Valentine & Kebartas Inc or V&K is a third-party collection agency based in Massachusetts. V&K has received consumer complaints alleging serious violations of the Fair Debt Collections Practices Act (FDCPA), including illegal communication tactics and misrepresentation. If you have been contacted by V&K, understand your rights before taking action.
The harassing company pays our fees.
They’re legit. According to the Better Business Bureau (BBB), Valentine & Kebartas, LLC is a legitimate collection agency, founded in 1994 and incorporated locally in Lawrence, MA in 2015. The BBB opened its file in 2005. V&K is listed as a collection agency with a total staff of 400 people. Buzzfile lists V&K’s founding as 2015, the year of their incorporation, and estimates their annual revenue at $6 million and the size of their headquarters staff at 145 people.
According to its website, V&K has offices in Massachusetts, Idaho, Florida, and Panama. They offer full-service third-party collection services to lenders and service providers from a variety of industries, including bank card lenders; retail lenders and merchants; telecommunications companies; education institutes; utility companies; commercial leasing companies; insurance providers; and government agencies.
Their collection services include several different specializations. Their pre-collection program is for “accounts that are past-due but not ready to be placed for third-party collection.” Their third-party division employs agents who collect delinquent debt using initial data scrub and scoring; telephone campaigns; collection letters; credit reporting; and skip tracing. Their “near shore collections” division employs a staff in their office in Panama that allows them to use “the best of American management, systems, and processes with the advantages of [a …call center in Panama [where] Panamanian economics allow us to afford high caliber collectors…with analytical skills that allow them to effectively handle complex collection scenarios.”
Their associations page lists over a dozen professional affiliations. Consumer resources and references to consumer protection laws and agencies can only be found by clicking the Frequently Asked Questions link on the home page.
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 12 complaints against Valentine & Kebartas in the past three years, with 3 closed in the past 12 months. Most of these complaints allege problems with billing and collections. Since March 2015, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has closed 26 complaints against V&K. Justia lists at least 9 cases of civil litigation involving Valentine & Kebartas.
Valentine & Kebartas, Inc
15 Union Street
Lawrence, MA 01840
Telephone: 800-731-7766
Website: https://valentineandkebartas.com/
It is illegal for a debt collector to make empty threats to sue you or garnish your wages. It is also unlikely V&K 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. You can sue a debt collector. Here is a Sample Case Complaint:
Many of the complaints filed against V&K with the CFPB indicate problems with communication tactics. In June 2017, a judge in the Supreme Court of Appeals of West Virginia issued a dissenting opinion in a case in which a plaintiff had initially prevailed in a complaint alleging V&K had violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) by making an excessive number of phone calls in their effort to collect a debt. The majority of the Supreme Court on appeal reversed the trial jury’s findings that V&K’s conduct in this case represented a violation of FDCPA Section 1692d(5) and the West Virginia Consumer Credit Protection Act (WVCCPA) Sections 46A-2-122-129a.
Specifically, the WVCCPA provides that:
“No debt collector shall unreasonably oppress or abuse any person in connection with the collection of or attempt to collect any claim alleged to be due and owing by that personor another. Without limiting the general application of the foregoing, the following conduct is deemed to violate this section:
…(d) Causing a telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously, or at unusual times or at times known to be inconvenient, with intent to annoy, abuse, oppress or threaten any person at the called number.”
Similarly, the FDCPA prohibits “causing a telephone to ring or engaging any person in telephone conversation repeatedly or continuously with intent to annoy, abuse, or harass any person at the called number.” Initially, the trial court in this case found that V&K “had caused [the plaintiff’s] telephone to ring 252 times over an eight-month period,” and “that after an initial two-week period of reasonable attempts to contact respondent, the petitioner immediately thereafter ‘ramped up its collection campaign,’ by placing after an initial 22 unanswered calls, ‘6 [more] calls with three separated by less than an hour. The next day…five additional calls…with as little as twenty-eight (28) minutes separating calls. None of these calls were answered. And on the third day six calls…with some…separated by only thirty-two (32) minutes.’”
The trial court found that the volume and frequency of collection calls was sufficient to prove intent on the part of V&K to “annoy, abuse or harass” the plaintiff. The appeal overturned this decision, and the dissenting judge cited case law to support his opinion that the decision to overturn represented a “complete departure from the overwhelming consensus of courts addressing this issue” which he therefore regards as “entirely unsupported by the majority’s scant and illogical analysis.”
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).
