No message left. Do not know who called me.

Philips and Cohen Debt Collection Agency

Phillips & Cohn. Debt Collectrors

These people should be stopped....They call for someone I don't know. .....

Just got a call about 5 minutes ago.  I don't have outstanding debt, but my father passed away last summer and I am the executor of the estate.  I'm assuming that I am being contacted regarding my father's estate, but no one left a message... so, we'll see I guess!

I have received calls 2 months following the death of my loved one.  For the last month I have been receiving calls on my cell & at home.  Originally, A "Demorian Jones" states on my cell & home message that they extend condolences for the death of my loved one.  Also that they wish to speak to the person handling the estate of the deceased.  I only listened to the initial call but did not acklnowledege anything.  I simply hung up.  He sounded very suspicious & would not tell me how he got my number in the first place.  I thank all the people above for their information & advice.  I will continue NOT to answer any of their calls in the future.  What people will do for $$$$$.  Let the dead lie in peace.

Yes they do know that you are not responsible - THEY DON'T CARE THEY ARE BREAKING LAWS -

They hope they can harrass you into paying these bills. Or that you DO NOT KNOW WHAT THEY ARE DOING IS ILLEGAL

http://www.budhibbs.com/collectorpages/phillips_cohen.htm
Phillips & Cohen Associates, Ltd.

695 Rancocas Rd.

Westhampton, NJ 08060-5626
Phone: (609) 518-9000
Fax: (609) 518-9442
Debt, Arbitration & Death Collectors!
Matthew M. Phillips, Chairman, CEO
Email: m.phillips@phillips-cohen.com

Adam S. Cohen, Co-Chairman, CEO
Email: a.cohen@phillips-cohen.com
Web Address: www.phillips-cohen.com

Death Letters: Incredibly Stupid or a Massive Ruse?

(These people are not dead Mr. Death Collector!)




--------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Bud Says                         Consumer Comments Below




Adam S. Cohen, Attorney Debt & Death Collector:  Adam S. Cohen, Esq. serves as Co-Chairman/CEO of Phillips & Cohen Associates, Ltd., a collection agency servicing the industry's leading creditors and debt buyers in the US, Canada and UK. In addition to providing traditional recovery services, Phillips & Cohen Associates offers unique and innovative programs and is recognized as the market leader in comprehensive deceased debt recovery. Educated at The George Washington University and Villanova University School of Law, Mr. Cohen has overseen operations at Phillips & Cohen Associates from one office at inception to six domestic and two international sites comprising approximately 650 employees.

 



Adam S. Cohen Phillips & Cohen Associates, Ltd. (photo courtesy Google)
That story about debt collectors collecting from the grave is true, just ask Adam S. Cohen, attorney, partner and debt collector of Phillips & Cohen. This New Jersey agency has sent letters for money in as little as one week after the death of a consumer. Their agency sent out thousands of letters to people who were not yet dead in what was later said to be a massive mistake on their part. See Death Letters (above).

Phillips & Cohen is also involved in filing arbitration claims out of their Delaware office. Don?t expect to receive any documents that validity to their claims, many consumers we have talked with say they don?t exist. Expect to lose the arb claims as Phillips & Cohen have jumped on the FREE money train the National Arbitration Forum, Minneapolis, MN is driving across America, where debt collectors have a 97.999% guarantee of a 20% profit on their claims.

Since validation of debts is a difficult if not impossible task for bottom feeders such as Phillips & Cohen they have also been known to collect for other vulture debt collectors who have little or documents that back up their claims.

Can death debt collectors like Phillips & Cohen screw you to death, then screw you again? Looks to me as though Adam S. Cohen has already answered that question.



extortion
n. obtaining money or property by threat to a victim's property or loved ones, intimidation, or false claim of a right (such as pretending to be an IRS agent). It is a felony in all states, except that a direct threat to harm the victim is usually treated as the crime of robbery. Blackmail is a form of extortion in which the threat is to expose embarrassing, damaging information to family, friends or the public.  See also: blackmail robbery theft


This (non-law firm) collection agency appears to be a cesspool of misfits and lawbreakers that prey on consumers with their lawlessness. NEVER give them any information on your bank/credit accounts, or post-dated checks. YOU WILL REGRET IT!!

