Global Collections

Ce n'est pas vrai. Global is subject to the FDCPA if collecting from Americans, provincial law if collecting from Canadians. Several agencies collecting from Americans are owned by foreign companies. They have to be licensed, bonded, and/or registered in whatever state they operate as required like everyone else. If the above wasn't so, no scofflaw debt collector would choose to headquarter in the US.

It's not clear if ChoicePoint traffics in Canadian data. However, its parent company also runs LexisNexis, which does operate there.

I have been receiving calls from 905 413-8676 since Oct. 2013 when I moved to Peterborough, ON. The phone number assigned to my new home had been recycled, as fact which my provider confirmed to me. Initially I never answered the phone when I saw the number as it seemed fishy. For the last 4 weeks they have been leaving messages which were quite threatening in  nature. I have never had any debt, financial trouble or business with collection agencies. I ignored the messages although I was getting worried. Never once did I receive anything in the mail from these turkeys. I filed 4 complaints with the CRTC and yesterday an operator put me on to the Consumer Protection Branch. Had a conversation with a lady who enlightened me about the MO of debt collectors. By law they are not allowed to name the person they are looking for. Fine. She also mentioned that my new phone number might have belonged to someone who was having issues with debt collectors. This seemed plausible. She also said I should not ignore the calls as they would just keep calling. Oh. Set them straight in other words or they will just have another similar agency calling you. So, guilty (of some debt) until you prove you are innocent... Interesting take on things. I always thought it was the other way around. The lady at the Ministry of Consumer Services also said to email a lady by the name of Deanne Natale. Do yourselves a favor and Google her name and see the dubious hits...
I did some BBB research and found an entry called Affinity Global that uses the same 905 number and guess what? There is an alert issued for this company. Lots of similar complaints and a C+ rating. On the advice of the agent at the Ministry of Consumer Services  I emailed Deanne and told her she has 10 days to remove my phone number from their list otherwise I will file an official complaint with the Ministry of Consumer Services and contact the police to discuss harassment charges.
I sent off the email and also called Global at 1 877 241 7835 and told the operator that I am not who they are looking for and that the messages are threatening and he declined to agree about the messages. Probably thought he had another nut bar on the line who wanted to tell a sad sob story of not being able to pay debt... Anyhow, I was aggressive and told him in no uncertain terms to remove my number from the file. He was not going to comply and felt I needed to apologize for my tone. I hung up. Called 5 minutes later, got another operator and told him to remove my number and he said it has already been done. Fight fire with fire. Two hours after I sent the email I got confirmation via email that my number had been removed. I replied and said that had the organization actually had a real person make the call, they would have heard the new name at the number and maybe even have put 2 and 2 together that the name they have matching my number on file doesn't now match the person who now has the phone number. Knuckleheads. Don't let them scare you and bully you. Be aggressive. I felt like a B but am in the clear now.

Very interesting.  I did not know that.  So you are saying that the opposite is true and that American companies attempting to collect from Canadian Citizens living in Canada would be subject to our rules?

Nice try-I know you're not the real person with that name!

Report them to the FCRA. They will investigate them and put a stop to it.

Wow, another brilliant response to an ancient initial post. The Fair Credit Reporting Act is a document, not an agency.

Also it's not clear which North American nation Ang called home. In the US, Ang's problems would not be covered by FCRA anyway, as it concerns the duty of an "information furnisher" like a creditor or collection agency when reporting on accounts to the credit bureaus. Now, if a debt industry player insists on publishing financial lies about a person despite demands to remove them, that's when consumers can use the FCRA as a spear to force a change.

FTC: Fair Credit Reporting Act
http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcrajump.shtm

The rampant belief that mere filing of complaints in the right or wrong places will immediately summon a "bunko squad" to fix your problem is one which we really need to crush flat on this site. If you've been wronged and a consumer law covers you, don't sit waiting for a rescue which may never arrive. Learn how to use that law and get your own satisfaction. It's exactly what Congress and the FTC *want us to do* to keep scofflaw companies chained and muzzled like the bad dogs they are.

Even if it's a troll post, it's not a bad question. I've made lunch break study of the collection laws of Canadian provinces and Great Britain. It's an ongoing project and I'm a long way from becoming a scholar. Wherever I go, I find more similarity to the FDCPA than difference. I don't recall seeing a foreign statute which limits its coverage of debt collectors according to an international boundary. Limiting liability to their own domestic companies would be foolish "out there" for the same reason I'd mentioned before.

If you're a foreign traveler, you can't smash shop windows or cut purses or drive in the wrong direction against traffic and expect host country authorities to leave you alone because you're a visitor. Certain actions are pretty obviously unwanted and wrong everywhere, which I should think include bullying and deception from companies trying to take your money with or without a solid claim to it.

To file a complaint Online.

