Arbor Professional Solutions or APS is a debt collection agency is bound by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Learn more about the company and how you can stop harassing debt collection calls.
Arbor Professional Solutions or APS is a legitimate third-party debt collection agency based in Michigan. Arbor Professional Solutions has received consumer complaints alleging violations of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), such as failing to verify debts and using false or misleading information in an effort to collect a debt. If you have been contacted by Arbor Professional Solutions, make sure you understand your rights before you take action.
According to its website, Arbor Professional Solutions was formerly known as Ann Arbor Credit Bureau. Arbor Professional Solutions “provides a full range of debt recovery options and services to meet a wide range of business needs.” Arbor Professional Solutions employs an “expert, professional staff” and “proven collection strategies” to obtain the maximum recovery of debt on behalf of its clients. In addition to flat-rate fees, Arbor Professional Solutions utilizes a contingency fee structure. This means that Arbor Professional Solutions is highly motivated to collect the maximum amount possible because it receives its compensation based on a percentage of the amount it collects.
Arbor Professional Solutions boasts that it has developed a “highly effective debt recovery process that delivers exceptional results to” its clients. Once an account is received, Arbor Professional Solutions immediately reports the debtor to the national credit bureaus in order to prevent individual debtors from obtaining future lines of credit until the debt is paid in full. Next, Arbor Professional Solutions continues its collection activities through the use of letters and phone calls to the debtor seeking payment in full. If an individual is unable to pay, Arbor Professional Solutions promises to take legal action, which could lead to an interest-accruing judgment and future wage garnishments against the debtor
Arbor Professional Solutions accepts delinquent accounts from any type of business or industry. However, they specialize in collecting debts for medical and healthcare service providers, dental practices, ambulance companies, municipal and other government agencies, rental property management companies, and education lenders.
As a third-party debt collection agency, Arbor Professional Solutions is required to adhere to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), a federal law that protects consumers from abusive debt collection tactics. Nevertheless, consumers have filed complaints accusing Arbor Professional Solutions of violating the FDCPA. Those accusations have included claims that the debt collection agency has threatened to sue consumers without actually intending to do so and talking to third parties about consumers’ debts. It’s imperative that you know your rights under the law before speaking with Arbor Professional Solutions debt collectors.
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Arbor Professional Solutions is not accredited by the Better Business Bureau (BBB), which issued Arbor Professional Solutions a “A” rating, despite the presence of three complaints against Arbor Professional Solutions in the past three years, none of which have been resolved. Two of these complaints contained allegations related to Arbor Professional Solutions’ billing and collections practices, while the remaining complaint contained allegations related to Arbor Professional Solutions’ services. Since July 2013, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) has received 47 complaints against Arbor Professional Solutions. 44 of these complaints contained allegations related to Arbor Professional Solutions’ debt collection practices, while the remaining complaints alleged problems with Arbor Professional Solutions’ credit reporting practices. In addition, Justia, one of the largest online legal databases in the United States, lists at least eight federal cases of civil litigation involving Arbor Professional Solutions
Are you asking yourself…
Arbor Professional Solutions could be calling for a number of reasons, all of them related to debt collection:
If you’ve been contacted by APS it’s important to know your rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. If they’ve violated your rights, you can take the agency to court and sue for statutory damages of up to $1,000 – along with court costs and attorney fees.
First you can write a cease and desist letter. Explain to Arbor Professional Solutions that they have the wrong person and insist that they stop calling you. Make sure to send your letter via certified mail with a return receipt requested. If debt collectors from APS persist in calling you, make sure to keep a log. Note the date and time of each call, the name of the debt collector, and what was said. Under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, debt collectors, who violate the law, must pay consumers up to one thousand, dollars plus attorney’s fees. A fair debt attorney can represent you at no charge, and can readily evaluate your case. It’s also important to file complaints with the Better Business Bureau and with the Federal Trade Commission.