CAUTION: I recommend you NEVER disclose your bank account or credit card information to a debt collector, as you risk them emptying your account, or maxing out your credit card. If you feel they are reporting on your credit bureau files in error or need assistance in dealing with them, email  the details w/your location.  Assistance and referral to a consumer legal specialist may be available.  



File complaints with

Federal Trade Commission  https://www.ftccomplaintassistant.gov/FTC_Wizard.aspx?Lang=en

Your State Attorney General
State Attorney General is every state they have offices

Link to all State Attorney General Websites www.naag.org

If you or they are located in NY ? use this SPECIAL Link  www.NYDebtHelp.com
This special website was created by NY AG Andrew Cuomo specifically for reporting illegal debt collection practices.  HE?S CRACKING DOWN AND SHUTTING THEM DOWN!

Also report your calls and contacts with debt collectors at http://www.budhibbs.com/index.html  If the company is listed under agencies ? report there. If not on the list YET, click on Watchlist! and add to the list.   You can also post here http://www.collectorsexposed.com/forum2/index.php?board=2.0

Debt Collectors DO NOT WANT YOU TO KNOW THIS INFORMATION!    
The INFORMED CONSUMER IS THE DEBT COLLECTORS WORST ENEMY!

Dealing with Debt Collectors
http://www.budhibbs.com/start.html


Statute of Limitations by State ? always double check YOUR OWN STATE Government Website
http://www.budhibbs.com/statute_of_limitations.htm


Recording calls from Debt Collectors - always double check YOUR OWN STATE Government Website
http://www.budhibbs.com/record.htm


From Federal Trade Commission Website ? FAIR DEBT COLLECTION PRACTICES ACT
Debt Collection FAQs: A Guide for Consumers
If you?re behind in paying your bills, or a creditor?s records mistakenly make it appear that you are, a debt collector may be contacting you.
The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation?s consumer protection agency, enforces the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), which prohibits debt collectors from using abusive, unfair, or deceptive practices to collect from you.
Under the FDCPA, a debt collector is someone who regularly collects debts owed to others. This includes collection agencies, lawyers who collect debts on a regular basis, and companies that buy delinquent debts and then try to collect them.
Here are some questions and answers about your rights under the Act.

What types of debts are covered?
The Act covers personal, family, and household debts, including money you owe on a personal credit card account, an auto loan, a medical bill, and your mortgage. The FDCPA doesn?t cover debts you incurred to run a business.

Can a debt collector contact me any time or any place?
No. A debt collector may not contact you at inconvenient times or places, such as before 8 in the morning or after 9 at night, unless you agree to it. And collectors may not contact you at work if they?re told (orally or in writing) that you?re not allowed to get calls there.

How can I stop a debt collector from contacting me?
If a collector contacts you about a debt, you may want to talk to them at least once to see if you can resolve the matter ? even if you don?t think you owe the debt, can?t repay it immediately, or think that the collector is contacting you by mistake. If you decide after contacting the debt collector that you don?t want the collector to contact you again, tell the collector ? in writing ? to stop contacting you. Here?s how to do that:
Make a copy of your letter. Send the original by certified mail, and pay for a ?return receipt? so you?ll be able to document what the collector received. Once the collector receives your letter, they may not contact you again, with two exceptions: a collector can contact you to tell you there will be no further contact or to let you know that they or the creditor intend to take a specific action, like filing a lawsuit. Sending such a letter to a debt collector you owe money to does not get rid of the debt, but it should stop the contact. The creditor or the debt collector still can sue you to collect the debt.

Can a debt collector contact anyone else about my debt?
If an attorney is representing you about the debt, the debt collector must contact the attorney, rather than you. If you don?t have an attorney, a collector may contact other people ? but only to find out your address, your home phone number, and where you work. Collectors usually are prohibited from contacting third parties more than once. Other than to obtain this location information about you, a debt collector generally is not permitted to discuss your debt with anyone other than you, your spouse, or your attorney.

