| Country | United States |
| State | Illinois |
| City | Villa Park |
| Address | P O Box 5002 |
| Phone | 888-315-1550 |
| Website | www.arainc.us/ |
The letter states, all obligations regarding this debt and any applicable interest and or fees have been fully transferred to their office. It says I owe $21,81.75 THIS IS A COMPLETELY FALSE AND A SCAM. It says to remit a check for the amount of $21,581.75 payable to ARA, Incalong with the payment slip in self addressed envelope
ARA is claiming to be a debt collector and are trying to say I owe them $21,581.75 for a Bank of America account that is not mine. This is false! This is a scam and a fraud. I received a letter in the mail stating that ARA, Inc. recently obtained and are now the legal owner of my "Bank of America" account and it gives an actual account number and ARA file #1465712-01 (whatever validity that has). The letter states, all obligations regarding this debt and any applicable interest and or fees have been fully transferred to their office and I can remit a check in the full amount of $21,581.75 payable to ARA Inc., along with the payment slip and self addressed envelope provided. Then it goes on to say, if I can't make the balance in full to call Mark Farmer at ext. 3402 to discuss acceptable payment arrangements and to answer any questions that I may have. I tried calling the 888 number provided (888-409-5060), but it is a conference call line and it says to wait for the host to start the call. At the bottom of the letter it states if I do not dispute the amount on the letter within 30 days , then ARA, Inc, will assume that this debt is valid and they will obtain a copy of a judgement to their office and will mail me a copy of such verification...and goes on, etc...blah...blah.
I received a letter from Assets Recovery Associates PO Box Box 5002 Villa Park IL 60181 They claimed that my brother who passed away ten years ago owe the First Security Bank account number 311554932066 the some amount of 8,935.00. They stated they are extending a generous settlement of $1,159.19 dollars. They stated that the current remains unpaid is $8,935.00. My brother passed away over 10 years ago and this whole mess is a fraud. Check your search line under Asset Recovery Associate's located at PO Box 5002 Villa Park IL 60181 are professional scammers.
Same happened to me. I found a site of the BBB in their office city, and found over 150 complaints to the BBB from various victims of their process. I noted that in EVERY complaint that was answered by ARA to the BBB, they closed the file and ceased all claims. I decided to file a complaint with the BBB, within 2 weeks, they sent BBB a letter , stating that they closed the file and deleted the history, and it would not be sold or kept active. Case closed. BBB did the trick. I also researched the Statute of Limitations in my state, which closes ALL debts over 10 yrs old, making their claim invalid anyway. They are opportunists, many people cave in and pay, they make the profit. NEVER PAY
Last night, I received a phone call out of the blue from an unidentified man claiming I owed $1200.00 on a Discover Card through Chase Manhattan Bank that was opened in 1993. This person knew my social security number and my current address as he nasked me to confirm them.
I have never had a Discover card nor do I use Chase Manhattan Bank. In fact, I have no credit cards at all. When I inquired why I had never heard of this debt or received any letters in the mail, they berated me and got abusive saying that I was lying, that I obviously had received the letters. I asked to speak to a supervisor- Kristie Edwards- who said she could reduce the interest that had accrued if I paid them right now $462.20. I asked again why in 20 plus years I had never received a letter or invoice, they just threw legal jargon at me and rattled off a bunch of previous addresses (some correct, some not) of where I had lived.
I then asked them to send me a letter in writing, which they said they would not do, but if I gave them my email address, they would. Hesitantly, but still scared of thi looming debt, I gave my email. I then received a photocopied letter titled "Affadavit and Assignment" that claimed that they were now in control of collecting this debt.
I went into Chase Manhattan Bank this morning and asked if they had any information on a charged off account and they said they in fact did not. They said, from their perspective this looked like a scam. The bank associate there even called their internal offices to find out more info and they said there was none.
Kristie Edwards called me again this morning and when i answered, she said "HI this is Kristie" not "Hi this is Kristie Edwards from ARA. Totally unprofessional. I told her I had gone to the bank and they had no records and I was going to get my credit report to see where this was coming from.
So I did get my credit report, called ARA, Inc back, thinking I could clear this up. This is when it got really hostile. The person I talked to was not Kristie Edwards but someone else who told me that if I was a "responsible adult" I would just pay this lowered fee of $462 RIGHT NOW or they'd be forced to sue me, serve me with a court summons and I'd have to pay the entire amount as well, hire a lawyer and pay unspecified court charges of $3500. I got super scared and was on the brink of just paying it, but then I googled them and found this site where I saw many people with similar claims.
