Collection Services of Athens Inc or CSA is a debt collection agency, which receives a lot of consumer complaints to our law firm for debt harassment. Find out who they are, why they might be calling, and how you can stop them.
What is Collection Services of Athens – CSA?Collection Services of Athens, Inc or CSA is a third-party collection agency based in Georgia. CSA has received consumer complaints alleging violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), including the use of false and misleading statements in an effort to collect a debt and failure to verify debts.If you have been contacted by Collection Services of Athens , make sure you understand your rights before taking action.
The harassing company pays our fees.
They’re legit. According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), Collection Services of Athens, Inc. was founded in 1937. The BBB established a profile page for CSA in 2006. Cases listed as a collection agency. Buzzfile lists CSA under Slaughter Investments, Inc., and estimates their annual revenue at $7.6 million and the size of its headquarters staff at 35 employees.
According to its website, Collection Services of Athens “is a collection agency designed to efficiently and professionally increase… cash flow by focusing on… past due accounts.” CSA’s mission is “to be a leader in the collection industry by offering superior products and services to…customers while increasing quality assets, profit, and capital, thus providing for continued growth and stability for…employees and…communities.”
Collection Services of Athens employs a 7-step collection process in which delinquent accounts are “keyed in manually or electronically.” CSA then sends an “acknowledgement letter of placed accounts to clients to review and make any necessary corrections.” Once approved, accounts are assigned to an Account Manager. Collection staff then “places frequent phone calls and collection notices” in an effort to collect past due amounts. “After contact is made, the Account Manager will request payment in full or monthly payments…If an account is not paid within 60 days, and it is over $50.00, it will be placed on the consumer’s credit file.” Finally, Account Managers utilize “access to many collections tools, pull… credit files, and use various locating programs via Internet.If calls and collections notices are ignored, the accounts will be worked for legal, which could include court proceedings.”
Collection Services of Athens accepts delinquent accounts from medical providers, including hospitals, physicians, clinics, radiology, EMS, dental, and chiropractors; utility companies, including electrical, water, trash, and sewage; property managers of apartments, duplexes, and homeowners associations; as well as veterinarians, childcare centers, banks, returned checks, and other general collection items.
Collection Services of Athens is a member of several professional associations, including ACA International, and cites business practices that comply with the FDCPA. However, they do not offer links and references to consumer protection resources, laws, or enforcement agencies.
Who are we? We are Lemberg Law, a Consumer Law Firm
Lemberg Law is a consumer law firm helping victims of collection harassment and abuse. We are ranked A+ by the BBB. We’ve helped more than 15,000 consumers stop harassment and recover money from debt collectors. Harassed? Abused? Misled by a collector? Call our Helpline today! There is no charge unless we win.
The BBB has closed 19 complaints against Collection Services of Athens in the preceding 3 years, with 11 complaints closed in the past 12 months. The largest share of those complaints alleged problems with customer service, with almost as many complaints alleging problems with billing and collections. Since December 2016, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has closed 45 complaints against CSA. Justia lists at least 4 cases of civil litigation involving Collection Services of Athens.
Collection Services of Athens, Inc.
PO Box 8048
Athens, GA 30603-8048
Telephone: (706) 549-2263
Website: http://www.csa-inc.biz/
It is illegal for a debt collector to make empty threats to sue you or garnish your wages. It is also unlikely Collection Services of Athens would sue you for a debt you may not owe or they cannot validate. However, debt collection agencies are known to have summoned debtors to court and garnish wages after a default judgement. Contacting an attorney BEFORE this could possibly happen would be a smart move. We’ve helped thousands of consumers fight back against unscrupulous debt collection harassers. Find out if we can help you too today!
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Unlawful Debt Harassment? Learn the Law & Sue the Collector.
Absolutely. Here are some Sample Cases against Collection Services of Athens Inc
In December 2014, in United States District Court for the middle District of Georgia, Macon Division, a judge issued an Order in a case alleging Collection Services of Athens had violated several provisions of the FDCPA. In this case, the plaintiff had received a debt collection letter from CSA after allegedly defaulting on one or more debts related to medical services for the alleged amount of $2,864.00.” CSA’s collection letter was entitled, “Payroll Deduction Request,” and it requested that the plaintiff “arrange a payroll deduction through…his employer.” The letter stated further, “‘If you do not want to involve your employer, you may discuss other alternatives,’” and then “demanded” that the plaintiff call Collection Services of Athens “‘within ten days to set up the amount the plaintiff would like to be deducted from his paycheck to pay this account.’” In addition, the letter requested a payment for “‘this account’” by “‘Responsible Party #2173522,’” but then listed nine separate debts totaling $2,864.00. The chart listing the account information “cataloged the name of the creditor, account number, the responsible party number, the date of service, and the current balance for each debt.” The plaintiff alleged that the letter violated multiple provisions of the FDCPA, including Sections 1692e(2)(A), (4), (5), and (10); and 1692f. Specifically, the plaintiff claimed that the letter violated the FCPA’s prohibitions against “falsely representing ‘the character, amount, or legal status of any debt’; …representing or implying ‘nonpayment of any debt will result in the … seizure, garnishment, attachment, or sale of any … wages of any person unless such action is lawful and the debt collector … intends to take such action’; … threatening ‘to take any action that cannot legally be taken or that is not intended to be taken’; …using ‘any false representation or deceptive means to collect or attempt to collect any debt’;…using ‘unfair or unconscionable means to collect or attempt to collect any debt’;… and using ‘any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt.’”