What does the debt collector have to tell me about the debt?
Every collector must send you a written ?validation notice? telling you how much money you owe within five days after they first contact you. This notice also must include the name of the creditor to whom you owe the money, and how to proceed if you don?t think you owe the money.

Can a debt collector keep contacting me if I don?t think I owe any money?
If you send the debt collector a letter stating that you don?t owe any or all of the money, or asking for verification of the debt, that collector must stop contacting you. You have to send that letter within 30 days after you receive the validation notice. But a collector can begin contacting you again if it sends you written verification of the debt, like a copy of a bill for the amount you owe.

What practices are off limits for debt collectors?
Harassment. Debt collectors may not harass, oppress, or abuse you or any third parties they contact. For example, they may not:
    use threats of violence or harm;
    publish a list of names of people who refuse to pay their debts (but they can give this information to the credit reporting companies);
    use obscene or profane language; or
    repeatedly use the phone to annoy someone.

False statements. Debt collectors may not lie when they are trying to collect a debt. For example, they may not:
    falsely claim that they are attorneys or government representatives;
    falsely claim that you have committed a crime;
    falsely represent that they operate or work for a credit reporting company;
    misrepresent the amount you owe;
    indicate that papers they send you are legal forms if they aren?t; or
    indicate that papers they send to you aren?t legal forms if they are.

Debt collectors also are prohibited from saying that:
    you will be arrested if you don?t pay your debt;
    they?ll seize, garnish, attach, or sell your property or wages unless they are permitted by law to take the action and intend to do so; or
    legal action will be taken against you, if doing so would be illegal or if they don?t intend to take the action.

Debt collectors may not:
    give false credit information about you to anyone, including a credit reporting company;
    send you anything that looks like an official document from a court or government agency if it isn?t; or
    use a false company name.

Unfair practices. Debt collectors may not engage in unfair practices when they try to collect a debt. For example, they may not:
    try to collect any interest, fee, or other charge on top of the amount you owe unless the contract that created your debt ? or your state law ? allows the charge;
    deposit a post-dated check early;
    take or threaten to take your property unless it can be done legally; or
    contact you by postcard.

Can I control which debts my payments apply to?
Yes. If a debt collector is trying to collect more than one debt from you, the collector must apply any payment you make to the debt you select. Equally important, a debt collector may not apply a payment to a debt you don?t think you owe.

Can a debt collector garnish my bank account or my wages?
If you don?t pay a debt, a creditor or its debt collector generally can sue you to collect. If they win, the court will enter a judgment against you. The judgment states the amount of money you owe, and allows the creditor or collector to get a garnishment order against you, directing a third party, like your bank, to turn over funds from your account to pay the debt.
Wage garnishment happens when your employer withholds part of your compensation to pay your debts. Your wages usually can be garnished only as the result of a court order. Don?t ignore a lawsuit summons. If you do, you lose the opportunity to fight a wage garnishment.

Can federal benefits be garnished?
Many federal benefits are exempt from garnishment, including:
    Social Security Benefits
    Supplemental Security Income (SSI) Benefits
    Veterans? Benefits
    Civil Service and Federal Retirement and Disability Benefits
    Service Members? Pay
    Military Annuities and Survivors? Benefits
    Student Assistance
    Railroad Retirement Benefits
    Merchant Seamen Wages
    Longshoremen?s and Harbor Workers? Death and Disability Benefits
    Foreign Service Retirement and Disability Benefits
    Compensation for Injury, Death, or Detention of Employees of U.S. Contractors Outside the U.S.
    Federal Emergency Management Agency Federal Disaster Assistance
But federal benefits may be garnished under certain circumstances, including to pay delinquent taxes, alimony, child support, or student loans.

