Columbia Recovery Group, LLC (CRG) is a third-party collection agency that specializes in property management collections. CRG has received consumer complaints alleging violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) such as threatening to take actions that cannot legally be taken. If you have been contacted by CRG, 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), Columbia Recovery Group, LLC is a legitimate collection agency founded and incorporated in August 2005. The BBB established its profile page about six months later, in February 2006. CRG is listed as a collection agency and credit service that uses the alternate business name, Columbia Debt Recovery.
According to its website, CRG “is a committed group of individuals dedicated to the Property Management and collections industries.” CRG’s mission is to “partner with clients to obtain the best recovery possible, in the best time possible.” CRG values customer service and has “brought together top operations and service managers from debt recovery and multi-family industries to ensure that our firm understands the issues facing your company and your communities.”
Columbia Recovery Group is organized into four departments: collections; legal; sales and service; and management. CRG’s collections department is staffed by debt “recovery experts… required to have at least 5 years’ experience in debt collections and to be…certified collectors.” CRG’s legal department “consists of a fully staffed legal team, including an in-house attorney…who will file suit and garnish the wages, bank accounts, or seize assets of debtors when necessary to enforce the collection.” The sales and service department employs account executives to “call or visit client communities on a regular basis… to ensure…client needs and expectations are being met.” Columbia Recovery Group’s management team “is a dedicated group of professionals who… share a vision and maintain the highest levels of integrity and trust and lead an exceptional team of employees.”
Columbia Recovery Group is a member of ACA (American Collections Associations) and various property management associations and requires its collections staff to be “continually updated on the latest property management legalities and collection guidelines.” However, their site does not provide links or 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.
As of November 2017, the BBB has given Columbia Recovery Group a rating of F. The BBB has closed 9 complaints against CRG in the past three years, with 1 closed in the past 12 months. Almost all of those complaints allege problems with billing and collections. Since April 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has received 17 complaints about CRG. Justia lists at least 7 cases of civil litigation involving CRG.
Columbia Recovery Group, LLC
1215 120th Ave., NE, Suite #101
Bellevue, WA 98005
Telephone 425-646-1132
Website: http://www.columbiadebtrecovery.com/
It is illegal for a debt collector to make empty threats to sue you or garnish your wages. It is also unlikely CRG 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!
Get Free BBB A+ Attorney. Call 475-277-1600 NOW
Unlawful Debt Harassment? Learn the Law & Sue the Collector.
Absolutely. Here are some Sample Cases
Complaints against Columbia Recovery Group frequently cite problems resulting from rude or hostile customer service representatives.
In August 2015, a complainant indicated that she had been sending monthly payments to CRG, but the payments were not posting to her account. The complainant indicated she had contacted CRG, but the representative indicated that they don’t keep records of deposited checks. The complainant alleged that the general manager “was very unprofessional and insulted” her and did not seem to care that her account was being affected. In response, a CRG representative replied, “Forgive me, but I cannot understand the nature of this complaint. The consumer is concerned that its taking too long to cash her checks? Additional information would be necessary in order for my office to conduct an investigation.” In her rebuttal, the complainant indicated she had provided all the necessary information and had offered to send copies of checks that had been sent, but was told that “if the checks aren’t being cashed then we are simply not receiving them, and that is your problem not ours.” CRG did not offer any further reply.
In April 2015, a complainant tried to make a payment by calling and explaining that his account had gone to collections because he had moved out of state and had not received the forwarded mail. Allegedly, the Columbia Recovery Group representative “was rude…said she couldn’t do that…that this is over a year old,” and then told the complainant that “she pays her bills…that she doesn’t care if the complainant pays it or not…that everyone has an excuse… and that you’re not my client.” The complainant indicated his shock that the representative “was behaving that way as a manager/owner.” The complainant indicated he was going to report the misconduct to the property management company, and the representative allegedly threatened to retaliate by reporting the delinquency to the credit reporting agencies before the standard thirty-day grace period. In its response, CRG denied that the manager identified by the complainant had ever worked for them; denied that any wrongdoing had taken place; and insisted that they are not “required to accept partial payments.”
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:
“The group at Lemberg Law was professional, courteous, and effective. Their grasp of consumer protection laws and guidelines are second to none, and they work extremely difficult to ensure this procedure is client-friendly.”
“After a few months of frustration with a debt collector, I eventually called Lemberg Law. It was among the best financial decisions I have ever made. Jody and her staff were comprehensive, useful, and above all else powerful. I highly recommend their services and thank them for their continual efforts.”
“I just wanted to let you know we received the check from your office on now and I wanted to take some time to inform you that we really appreciate all of your efforts in this matter.”
The answer is probably yes. Call to find out now. We’ll explain
Share your story
Have you had a bad experience with this agency’s debt collectors? Sound off and share your experience with other visitors in the comment box below.
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."
See more posts from Sergei Lemberg
Received a robo call including a case # and ref# and too fast to record it. Then I I called origin # and was told by a call center desk their co. name was CRG. Asked what it stood for and 3x told by agent ” It’s not an abbreviation sir”. Asked me if I was such & such and after replying,”I could probably locate him”. I was abruptly hung up on.
So sad when I sent a secure message about this company, I got a call back and the young man Said you dont work with the cases against CRG. When I explained that I got your number from finding that company, you have an entire article about them. I asked for his name and he said he had to take more calls from people who actually needed help then hung up. This is the same behavior as these scam calls. I did call back and speak with Aaron who was nice and tried to find me a supervisor but I will contact our AG at this point and a Texas Law Firm.
I received a call from CRG Out of the blue they would not tell me what it was regarding when I told them I don’t conduct business over the phone they said well you do online so you are stupid… I told them not to call they then called my work and attempted to call random people I have worked with in the past not sure they got their number..
CRG robo called me. When I called them back – 5 times – I was hung up on each time indicating I was rude and any attempt by me to call them again would result in harassment charges being filed. They are calling me in regards to a debt I settled in 2012 due to a divorce. I tried to ask them how I could send them proof of debt settlement and they indicated they didn’t want proof. They said debts being settled was not their problem and that I owed the full amount. They were just letting me know I was going to have my wages garnished and this matter would be referred to a judge. CRG also let me know that people like me should be ashamed for running up credit card debt and not paying it. When I tried to explain my situation, they indicated they were going to put a lien on a car and a home neither of which I own anymore. When I tried to tell them the properties were not in my name, they claimed they were and hung up. I called and asked for a supervisor and they again told me to not call them. At this point I may have said some swear words to them. In my life I have never been treated this poorly on the phone.
CRG continually calling and threatening litigation. When I call back to find out about my “case” they are evasive and warn me about garnishments. I asked for paperwork to prove their legitimacy, and was hung up on. I called back, and was threatened with a harassment charge.
This is indefensible.
Received robo call which was stating that this was my last chance before they called human resources at my job and garnish my wages. Directed me to another phone number. When I call that number it was an individual’s number that had no idea what I was talking about but said she had been receiving several calls. I dinna called the original number which called me an entirely different state and was told this was for a payday loan that I have never taken out. she told me I owed them over $700 and this was a pre-litigation department. Young lady Brianna was very short and rude and at one point yelled at me that she could not answer any more of my questions as I was totally confused.
I have received several threatening emails from CRG about legal action that is being set up against me for a debt I never had. They are saying I borrowed money in the form of a pay day loan and now they are trying to sue me and mess up my credit. Now I am getting call from CRG at home that I’ll be served with law suit.