.S.A.)

POSTED: Thursday, August 16, 2007

I first thank you for your listing. Now that you are done please call me so I can play your recording for you to let you hear that you did in fact order product from our company and agreed to pay for it. If you now have decided that you do not want to pay for it still call me because I am out the money for the order that you placed. I would also like your written permission to play your recoded order to the public and the media to clear my name. The recoded call clearly shows that your written comments about this company are unwarranted and unless you correct your comments I will have to let our attorneys decide if you have stepped over the lines and tried to due damage to our company thru your false accusations. We only ordered your product because you asked us to. PLease call and get a free copy of your recorded sale. Grow up and pay your bill. It is not fair that consumers like you can order merchandice from companies and then deny it and get out of it scott free.

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