Do I have any recourse if I think a debt collector has violated the law?
You have the right to sue a collector in a state or federal court within one year from the date the law was violated. If you win, the judge can require the collector to pay you for any damages you can prove you suffered because of the illegal collection practices, like lost wages and medical bills. The judge can require the debt collector to pay you up to $1,000, even if you can?t prove that you suffered actual damages. You also can be reimbursed for your attorney?s fees and court costs. A group of people also may sue a debt collector as part of a class action lawsuit and recover money for damages up to $500,000, or one percent of the collector?s net worth, whichever amount is lower. Even if a debt collector violates the FDCPA in trying to collect a debt, the debt does not go away if you owe it.

What should I do if a debt collector sues me?
If a debt collector files a lawsuit against you to collect a debt, respond to the lawsuit, either personally or through your lawyer, by the date specified in the court papers to preserve your rights.

Where do I report a debt collector for an alleged violation?
Report any problems you have with a debt collector to your state Attorney General?s office (www.naag.org) and the Federal Trade Commission (www.ftc.gov). Many states have their own debt collection laws that are different from the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Your Attorney General?s office can help you determine your rights under your state?s law.

For More Information
To learn more about debt collection and other credit-related issues, visit www.ftc.gov/credit and MyMoney.gov, the U.S. government?s portal to financial education.
The FTC works for the consumer to prevent fraudulent, deceptive, and unfair business practices in the marketplace and to provide information to help consumers spot, stop, and avoid them. To file a complaint or to get free information on consumer issues, visit ftc.gov or call toll-free, 1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357); TTY: 1-866-653-4261. The FTC enters consumer complaints into the Consumer Sentinel Network, a secure online database and investigative tool used by hundreds of civil and criminal law enforcement agencies in the U.S. and abroad
February 2009

i HAVE NOTHING TO WITH A DECEASED RELATIVE ANGELINA MENA BUT THIS COMPANY KEEPS CALLING AND CALLING I HAVE TOLD THEM BEFORE MANY TIMES TO STOP CALLING ME. DO THEY GET THIS NO. LIKE I AM GOING TO CHANGE MY MIND.

You?re Dead? That Won?t Stop the Debt Collector

Published: March 3, 2009
MINNEAPOLIS ? The banks need another bailout and countless homeowners cannot handle their mortgage payments, but one group is paying its bills: the dead.

Dozens of specially trained agents work on the third floor of DCM Services here, calling up the dear departed?s next of kin and kindly asking if they want to settle the balance on a credit card or bank loan, or perhaps make that final utility bill or cellphone payment.

The people on the other end of the line often have no legal obligation to assume the debt of a spouse, sibling or parent. But they take responsibility for it anyway.

?I am out of work now, to be honest with you, and money is very tight for us,? one man declared on a recent phone call after he was apprised of his late mother-in-law?s $280 credit card bill. He promised to pay $15 a month.

Dead people are the newest frontier in debt collecting, and one of the healthiest parts of the industry. Those who dun the living say that people are so scared and so broke it is difficult to get them to cough up even token payments.

Collecting from the dead, however, is expanding. Improved database technology is making it easier to discover when estates are opened in the country?s 3,000 probate courts, giving collectors an opportunity to file timely claims. But if there is no formal estate and thus nothing to file against, the human touch comes into play.

New hires at DCM train for three weeks in what the company calls ?empathic active listening,? which mixes the comforting air of a funeral director with the nonjudgmental tones of a friend. The new employees learn to use such anger-deflecting phrases as ?If I hear you correctly, you?d like...?

?You get to be the person who cares,? the training manager, Autumn Boomgaarden, told a class of four new hires.

For some relatives, paying is pragmatic. The law varies from state to state, but generally survivors are not required to pay a dead relative?s bills from their own assets. In theory, however, collection agencies could go after any property inherited from the deceased.

But sentiment also plays a large role, the agencies say. Some relatives are loyal to the credit card or bank in question. Some feel a strong sense of morality, that all debts should be paid. Most of all, people feel they are honoring the wishes of their loved ones.

?In times of illness and death, the hierarchy of debts is adjusted,? said Michael Ginsberg of Kaulkin Ginsberg, a consulting company to the debt collection industry. ?We do our best to make sure our doctor is paid, because we might need him again. And we want the dead to rest easy, knowing their obligations are taken care of.?

