Is General Revenue Corporation Calling You?*

If General Revenue Corporation is harassing you, you can fight back against debt collector harassment!

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is a federal law that prevents debt collectors from using deceptive, abusive, and unethical practices to obtain money.

What is the FDCPA?

The FDCPA also requires collection agencies to identify themselves and provide particulars about the debt when asked. Consumers also have the right to demand proof that a debt is valid and dispute anything they don’t believe they owe.

Additionally, debt collectors are not allowed to:

• Call before 8:00 a.m., after 9:00 p.m., or at work unless given permission to do so
• Contact consumers who have requested in writing that they stop
• Contact consumers who have advised that they are represented by an attorney
• Advise uninvolved third parties about the debt
• Use abusive language or make threats
• Threaten consumers with arrest, violence, incarceration, etc.

Who is General Revenue Corporation?

General Revenue Corporation is a collection agency based in Cincinnati, Ohio, and has over 1300 employees. They are a wholly owned subsidiary of Navient Corporation, a student loan provider. Their area of expertise is defaulted student loans, although they do deal with regular consumer debts as well. Frequent complaints have been made that accuse General Revenue Corporation of unethical debt collection practices. The Better Business Bureau’s website* indicates that 89 complaints have been lodged against them in the last three years.

According to PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records), several consumers pursued their complaints in the courtroom.

Alleged Complaints Against General Revenue Corporation

Between May 23, 2011 and June 6, 2012, General Revenue Corporation sent a series of collection notices to consumers who had allegedly defaulted on their student loans. The plaintiff, a Minnesota resident who had taken out a loan from Citibank around 2007, received one of these letters and initiated a class action lawsuit on behalf of herself and anyone who received a letter.

The plaintiff claimed that General Revenue Corporation’s letter misstated the amount of time available to request a review of the student loan debt. Her attorney also accused the agency of multiple breaches of FDCPA, 15 U.S.C. §1692, including:

• Falsely stating that a defaulted student loan borrower only has 30 days to request an administrative review of the enforceability or delinquent status of his or her account when federal law allows for 60 days
• Failing to identify the school that the consumer took out the loan to attend when federal law requires such information to be included
• Failing to explain how the costs are calculated
• Failing to explain how to access records regarding the loan

The matter was later settled.

How Can You Get General Revenue To Stop Calling?

If you receive a call from 800-347-8209, be aware that General Revenue Corporation is probably trying to collect payments on an alleged student loan or consumer debt default. Any written communications should be carefully examined for factual errors, as such alleged inaccuracies formed the foundation of Bible vs. General Revenue Corporation. One of the best ways to make sure that debt collectors stop any harassment is to get legal representation.

You can find out about how a lawyer can help stop debt collector harassment here:

• How Can an Attorney Help Stop Collector Harassment?

Request written confirmation proving that you in fact owe the money, and why. Failure to provide you with these particulars within five (5) days is a violation of the FDCPA.

So is abusive, deceptive, or obstructive behavior: debt collectors may not threaten to garnish your wages, send you to jail, or refuse to identify themselves or disclose information about the debt to you.

If you believe that you are being harassed, contact an attorney who specializes in FDCPA matters, as you may be eligible for compensation of $1000 per FDCPA violation, plus additional damages for any suffering you experience.

**Case taken from PACER (www.pacer.gov). File number is 0:12-cv-01236-RHK-JSM, from United States District Court, District of Minnesota.

*Better Business Bureau information taken from: www.bbb.org/cincinnati/business-reviews/collections-agencies/general-revenue-corporation-in-mason-oh-3597/reviews-and-complaints?section=complaints

Disclaimer: The content of this article serves only to provide information and should not be construed as legal advice. If you file a claim against General Revenue Corporation or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.

Helpful Resources

How Should I Start a Claim against General Revenue Corp.?*
Starting a Claim Against a Collection Agency