At this point, I am ignoring them and if they do decide to sue me or serve me with a court summons, I will dispute the entire thing. I am convinced this is a scam and these people are awful, demeaning and super abusive.
The ARA could be a number of closed collection agencies...they pass the scam around like salt and pepper at dinner table...I received a hostile call from this trash...with the same threats...they said they bought my dread it debt from p.n. Credit inc...which is now closed...claim my debt was on my credit report for 6 years and it was dropped off in 2005...I paid all of the judgement against me...to Seneca collection inc...when I tried to call about this BS...yes the y were out of business..these thieves try to bully one into a settlement...I have no asset, but I plan to help close these tramps...I believe the close collectors are one in the same...open up and close up to hind paper trail...they keep trying to collect for same debt or non debt over and over.....peace ????????????????????????
My mother got calls from them all day on 11/28/2017 saying she owed 2000 for an ATT bill from 2003
she has no collections. The scary part of it is that they have a lot of info , like social security number and back details.
I called the local police to report it. and police suggest to block the number or tell them that a report has been made.
Yes, this is a SCAM.
Do NOT back down and be assertive in that you do not owe them any money.
I spoke to a Bob West (x-3027) and he assured me that I would receive a letter stating that I did not owe ARA, Inc any money because I was the wrong person. Still haven't received that letter. Bob West, Frank Stone and Ms Burkhart are all part of this scam.
This outfit (ARA.Inc.) sent me a letter saying I owe them $14,414.19 and I should send them a check right away...Now I am a Disabled Vietnam Vet.. and For at least the past 25 years I haven't bought anything over #$1,ooo and have always paid cash, I haven't had a credit card since 1989...So this Crook in Illinois, Mark Farmer thinks he can fool people into just mailing him money, well, Mr. Mark Farmer you have picked the wrong man to F___With..I have asked my two Washington Senators, and my Rep. Don Young to look into this..They are known to take a dim view of people ripping off Vets, especially dis-abled Vets..So instead of you coming after me, I'm comming after YOU!!!
I received a call saying I owed a bill to Niagra Mowhawk Elec Inc of 2,969.55 cents from a address I was suppose to have lived at in ny.I disagreed and disputed the bill from 15 years ago. They argued with me saying many bills were were sent to the address there and my next address in ny and now here in pa. they had all these address , my bank info , credit cards , bank where my currant wife and I had just secured a home loan ect. I still disputed the bill and was then transferred to legal sect. where I was once again told I owed this bill and had to pay it NOW or would be turned over for legal action. ALL my credit cards would be frozen , bank accts seized , or frozen and a judgement issued against me thur the courts and entered to the credit bureau . I still dissagred with this matter told them this is the first I had heard of this matter and was told that WELL MANY notices were or had been sent . I told the lady sent me a copy of the bill ect. I received the letter yesterday reiterating the same bill but now I had 30 days to pay in full or call Mark Farmer at extension 3402 to make arrangements for payment. I was looking at paper work said fill out and return top portion with payment. I then noticed there wasn't and info address or other wise still listed on my portion. that finally raised a RED flag to me. them I decided to check this outfit on line and here I am.
Thanks to this site and info I WAS KEPT FROM MAKING A BIG MISTAKE THANK YOU
received the message below from a voicemail call that was transferred to my email yesterday morning:
Hello Susan it is imperative that you speak with Tammy Bloomberg regarding your case. I L3159319. My number is toll free 1-888-686-9475. My extension is 3049. You must contact my office immediately.
When I returned Tammy's call yesterday, she informed me that I owed Master Card $14,000 and had to pay it immediately or they would cancel my credit cards and close my bank accounts. When I started laughing at her, Tammy said that they would be issuing a warrant for my arrest, also, which only induced more laughter on my part since I knew immediately it was some kind of fraudulent scam.
After calling her a litany of well deserved derogatory names, I hung up on her. Just a few minutes later I got a call from 314-394-2016 from a man who started the threats again immediately. I called him a few choice names and hung up. Got call #3 just a few minutes after that from 630-250-5644 with Tammy back on line with even more threats screaming at me that I'd go to jail. Of course, I knew better and hung up on her.
