Are You Being Called By Valer Enterprises, Inc.?*

You don’t have to put up with abuse! If Valer is calling and harassing you, fight back!

Many of us have missed the odd credit card or utility payment, and in most cases creditors are cooperative about letting us making up the arrears. It is when several payments are missed due to financial difficulties that debt collectors get involved.

While many of them are willing to work with you, others can be so aggressive and rude that you want to declare bankruptcy.

Your Rights Under the FDCPA

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) regulates the ways that third-party debt collectors may collect a consumer debt. Passed by Congress in 1977 in response to growing complaints about predatory collection practices, it prohibits collection tactics like the following.

• Using profane and obscene language
• Threatening action they cannot legally take or have no intention of taking
• Claiming that you can be arrested, have your assets seized, or have your wages garnished for nonpayment
• Calling your friends, neighbors, and co-workers and telling them that you owe a debt
• Reporting inaccurate information to the credit bureaus
• Trying to collect after you have formally disputed a debt

Company Profile: Valer Enterprises, Inc.

If you are being called by Valer Enterprises, Inc., information about the company is below.
Valer Enterprises, Inc. is a debt collection company located in Holbrook, New York. It was established in 1975, has 11-50 employees, and is managed by its President, Michael Ashkenas.

It is a smaller agency that collects both retail and commercial debt for clients that vary in size from small businesses to Fortune 500 companies.

A review of records retained by the PACER (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) website confirms that people who believed that they were being harassed by Valer Enterprises, Inc. sued the agency for compensation.

Alleged Violations by Valer Enterprises, Inc.

Howard Schuster, on behalf of himself individually and all others similarly situated vs. Valer Enterprises, Inc.**

According to PACER, on or around December 1, 2006, Valer Enterprises, Inc. sent a collection letter to New York resident Howard Schuster. The letter, which was later presented as an exhibit in a court action, allegedly did not contain the required ‘warning’ that it had been sent by a debt collector and any information obtained would be used for that purpose.

One line also read as follows:
“This office previously wrote to you with regard to your past due balance. To date, we have not had the courtesy of a reply from you.”

Feeling harassed by Valer Enterprises, Inc., Mr. Schuster hired a consumer attorney and sued the company for allegedly violating the FDCPA in the following ways:

• Using false, deceptive, and misleading means to collect a debt
• Using abusive and insulting language

The matter was later dismissed.

Hire an Attorney

The phone numbers for this debt collection agency are as follows:

• 1-631-472-6300
• 1-888-825-3736

If a call comes in and you see these numbers on your caller ID, be aware that you are being called by Valer Enterprises, Inc. If Valer sends collection letters that have a condescending tone and fail to contain the required ‘mini-Miranda’, hire a consumer attorney who can help you file a claim against the company.

You could be awarded $1,000 per FDCPA violation as well as your court costs and attorney fees, so when a collection agency disregards your rights, don’t hesitate to stand up for yourself.

**Case taken from PACER (www.pacer.gov). File number is Case 2:07-cv-04712-LDW-MLO from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of New York.

*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 Valer Enterprises, Inc. or any other third-party collection agency, you may not be entitled to any compensation.