Are You Being Called By Adler Wallach & Associates?*

Have you been harassed by a debt collector? Have they called your family to say that you owe money, sworn at you in person or via voicemail, or threatened you with lawsuits and wage garnishment if you didn’t pay immediately?

This conduct is illegal, so your next step should be to retain a consumer lawyer who will help you seek compensation.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, or FDCPA, protects consumers from being bullied and intimidated into ill-health or bankruptcy when they cannot afford to pay a debt. Any third-party collection agency that subjects you to the following can be sued and ordered to compensate you.

• Contacting you directly when they know that you have a consumer attorney
• Maliciously reporting incorrect information to the credit bureaus
• Chasing you for a debt that isn’t yours
• Contacting anyone except you, your spouse, or attorney about the debt
• Calling you names and asking why you don’t pay your bills
• Calling you outside the hours of 8:00 a.m to 9:00 p.m. in your time zone

Company Profile: Adler Wallach & Associates

If you are being called by Adler Wallach & Associates, here is a general company overview.

Adler Wallach & Associates, which also does business as AWA Collections, is a debt collection agency located in Orange, California with a branch office in Dickson, Tennessee. It was founded in 1993, has 153 employees, and is managed by its President, Allan Adler.

It has an F rating with the Better Business Bureau. Litigation files at the PACER website reveal that consumers who believed they were being harassed by Adler Wallach & Associates stood up for themselves in court.

Alleged Violations against Adler Wallach & Associates

According to PACER, on or around May 25, 2011, Adler Wallach & Associates sent a collection letter to a Florida consumer. It allegedly did not include the required disclosures regarding her dispute rights, and was not followed by a debt validation letter.

This letter identified the agency’s client as “CHASE TEST ACCOUNTS” but another letter sent on June 24 gave the name of the original creditor as “JP MORGAN CHASE.”

On August 29, 2011, the consumer sent a dispute letter to the agency and demanded validation of the debt. Despite receipt of the written dispute and demand for validation, the agency sent another letter dated September 15, 2011, in which it demanded payment but failed to validate the alleged debt.

Feeling harassed by Adler Wallach & Associates, the consumer hired an attorney and sued the agency for allegedly:

• Misrepresenting the character, amount, or legal status of the debt
• Failing to send a debt validation letter
• Using false, deceptive, and misleading means to collect a debt

The matter was later settled.

Hire a Consumer Lawyer

The phone numbers for Adler Wallach & Associates are:

• 1-714-771-3690
• 1-714-771-5453
• 1-866-260-3631
• 1-888-771-3690

If you see any of them on your caller ID, at any time, it means that Adler Wallach & Associates is calling you. If they send collection letters that fail to clarify the name of the original creditor and ignore a written dispute, don’t put up with it.

Hire a consumer lawyer and file a claim against Adler Wallach & Associates. You could receive $1,000 per FDCPA violation, so when a debt collector goes too far, go after the compensation you deserve.

Additional Resources

• Is a Debt Collector Calling at Odd Hours?
• Debt Collectors Ignored Written Request?

Case taken from PACER (www.pacer.gov). File number is Case 1:12-cv-00111-SPM-GRJ from the United States District Court for the Northern District of Florida, Gainesville Division.

*Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be constructed as legal advice. If you file a claim against Adler Wallach & Associates, or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.