No. If you’ve been contacted by APS, you have the right to sue them in federal court if the debt collection agency has violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Signs that you may be on solid legal footing are:
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act was put into law in order to protect consumers like you, but there’s a catch. While the government sues debt collection agencies that egregiously violate the law, it doesn’t sue agencies on behalf of individual consumers. Instead, the FDCPA has what’s called a fee-shifting provision. This means that, if you sue and win, then the debt collection agency has to pay your court costs and attorney fees. Fee-shifting levels the playing field so that you can assert your rights.
Yes. Arbor Professional Solutions can sue you if you owe the debt, however, threatening to sue or serve you with papers if they don’t intend to do so is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. Additionally, after receiving the first collection notice, you have 30 days to dispute the debt. If you dispute the debt, then APS is required by the FDCPA to prove that you do, in fact, owe the money. A debt collection agency isn’t allowed to sue you if, for example, the debt is past the statute of limitations or if you do not legally owe the debt. It’s a good idea to speak with a fair debt attorney if you’ve been served with a summons or legal complaint.
Yes. However, Arbor Professional Solutions cannot threaten you to garnish your wages and garnishment can only only occur if APS files a lawsuit and obtains a judgment against you. It’s common for consumers to ignore notice of a lawsuit; if you don’t appear in court, the judge may automatically rule against you. Debt collection agencies have been known to avoid serving consumers with notice to increase the odds of obtaining a judgment. This is called “sewer service” or “gutter service.” The bottom line? If wage garnishment takes you by surprise, talk to a consumer attorney who can fight for your rights.
Yes. Arbor Professional Solutions can report debts in collection to the three major credit reporting agencies – Experian, TransUnion, and Equifax. Once a debt is reported to the credit bureaus, it will appear on your credit report and will impact your credit score.
Yes. However, as with wage garnishment, a property lien can only arise out of a court judgment against you. If APS files a lawsuit against you and the judge rules in their favor, then the debt collection agency has a right to collect that money. One way of doing that is by putting a lien on your house or property. That’s why it’s imperative to respond to legal papers and to have an attorney by your side who will fight on your behalf.
Yes, Arbor Professional Solutions can call you at work however there are strict limits about what APS can say or ask about you if they are calling your at your place of employment. If you want them to stop calling your job, you should tell them not to and you say that your employer either doesn’t allow those types of calls or it’s inconvenient for you. If they keep calling after you have made this request, it’s actually a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act for them to continue to call you. These laws prevent calls to work when you’ve told them not to, so it’s important to make that clear to the debt collector calling you. Take the date, and time, and the name of the person that you spoke with when you asked them not to call at work and then consult with an attorney about your rights
Yes. Again however, there would be strict limits to what they can say. It would be illegal, for example, if APS called your family and discussed your debt with them. It might be easier to say that the ONLY reason a debt collector can contact your family is to obtain or confirm your location information so that they may contact you. That is the only exception to the law regarding third party contact. Collection calls are annoying enough, but when a collector is calling your friends, family, co-workers or place of employment and discloses information about your finances, the annoyance can quickly turn into harassment. Under federal law, debt collectors cannot discuss your debts with your children, roommates, and in many states, even your spouse.
No. Arbor Professional Solutions – or any other debt collection agency like APS for that matter – has no authority whatsoever to arrest you. In fact, threatening you with arrest or jail is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. While so-called “debtors prisons” are illegal, only non-payment of things like traffic tickets can lead a judge to issue a bench warrant, which in turn can lead to arrest.
Yes. You can sue Arbor Professional Solutions if you believe APS violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. The FDCPA says that debt collection agencies that violate the law must pay consumers up to $1,000 in statutory damages, as well as court costs and attorney fees. That’s why engaging a fair debt attorney to represent you in an FDCPA lawsuit typically doesn’t cost you anything out of pocket. The attorney that agrees to take on your case knows that the debt collection agency will be forced to pay their fees.
If Arbor Professional Solutions – or any other debt collection agency – is calling you to the point of harassment, using abusive or profane language, or violating the FDCPA in some other way, it’s time to fight back. Under the law, you may be entitled to up to $1,000. At Lemberg Law, we won’t charge you a dime out of pocket, and we only get paid when you win. Call us today for a free, no-obligation, case evaluation. We’ll get the justice that you deserve.
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