Through these specific statutory citations, the plaintiff charged that the language in Collection Services of Athens’s letter warning him of a possible wage garnishment that was not yet a potential outcome, combined with the strongly worded title, were sufficient to constitute a violation of the FDCPA prohibition against using false, misleading, or unfair means to collect a debt. He also alleged that the letter constituted an illegal threat of implied garnishment, and that the format of the outstanding amounts due was misleading and constituted a false representation of the legal status or amount of the debt. The court disagreed that CSA had committed an illegal threat of garnishment and disagreed that their accounting was deliberately misleading. However, they agreed with the plaintiff that the language in the letter was sufficiently false and misleading to constitute a violation. As a result, the court found in favor of the plaintiff’s charge that Collection Services of Athens had violated Sections 1692e(4), (5), and (10) and Section 1692f of the FDCPA.
Federal laws protect you. The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA) regulates the behavior of collection agencies by prohibiting actions such as the use of abusive or threatening language; harassment; or the use of false or misleading information to collect a debt. The FCRA regulates how collection agencies and creditors report delinquent debts to credit reporting agencies. Additional consumer protection laws include the Telephone Consumer Protection Act (TCPA) and the Consumer Financial Protection Act (CFPA).
But here’s the rub: If you want to enforce your rights, or recover money for violations — you need to sue. These laws provide individuals like you with a means to seek monetary damages in court. For example, the FDCPA allows consumers who have been violated to recover damages of up to $1,000, plus attorney fees and court costs.
Your debt harassment checklist:
“We realize that ours is just one small case among many – and many more serious – but are heartened by the fact that you accepted it and represented us with a professionalism that belied the small dollar amount.”
“If you are unsure about this company…DONT BE!!! They are for real when they say they are here to help you. It only takes a few short minutes of your time to talk to a rep. I was a skeptic, but you did everything you said you would! I can’t say thank you enough!”
”Lemberg Law has saved me from the endless calls, and harassing voicemails. They really do go to bat for you. I didn’t know that debt collection agencies can end up paying your legal bill. What a surprise, to receive free legal help. I’m very grateful for all the hard work they did to finally give me my life back.”
“I would recommend your company to anyone. You have the debt collectors off my back, and I will finally see the light at the end of the tunnel. Throughout the entire procedure your employees were courteous and professional. I was blown away by their efficacy also.
We can absolutely help. Call us today.
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Sergei Lemberg is an attorney focusing on consumer law, class actions related to automotive issues, and personal injury litigation. With nearly two decades of experience, his areas of practice include Lemon Law (vehicle defects), Debt Collection Harassment, TCPA (illegal robocalls and texts), Fair Credit Reporting Act, Overtime claims, Personal Injury cases, and Class Actions. He has consistently been recognized as the nation's "most active consumer attorney." In 2020, Mr. Lemberg represented Noah Duguid before the United States Supreme Court in the landmark case Duguid v. Facebook. He is also the author of "Defanging Debt Collectors," a guide that empowers consumers to fight back against debt collectors and prevail, as well as "Lemon Law 101: The Laws That Lemon Dealers Don't Want You to Know."
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Even though I have been sending them ‘automatic payments’ from my checking account monthly for at least ( I didn’t start keeping records before this) 3 years I get calls from CSA of Athens on the day it is to be delivered to them asking if and when I’m going to make a payment. Each time they’ve called I’ve explained to them that it is an ‘automatic payment’ each month, they then tell me that they will make note of it in my file but they still call. Yes I owe for my medical bills and Yes I’m attempting to pay them but they are the only collections department I’m paying and the only collections department calling.
I had 17 new collections added to my credit reort.all 17 have previously been investigated and removed from my credit report.csa is well aware of this.they were the ones that had to remove them previously.but then they waited a couple mo.and added them right back.what can i do?