Also, very disturbing is the fact that ARA had my SS#, unlisted landline phone and tracphone number when I've only had these lines about a year. I called my telephone provider, and they did assure me that my phone number was listed as private. There are hundreds of complaints on line similar to mine, except most people were intimidated enough to give them money. These people need to be stopped. They are extremely vicious and it would be enough to frighten most people. I can see how so many caved into these crooks.
I've reported them to the Dept of Justice, Federal Trade Commission, Oregon Attorney General's office and the FBI Fraud Dept. which I strongly encourage all to do. The FTC # is 877-382-4357. Obviously, they're not even worthy of one star. They all need to be in prison
On March 4, 2015 I received a call from Jason Massey stating I owe money on a car I traded in back in 2006. He knew all my personal information such as social security number, credit cards and mortgage information. He also stated that if I didn't pay they will garnish my wages, put a lein on my property and report this in my credit report. The name of the company is ARA INC. Professional Services. He gave me a phone number 888-409-5060 x3087. These people need to be caught as soon as possible. I called the Department of Banking to find out they are not a license collection agency.
I gave them my credit card information before I realized this was a scam. I got intouch with my credit card company and will be reimburse the money.
today I receive a phone call from ARA a collect company the young man stated that I had an out standing credit card bill with EDDIE BAUER well my red flag was I'm working on buying a house so I know what's there. He then begin to tell me may be my mom of father did that because it was so long ago. so I ask for someone over him and that's when another man got the phone but thee holy spirt was like call the store and I did. they inform me that even years ago with my ss# my name will come up they was lying. I was harassed I was told that I have judgment on my name and I they send a letter out but I didn't responded to it. please don't give information to tell, HOWEVER they knew my information how I don't know I will be at the police department tomorrow with all the information I learned about this so call company.
Ara sent me letter saying i owe them 2610.55cents i suppose this is about a credit card charge. Which cannot be because i have never had a credit card.Nor do i want one.
Today i started getting phone calls, six so far since 9:00am, that i owe them for a visa account from 1998. They had some partial info correct, but i did not confirm anything stated to me. I never had a visa account 20yrs ago, even now. The first call the rep stated he was calling on behalf of lawyer, mark farmer law. And that i was sued and a judgement of 2,000 dollar was awarded. I asked what was originally owed, 1,000 dollars. When i pressed the rep for more clarification of the account, the rep became abusive. I hung up on him. I then consulted our atty at work and he said when they call back get names and complain to them about the rep's unprofessional action. They called and i did as advised, they again became bullyish and made outlandish threats. I advised them this "account" had exceeded the legal limitations for collection since this account was supposed to have been fromm 20yrs ago, they started yelling that i was wrong and i advised them our atty had already notified the ftc, etc. Have not gotten another call.
I just received a letter telling me that they are informing my that they recently obtained and now legal owners of my Bankfirst Account obligations regarding a debt and any applicable interest and or fees, as of today i owe them $ 1.230.40. no calls just the
letter, I have never heard of this company before now. though i would look them up and to my surprise I find that it was a scam.
it is bad that we can't trust what come's in the mail or over the phone anymore, is our world that bad now?
We can only trust in God that it change
I received a letter from this company that said I owed Chase Bank $2,227.23. First, my dad died on 3-11-2017. So I do not need this crap. I called and then they clamed to have another account that was due. But f I was disputing this credit card amount they had "PROOF'' that it was connected to me and would take the settlement or be in court on Thursday (in the days) with an attorney. If I chose to do this then I would be made to pay their Attorney Fees. I just buried my daddy this last Friday. So go F*** yourselves. I received this letter on Monday, March, 20,1917.
These people called me stating that I owed excess of $2000.00 to BP Credit on an account that was opened in 1995 and was closed in 2005 in default. They had my SS# address and information about a current loan but when I started asking them to prove that I had the account they said that by them having my ss# and my address that that was all they needed to provide to me as proof, they couldn't even tell me which bank issued the credit card. the more questions I asked the more defensive they got and the more abusive they got. I hung up with them after they threatened to put a lein against my current vehicle loan. I called both Chase and Schyrony Banks and neither have any record of me ever having past or present an account with BP Credit.
These pricks sent me a letter stating i owe $6,900 on my discover card and to send them a check immediately.