Ministry of Consumer and Business Services Ontario Canada :

https://www.consumerbeware.mgs.gov.on.ca/compform/english/complaint.asp

Ministry of Consumer Services
    Consumer Protection Branch
    5775 Yonge Street, Suite 1500
    Toronto ON  M7A 2E5
    Toll-free: 1-800-889-9768
    Call in Toronto: 416-326-8800
    TTY: 416-229-6086 or 1-877-666-6545
    Fax: 416-326-8665
    E-mail: consumer@ontario.ca

Please copy and paste above in other forums Please and thank you.

And :

O.P.P Police. ( Harassing you ).
Non-Emergency calls for service (24 hr Toll Free)
1-888-310-1122 (anywhere in Ontario)
1-888-310-1133 (TTY)
And
R.C.M.P: ( harassing you ).
130 Dufferin Avenue, 5th Floor
P.O. Box 3240, Station "B"
London, Ontario N6A 4K3
Tel.: 519-640-7267

They are out of Montreal Q P a small one or two men operation - they are not complying with the Credit collection act and they they can be reported to Provincial and Federal Government for violation of Collection Law.  Once you tell them not to call back they must stop calling  that is one of the laws in Collection Law. ( they mail keep sending postal mails )

Legally a collection agency may try to collect but they are limited how far they may go. Only the company who actually monies owned to can force collection but with the same restriction as a credit collector, As you do not have any legal contract with the  Credit Collection they   only can try to threaten you as they get a good portion of collected money - ( that is their income ) -  Just tell them stop calling or you will file a claim with Canadian     Ministry of Consumer Services
   Consumer Protection Branch
   5775 Yonge St. Suite 1500
   Toronto, ON M7A 2E5
   Fax: 416-326-8665
   E-mail: consumer@ontario.ca

   416-326-8800

   or 1-800-889-9768

I thought they could not leave a messege, but this person from Global Collection and Credit did.  Last week when Preem Moses called again, he said he was from Global Credit and Collection. He stated the name of the place two different ways. I've been unemployed and behind on my bills but this place does not sound legitimate when compared to speaking with the ones I correspond with now.  Are they in India or in Canada?  I googled their phone number (786-275-5564) and got a location in Miami FL.  Is this what a spoofed number is?  I live in the US and do not see why a credit card company hear would deal WITH AN anyone IN CANADA OR INDIA.

They can leave a message asking for such and such person, and also leave the name of the business - however, they cannot disclose the nature of the call (i.e. debt collection).  Since you say you are behind on your bills - you can check with the creditors you owe and make sure they haven't sold your account(s) for collection.  Even if they have, though, the collector MUST mail that DV letter proving you now owe that debt to them. More info here:

Consumers across the country report that they're getting telephone calls from people trying to collect on loans the consumers never received or on loans they did receive but for amounts they do not owe. Others are receiving calls from people seeking to recover on loans consumers received but where the creditors never authorized the callers to collect for them. So what's the story?

The Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the nation's consumer protection agency, is warning consumers to be on the alert for scam artists posing as debt collectors. It may be hard to tell the difference between a legitimate debt collector and a fake one. Sometimes a fake collector may even have some of your personal information, like a bank account number. A caller may be a fake debt collector if he:

is seeking payment on a debt for a loan you do not recognize;
refuses to give you a mailing address or phone number;
asks you for personal financial or sensitive information; or
exerts high pressure to try to scare you into paying, such as threatening to have you arrested or to report you to a law enforcement agency.
If you think that a caller may be a fake debt collector:
Ask the caller for his name, company, street address, and telephone number. Tell the caller that you refuse to discuss any debt until you get a written "validation notice." The notice must include the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor you owe, and your rights under the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.
If a caller refuses to give you all of this information, do not pay! Paying a fake debt collector will not always make them go away. They may make up another debt to try to get more money from you.

Stop speaking with the caller. If you have the caller's address, send a letter demanding that the caller stop contacting you, and keep a copy for your files. By law, real debt collectors must stop calling you if you ask them to in writing.
Do not give the caller personal financial or other sensitive information. Never give out or confirm personal financial or other sensitive information like your bank account, credit card, or Social Security number unless you know whom you're dealing with. Scam artists, like fake debt collectors, can use your information to commit identity theft – charging your existing credit cards, opening new credit card, checking, or savings accounts, writing fraudulent checks, or taking out loans in your name.
Contact your creditor. If the debt is legitimate – but you think the collector may not be – contact your creditor about the calls. Share the information you have about the suspicious calls and find out who, if anyone, the creditor has authorized to collect the debt.
Report the call. Contact the FTC and your state Attorney General's office with information about suspicious callers. Many states have their own debt collection laws in addition to the federal FDCPA. Your Attorney General's office can help you determine your rights under your state's law.
http://www.consumer.ftc.gov/articles/0258-fake-debt-collectors

This one gave me a migraine yesterday. I ran across a thread with "Global" listed as the DC, and then found all this plus on this company, but found a Global Listed in Florida also.  So, refrained from posting the nitty gritty as I was not able to id which one was really the culprit or if they are related ..

I figured it wouldn't hurt to give the info - it'll give him an starting point on what to do to make sure he's being contacted by a legitimate company or fly-by-night characters.  :)

Never hurts! I think when I looked it up, this post wasn't here yesterday.  Must have been earlier..