Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems Inc or CARS is a computer software company based in South Carolina that specializes in repossessions and third-party debt collection. CARS has received consumer complaints alleging violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and other state and federal consumer protection laws. If you have been contacted by Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems, make sure you understand your rights before taking action.
The harassing company pays our fees.
They’re legit. According to the BBB, Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems, Inc. is a legitimate collection agency founded and incorporated in 2005. The BBB established a profile page for CARS in 2008. CARS is listed as a computer hardware and software developer that “provides software and services for repossession management and remarketing.” Buzzfile estimates CARS’s annual revenue at $4.1 million and the size of its headquarters staff at 25 employees.
According to its website, Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems “is a world-class… company… that has helped top-tier lenders manage their underperforming assets more efficiently and effectively.” CARS “leverages SaaS technology to revolutionize the repossession and remarketing industry….and creates transparency and control, thereby helping lenders manage their brand and optimize outcomes.”
CARS’s services include repossession management, remarketing, electronic invoicing, license plate recognition, skip tracing, audits and reports, replevin and legal, automated notices, and field services. Most of CARS’s collection activity occurs within the repossession, automated notice, and field services divisions. These divisions focus on repossessing assets such as automobiles and boats. The automated notice division generates collection letters, and employees in the field services division are trained to make in-person contact with debtors in their homes. The rest of CARS’s services areas are focused on the administrative aspects of repossession, with CARS’s remarketing division providing software for the management of auctions selling repossessed property.
Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems focuses mainly on software and hardware delivery systems that make it easier for consumer retailers and commercial wholesalers to automate and outsource their collection, repossession, and accounting activities. CARS offers its proprietary automated repossession system in three versions: full-service, self-service, and hybrid.
Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems field agents “are given strict instructions in order to remain compliant with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA).” In addition, their Compliance page indicates that “criminal background checks are required of all repossession agents and their employees.” CARS also cites strong procedural and data security compliance policies. However, the CARS website does not provide information about consumer protection resources 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.
Neither the BBB nor the CFPB has closed any complaints against Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems. Justia lists at least 4 cases of civil litigation involving CARS.
Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems, Inc.
4800 Six Forks Rd., Ste. 350
Raleigh, NC 27609-0059
Telephone: (919) 518-2277
Website: http://www.ez-recovery.com/
It is illegal for a debt collector to make empty threats to sue you or garnish your wages. It is also unlikely CARS 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 Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems, Inc.
In April 2016, in United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, a judge issued a Memorandum in a case alleging Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems and two other defendants—Dealer Funding, LLC, (DFL) and Collateral Adjustment Corporation (CAC)—had violated provisions of the FDCPA, Pennsylvania state’s Universal Commercial Code (UCC), Motor Vehicle Sales Finance Act (MVSFA), and Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (UTPCPL); and the Fair Credit Extension Uniformity Act (FCEUA). In this case, the plaintiff signed an installment loan agreement in October 2014 to finance the purchase of a 2006 BMW X3 automobile. The plaintiff defaulted on the loan, and in September 2015, CARS came to her home to repossess the vehicle. Subsequently, in September 2015, the plaintiff traveled to New Jersey to retrieve the repossessed vehicle, and upon inspection found that “personal property was removed, trash was littered throughout the vehicle, and that the vehicle had been damaged due to being improperly towed” during repossession. The plaintiff alleged that the condition of the car was evidence of the violations cited in her complaint.
The April 2016 hearing was held to determine the outcome of CAC’s motion to dismiss the charges and to strike portions of the plaintiff’s complaint. As for charges that CAC and CARS had violated the FDCPA, CAC argued that the plaintiff’s complaint should be dismissed because “a repossession agency is not a ‘debt collector’ for FDCPA purposes”; because the “plaintiff admitted she had defaulted on her loan, so… Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems had a right of possession and did not violate Section 1692f(6)(A) of the FDCPA as a matter of law”; and because “no facts were pleaded that support a finding under Section 1692f(6)(B), 1692f(6)(C), or 1692d.”
The court disagreed that repossession agents are not debt collectors, citing language that states the “term debt collector 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.” In addition, the “statute…goes on to list what the term debt collector does not include… and the six classes of excluded debt collectors listed do not specifically state repossession agencies.” However, the provisions of the FDCPA that apply to repossession agencies prohibit:
“taking or threatening to take any nonjudicial action to the effect of dispossession or disablement of property if:
(A) there is no present right to possession of the property claimed as collateral through an enforceable security interest;
(B) there is no present intention to take possession of the property; or
(C) the property is exempt by law from such dispossession or disablement.”
Because the plaintiff had already admitted that she was in default, no violation of these sections could be supported, and she did not include any additional information to support a claim that Consolidated Asset Recovery Systems or CAC had violated other sections of the FDCPA. Thus, although the court granted CAC’s and CARS’s motion to dismiss the claim of FDCPA violations, the plaintiff was given 14 days to amend her complaint to include the necessary supporting information to proceed.
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.
You may have a case, if…
“As we discussed on the phone earlier today, this settlement is perfectly okay to me. I need to thank you and all of your cohorts at Lemberg Law to get a project handled so professionally. Please allow Amy, the first person who contacted me from Lemberg, know how much I appreciate her efforts, kindness, and professionalism.”
“I won’t be afraid to contact you or recommend your services to others for applicable legal issues. Please keep up the outstanding work you do, and again, thank you for helping me through this challenging time. I’m most grateful. I can not say thank you enough!”
“I received outstanding professionalism from the own staff. I had a horrible experience when trying to solve a debt. 1 debt collector associate said she would speak to the prosecutor’s office and another representative told me that when I called the office back he would call the police and have me arrested. I had been insulted, mocked, and threatened, and feared that the police would appear at my door any given moment.”
“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.”
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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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