Guess what?
I don't have a discover card
I received a call last week on my cell phone asking if I had received the copy of the judgement against me in the mail yet. I responded with " I do not owe anyone anything, and you need to lose my number and leave me alone!". I later tried to call them back to find out what was going on and the receptionist hung up on me. I now have a letter saying that I owe money to the tune of over 13 grand to a "First Card". From everything on here and on other sites, it appears to be a scam. I was harassed by another company several years ago and I think I ended up settling to get them to leave me alone. The important thing is.....if you don't think you owe a debt, don't pay a dime...or the statute of limitations starts all over again and they can legally take you to court. I guess I will file a complaint with the BBB in their city..that appears to be what made them leave some other folks alone. I certainly don't want to challenge them because I can't prove I paid off that card almost 20 years ago if I even had a card from that bank. NO info on who the original creditor is, just an account number.
Tried to get me to pay a so called acct from 1994...$1700. Texaco gas credit...In mississippi
We received 3 calls today the 1st one came at10:31AM I answered the phone The person hung up. At 12:001PM the phone rang again and this time the caller said good-by and hung up, at 12:47 the phone rang again and this time my husband answered and the person on the other end said we owed 6000.00 on a visa card from 1999. The SOL has past in all the states we lived in for the past 40 years. She said they were going to lien our bank account . She had my husband social security # and his DOB.My husband told her we did not have a visa card and she so you are disputing this and he said you bet. She then said it would be turned over to the lawyers.. We called our banks and they have posted a fraud alert on the accounts. The Bank of the West and Colorado Business bank both said this was a scam outfit trying commit a fraud.There needs to be a way to get rid of these people . They have rules for collection and this violates those rules.
I Spoke to a Craig Wilshire from ARA Financial trying to get me to pay a bill from the 80's when i was still in High School and never had a Visa or MC back then. Theses people are a fraud and scamming people out of thier money. The Federal Government should shut this place down. The PO Box is the first sign of the scam the people are untraceable.
They have been called out in the state of Mississippi...I was lucky enough to figure out what just happened and could stop them from getting any money from me...the number they use is actually a plumbing place in New Jersey.....I'm on a fixed income and they think we are a an easy target...they were so wrong...
Last night, I received a phone call out of the blue from an unidentified man claiming I owed $1200.00 on a Discover Card through Chase Manhattan Bank that was opened in 1993. This person knew my social security number and my current address as he nasked me to confirm them.
I have never had a Discover card nor do I use Chase Manhattan Bank. In fact, I have no credit cards at all. When I inquired why I had never heard of this debt or received any letters in the mail, they berated me and got abusive saying that I was lying, that I obviously had received the letters. I asked to speak to a supervisor- Kristie Edwards- who said she could reduce the interest that had accrued if I paid them right now $462.20. I asked again why in 20 plus years I had never received a letter or invoice, they just threw legal jargon at me and rattled off a bunch of previous addresses (some correct, some not) of where I had lived.
I then asked them to send me a letter in writing, which they said they would not do, but if I gave them my email address, they would. Hesitantly, but still scared of thi looming debt, I gave my email. I then received a photocopied letter titled "Affadavit and Assignment" that claimed that they were now in control of collecting this debt.
I went into Chase Manhattan Bank this morning and asked if they had any information on a charged off account and they said they in fact did not. They said, from their perspective this looked like a scam. The bank associate there even called their internal offices to find out more info and they said there was none.
Kristie Edwards called me again this morning and when i answered, she said "HI this is Kristie" not "Hi this is Kristie Edwards from ARA. Totally unprofessional. I told her I had gone to the bank and they had no records and I was going to get my credit report to see where this was coming from.
So I did get my credit report, called ARA, Inc back, thinking I could clear this up. This is when it got really hostile. The person I talked to was not Kristie Edwards but someone else who told me that if I was a "responsible adult" I would just pay this lowered fee of $462 RIGHT NOW or they'd be forced to sue me, serve me with a court summons and I'd have to pay the entire amount as well, hire a lawyer and pay unspecified court charges of $3500. I got super scared and was on the brink of just paying it, but then I googled them and found this site where I saw many people with similar claims.
At this point, I am ignoring them and if they do decide to sue me or serve me with a court summons, I will dispute the entire thing. I am convinced this is a scam and these people are awful, demeaning and super abusive.