Are You Being Called By Presidio Financial, LLC?*

Are you being called by Presidio Financial, LLC?* Here’s what you need to know.

When some people hear the phone ring, they become stressed because they know who is likely calling: a debt collector. Although they want to pay what they owe, their current financial situation makes that impossible, so they put up with threats and intrusive calls, unaware that they legally don’t have to tolerate such abuse.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA), dictates what third-party debt collectors can say or do while attempting to collect a debt. Harassment and abusive tactics like the following are prohibited:

• Using profane and obscene language
• Refusing to provide proof that you owe a debt and they are authorized to collect it
• Pretending to be lawyers or members of law enforcement
• Demanding an amount that is not supported by law or the original debt agreement
• Calling you before 8:00 a.m. and after 9:00 p.m. in your time zone
• Reporting inaccurate information to the credit bureau

Company Profile: Presidio Financial, LLC

If you are being called by Presidio Financial, LLC, information about the company is below.

Presidio Financial, LLC, is a debt collection law firm located in San Francisco, California. It manages the collection and litigation of debt portfolios for national debt buyers. Presidio was established in 2006, has less than 10 employees, and is managed by its CEO, Curtis O. Barnes. Records on file at the PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) website confirm that people who felt they were being harassed by Presidio Financial, LLC sued the agency in response.

Alleged Violations against Presidio Financial, LLC

According to PACER, on May 1, 2013, the Law Office of Curtis O. Barnes sent a California resident a letter that stated, in part,

This law firm has been engaged to file a lawsuit against you in Pennsylvania to recover the obligation you incurred…., referred to above. Please be advised that the lawsuit could result in a judgment against you which could include costs of filing the suit and interest.

In the event a judgment is rendered against you, post-judgment proceedings may be utilized.

The letter, which was later submitted as an exhibit, indicated that the firm’s attorneys were admitted to practice law in California, Ohio, and Colorado. Nothing was said about authority to practice law anywhere else, including Pennsylvania. There was also no action filed against at any time.

Feeling harassed by Presidio Financial, LLC, he hired a consumer attorney and filed a class action suit against the company for allegedly violating the FDCPA in the following ways:

• Using false, deceptive, and misleading means to collect a debt
• Threatening legal action that could not be taken
• Misrepresenting the character, amount, or legal status of the debt

The matter was later settled.

Hire an Attorney

The phone numbers for this collection agency are:

• 1-866-282-7870
• 1-415-733-0000

If you see either of these numbers on your caller ID when the phone rings, it means that you are being called by Presidio Financial, LLC. If they threaten to file a lawsuit against you in an area where they have no authority to do so, hire a consumer attorney. Threatening consumers into paying is illegal under the FDCPA, and if you file a claim against Presidio Financial, LLC with your attorney’s help, you could potentially win $1,000 per violation as well as attorney’s fees, court costs, and any actual damages. No matter how much they want your money, debt collectors must obey federal law when trying to collect it, or risk owing you instead.

*Case taken from PACER (www.pacer.gov). File number is Case 8:14-cv-00468-JVS-AN from the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

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 Presidio Financial, LLC, or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.