Yes. If you want to enforce your rights, or recover money for violations — you need to sue. Federal 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…
“I was so excited when you told me about the positive outcome of the lawsuit. If the need ever arises again, I will not hesitate to call your office or recommend your law services to a friend in need.”
“Thank you, thank you, thank you! I couldn’t be happier with all the hard work your office has done for me. I feel throughout the whole process I was kept informed, and my questions were always answered completely. The calls have stopped, I no longer have a mountain of junk bills piling up, and I owe it all to Lemberg Law.”
“I found your website. I filled out the information and much to my surprise received a call back within the hour. She listened intently and addressed each one of my concerns. She immediately forwarded me an email and advised I would not be charged for services rendered. She made me feel confident and assured, and that someone was in my corner.”
Chances are good that we can help. Call us today and we’ll explain.
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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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This company keeps charging my card and I just want them to stop. They have with drawn my bank account multiple times and now can’t keep money in that account over the them taking it without consent.
Is this company real they call me all the time asking for my info.. but if I owe them then they should already know this info.. don’t you think
I received a call from a friend but didn’t recognize the area code as hers. I texted my friend to ask if she called with a new number with area code 407, she had not and said the number was not hers so I called number before normal office hours. The number belongs to Valentine & Kebartis and they must have attached their phone number to one of my Contacts. This is fraudulant collection tactics. How do I report them?
I’m amy I’m getting harassing phone calls from valentine and karbatas and I would like these calls to stop
I’m amy chapma. I’m also getting harrassed by valentine and karbartas they call a total of 4 or 5 times in one day even after I told them I would pay them on the 3re of every month
They called and asked for me. I asked them who they were, the girl said her name was Destiny and it was a personal business matter. She asked me to verify personal information. I told her I wasn’t doing anything until she told me what company. She said it was Valentine and Kebartes. I told her I wasn’t giving personal information and she threatened me by saying if I didn’t verify any info then the calls will continue.
Somehow my 1200.00 in student loans is being garnished to a total of 1000000.00! I don’t know how that would happen over the course of one year while I took care of my husband in his final year.
I guess the star rating is for them…..Very very rude. The lady was trying to tell ne she needed to verify who I am i informed her that I already told her who I am and that she is not getting my residence information or social security number. They will nit stop calling. Sge refused to say what she was calling for. I finally told her to get off my phone, don’t call me again and disconnected the line. That’s been about an hour ago. Theyve called from 6 more different numbers since I hung up, I’ve blocked them. Surely they’ll run out of numbers soon!
Called me a gazillion times I finally answered. She is inquiring about student debts that are being paid. I don’t know how she got my number I’ve got nothing to do with this.
Who are these people….. they called family who In turn called me and told me I did and they said they cant speak till I verify my SOCIAL SECURITY NUMBER OR HOME ADDRESS …. I said no I’m not giving you my social security number and or home address till you verify who you are and why your asking for my social security number…. I was told they cant speak with me
…ok
This company is the collection agent for my defaulted student loan. I have consistently made payments since getting back on my feet again in March 2017. Last year, the calls came repeatedly in spite of my payments. Then they began harassing my work and sending faxed garnishment orders. It stopped for a while, but once again, they are harassing my work by faxing garnishment orders. In April, they sent my bank payment check back to me saying they could not find my account. Then, they sent a letter stating they intended to garnish my wages for non payment. I disputed this claim, sent the check back to them and they processed that check as well as each monthly payment since. Today, another faxed garnishment order to my work.
I get these calls all the time, when I don’t answer the first call, they change the number they are calling from. They have called family members say if I don’t call them back I will be arrested. I’ve payed
Them in full before. They sttoped call for awhile. Several call a week. I refuse to keep paying for the same dept over and over. They’ve told me that a process services would be bring to me and then I can be arrested, and jailed. They change the phone numbers everytime I block their call. They’ve given me an amount that I’ve already paid through. I’ve called them back I’ve been told my file isn’t in their office and they don’t know why anyone could be calling me. Then within 30 minutes I get another call from them with a different number.
They call all of the time. I’ve called them back and been told that I’m not in their system. But before the day is over I get more calls. They told me that someone is going to bring legal documents, that could get me arrested. I have paid them in full before.
They are very rude and don’t help. They want you to pay in full right then and there and don’t listen when you say you can’t. They argue with you as well and Felicia Anton is a very nasty and rude. They are very forceful and when you ask for a letter stating who they are and who they are collecting for they say one is on the way and that is false.