Finally, of course, some of those who pay a dead relative?s debts are unaware they may have no legal obligation.

Scott Weltman of Weltman, Weinberg & Reis, a Cleveland law firm that performs deceased collections, says that if family members ask, ?we definitely tell them? they have no legal obligation to pay. ?But is it disclosed upfront ? ?Mr. Smith, you definitely don?t owe the money?? It?s not that blunt.?

DCM Services, which began in 1999 as a law firm, recently acquired clients in banking, automobile finance, retailing, telecommunications and health care; DCM says its contracts preclude it from naming them.

The companies ?want to protect their brand,? said DCM?s chief executive, Steven Farsht. Despite the delicacy of such collections, he says his 180-employee firm is providing a service to the economy. ?The financial services industry is under a tremendous amount of pressure, and every dollar we collect improves their profitability,? he said.

To listen to even a small sample of DCM?s calls ? executives played tapes of 10 of them for a reporter, electronically edited to remove all names ? is to reveal the wages of misery, right down to the penny.

http://www.nytimes.com/2009/03/04/business/04 ... 1&sq=dcm&st=cse

March 11, 2009

Chairman Jon Leibowitz
Federal Trade Commission
600 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, DC 20580

Dear Chairman Leibowitz:

I am dismayed to learn from recent media reports that some debt collection companies have made it a practice to attempt to collect unpaid credit card balances ? and perhaps other types of unsecured debts ? from the families of the deceased. According to numerous reports, these companies call surviving relatives, often shortly after the death of a loved one, to coax or cajole them into making payments on the deceased relative?s credit card.  To say the least, this practice is distasteful and unethical.  Moreover, this practice may very well violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.  I am hereby requesting that the Federal Trade Commission investigate whether debt collection companies are violating the law when they engage in this practice, and exactly what information they are conveying to surviving relatives who are under no obligation to pay off their loved ones? credit cards.

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, among its many prohibitions, prevents debt collectors from contacting anyone other than the credit card holder without the prior consent of the holder.  Specifically, the Act provides that ?a debt collector may not communicate, in connection with the collection of any debt, with any person other than the consumer, his attorney, a consumer reporting agency if otherwise permitted by law, the creditor, the attorney of the creditor, or the attorney of the debt collector.?  ?Consumer? is defined in the Act as a ?natural person? who owes a debt.  If this language does not apply to a situation in which the consumer is deceased, I would like to know the basis for such an opinion.  

I find it shocking that a debt collection company would determine that it is worth causing profound anguish and embarrassment in order to collect debts that are sometimes as low as $50, or which result in a payment of $15 a month from a widow or widower who is struggling to make ends meet. If a debt is large enough to be worth collecting, there are legal ways to obtain payment.  First, if a surviving family member has also signed for the card, that family member will be obligated to pay the debt.  Second, an unsecured creditor such as a credit card issuer can obtain payment from the estate of the deceased through a routine probate proceeding, after the holders of secured debt ? such as mortgagors? are paid.  This practice of harassing living family members for upfront payments results in putting credit card issuers in the front of the line to get money from an estate, rather than after those who hold secured debt.

Given the current economic situation, in which millions of honest, hard-working Americans are struggling to meet their obligations, this practice is opportunistic and destructive.

In addition to opening an investigation into these practices, I would like the answers to the following questions:

Which debt collection companies (?collectors?) are engaging in the practice of collecting credit card debt from widows, widowers, children, and other relatives of the deceased?

Which credit card issuers are hiring these collectors, or selling their debts to these collectors?  Have the issuers endorsed this practice, either by turning a blind eye toward it or by specifically encouraging it?  

Does the practice of trying to collect unsecured debts from the living relatives of debtors who have passed on violate the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act?s prohibition on communicating with third parties?  If not, why not?  What measures could be taken to make sure that these practices are stopped?

If these practices are currently legal, are these collectors uniformly making sure that they tell living relatives that they have no legal obligation to pay the debt?  Further, are the collectors informing the living relatives of the statute of limitations for collecting these debts?  Are the collectors informing the living relatives that any credit card debt would be paid from the estate only after other secured debts, such as mortgage and car payments, are paid?

Given that the FTC receives more complaints about debt collection companies than any other American business, I hope and expect that you will be thorough in your investigation of this matter.


Sincerely,

Charles E. Schumer
United States Senator

http://schumer.senate.gov/new_website/record.cfm?id=309474

The debt collectors are behaving badly again. This time they're hitting up surviving family members for money that's owed by the dead!

The New York Times reports that some collection agencies specialize in this somewhat morbid pursuit. Collectors even receive "sensitivity" training to deal with grieving relatives. They'll speak in hushed tones on the phone like a funeral director and refer you to a legitimate grief counselor if necessary.

In most cases, you have no legal obligation to assume the debt of a late spouse, sibling or parent. But the collectors will never tell you that.

The only states where there is a possibility that a surviving spouse may have some responsibility for a debt are "community property states" -- Arizona, California, Idaho, Louisiana, Nevada, New Mexico, Texas, Washington and Wisconsin.

In such states, an executor/executrix or administrator (in the event there is no will) may be responsible for assessing the estate to see if there's money to pay out to creditors.

But in general, if you get a call from these slimeballs, know that you likely don't owe them a penny.

http://clarkhoward.com/shownotes/category/12/103/358/

These b*****ds fail to grasp the concept of the Federal law... especially when dealing with a somebody who has died. Call after call after call... they don't seem to grasp the fact that family members are not responsible for the debt.

Called at 5:24 AM on Saturday and 5:12 AM on Monday. Left no messages. I have no outstanding debts.

Calling before 8AM and after 9PM local time is against the law per the FDCPA. So, what else is new for them?

Phillips & Cohen Associates, Ltd.
695 Rancocas Rd.
Westhampton, NJ 08060-5626
Phone: (609) 518-9000
Fax: (609) 518-9442
Debt, Arbitration & Death Collectors!
Matthew M. Phillips, Chairman, CEO
Email: m.phillips@phillips-cohen.com

Adam S. Cohen, Co-Chairman, CEO
Email: a.cohen@phillips-cohen.com
Web Address: www.phillips-cohen.com

Death Letters: Incredibly Stupid or a Massive Ruse?

(These people are not dead Mr. Death Collector!)

That story about debt collectors collecting from the grave is true, just ask Adam S. Cohen, attorney, partner and debt collector of Phillips & Cohen. This New Jersey agency has sent letters for money in as little as one week after the death of a consumer. Their agency sent out thousands of letters to people who were not yet dead in what was later said to be a massive mistake on their part. See Death Letters (above).

Phillips & Cohen is also involved in filing arbitration claims out of their Delaware office. Don?t expect to receive any documents that validity to their claims, many consumers we have talked with say they don?t exist. Expect to lose the arb claims as Phillips & Cohen have jumped on the FREE money train the National Arbitration Forum, Minneapolis, MN is driving across America, where debt collectors have a 97.999% guarantee of a 20% profit on their claims.

Since validation of debts is a difficult if not impossible task for bottom feeders such as Phillips & Cohen they have also been known to collect for other vulture debt collectors who have little or documents that back up their claims.

Can death debt collectors like Phillips & Cohen screw you to death, then screw you again? Looks to me as though Adam S. Cohen has already answered that question.

extortion
n. obtaining money or property by threat to a victim's property or loved ones, intimidation, or false claim of a right (such as pretending to be an IRS agent). It is a felony in all states, except that a direct threat to harm the victim is usually treated as the crime of robbery. Blackmail is a form of extortion in which the threat is to expose embarrassing, damaging information to family, friends or the public.  See also: blackmail, robbery and theft.

This (non-law firm) collection agency appears to be a cesspool of misfits and lawbreakers that prey on consumers with their lawlessness. NEVER give them any information on your bank/credit accounts, or post-dated checks. YOU WILL REGRET IT!!

http://www.budhibbs.com/collectorpages/phillips_cohen.htm

Debt Collector. I answered and he asked for my brother in law, so I happily forwarded him on.

They called at 5:52am, left no message.