Short story: I won a small claims judgment and want this to show up on a person's credit report. I have his SSN. He was a contractor who screwed us. I've tried to locate him to take him and his bond company to Superior Court, but am having no luck (even after "finding" his credit report). So I'm guessing my best chance is to have it show up on his credit report in hopes that it will keep him from getting a loan until he pays me. He owns no property and declared bankruptcy before he screwed us.
Long story: http://www.fatwallet.com/forums/topic.php?catid=52&threadid=813549&highlight_key=y&keyword1=
Can I just contact the credit bureaus? Any advice would be appreciated!
You don't know how many times I've thought of that.
His credit is trashed and I wouldn't get a card with even the worst CC company. All I can hope for at this point is that he gets his act together eventually and goes to apply for a loan and gets turned down until he satisfies the judgment (if that's even possible).
sandmanwake
Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 6:38p
Maybe you should sell his identity to illegal immigrants.
Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 6:44p
beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived).
ArbolLoco
Tired Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 6:44p
you have to pay for access to the credit reports with some special type of terminal software IIRC.
you may want to contact a collection agency and have them do it.
demingy
Senior Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 6:50p
Since he's trashed his credit already and declared bankruptcy, it doesn't sound like adding your judgment to his report would really make a difference. I'd keep trying to take him (and the bond company) to Superior Court.
larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 6:59p
beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
I can't find him, he skipped town without a forwarding address. I have 2 of his credit reports and no current address so I'm out of luck there.
larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
I can't find him, he skipped town without a forwarding address. I have 2 of his credit reports and no current address so I'm out of luck there. Oh, I thought you said you found his address in MS in the previous thread. Did you try zabasearch.com? Assuming bond companies work like I think, I would recommend that rather than try to squeeze blood from a turnip, try to find his address so you can serve him. Can you pay a collection agency to find his address, as you have his SSN?
psu26262
Senior Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 7:35p
My suggestion is to just let it go and get on with your life and believe that karma would hit this guy. He might have skipped country or change his name. But if you really have to do it, you could try to find out if he has a family member (sister, mother,etc) and have collection agency harass them.
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 7:36p
beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
I can't find him, he skipped town without a forwarding address. I have 2 of his credit reports and no current address so I'm out of luck there. Oh, I thought you said you found his address in MS in the previous thread. Did you try zabasearch.com? Assuming bond companies work like I think, I would recommend that rather than try to squeeze blood from a turnip, try to find his address so you can serve him. Can you pay a collection agency to find his address, as you have his SSN?
Is Zabasearch worth the $50 to get his information? Has anyone seen a cheaper way to search public records by SSN? Thanks for that tip, I may use it if I can't find something less expensive. My only concern is that their info is outdated... I see partial addresses - so far, those full addresses are on his credit report. If you've used them, do you know if they refund my fee if I'm not satisfied?
Contact the contracting board whereever he's licensed/bonded and they will give you explicit instuctions on how to go after the bonder. Since you already have a judgement, it's really a paperwork drill. Depending on the amount he owes you, it may or may not be worth hiring a lawyer.
Just a word of advice for others in similar situations, I just went through this process as well. Everyone told me to save the lawyer fees and do it myself. I decided to hire a lawyer anyway, and he found a clerical error that I never would have caught. It resulted in a defaut judgement, all for a total of just over $500. It was the best money I ever spent. I suspect that a lawyer would also have known about the requirement to name the bonder in this case as well.
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 7:43p
psu26262 said: My suggestion is to just let it go and get on with your life and believe that karma would hit this guy. He might have skipped country or change his name. But if you really have to do it, you could try to find out if he has a family member (sister, mother,etc) and have collection agency harass them.
A couple of reasons.... I think he'll do it to other people (if he hasn't already), and It's the principle of the matter.
Plus, I'm bored and being scammed doesn't set right with me.
codename47
Senior Member - 3K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 7:50p
In short, you can't directly make something appear on someone's credit reports. You have to pay to report, and there are account minimums, which are greater than 1.
The flip side is that Lexis Nexis generally report public reports to the consumer reporting agencies.
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived)
larryandsonja said: Is Zabasearch worth the $50 to get his information? Has anyone seen a cheaper way to search public records by SSN? Thanks for that tip, I may use it if I can't find something less expensive. My only concern is that their info is outdated... I see partial addresses - so far, those full addresses are on his credit report. If you've used them, do you know if they refund my fee if I'm not satisfied? Oh, I was only referring to the freely available info on zabasearch.com. I have no idea whether it's worth it to pay $50. Another way you might try getting his address is by trying to get info on his bankruptcy, like from court records or from the bankruptcy trustees. Then again, I really don't know how any of this stuff works, so take my suggestions with a grain of salt.
I'm like you in that if someone wrongs me, I will exert tremendous effort to seek restitution even if the time spent is not "worth" it when you consider how much one's time is worth.
Good luck!
win333
Senior Member - 2K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 8:15p
larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
I can't find him, he skipped town without a forwarding address. I have 2 of his credit reports and no current address so I'm out of luck there.
Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do!
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 8:57p
win333 said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
I can't find him, he skipped town without a forwarding address. I have 2 of his credit reports and no current address so I'm out of luck there.
Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do!
I like your style.
tolamapS
Senior Member - 2K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 9:40p
larryandsonja said: win333 said: Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do! I like your style.
And then, next thing you know, several other creditors are going to appear and start serving papers to your brother.
I don't think your brother thinks he signed up to do this several times
larryandsonja: didn't you post this topic a few weeks / a couple of months ago? If not, someone else had this exact type of questions. Might be useful to search for it, and see what advise was given in that thread.
Good luck.
codename47
Senior Member - 3K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 9:51p
Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do!
Yeah...you'll have your money...but if anyone finds out what you did, here are some terms you should become familiar with: fraud on the court, perjury, fraudulent service, contempt of court.
This is an incredibly bad idea. Just sue the bonding company. That's why they are there.
codename47 said: Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do!
Yeah...you'll have your money...but if anyone finds out what you did, here are some terms you should become familiar with: fraud on the court, perjury, fraudulent service, contempt of court.
This is an incredibly bad idea. Just sue the bonding company. That's why they are there. yep, notwithstanding the serious ethical issues, if you use your brother's address, the bonding company will probably go after the deadbeat at your brother's address, and your fraud will be discovered.
win333
Senior Member - 2K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 10:03p
codename47 said: Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do!
Yeah...you'll have your money...but if anyone finds out what you did, here are some terms you should become familiar with: fraud on the court, perjury, fraudulent service, contempt of court.
This is an incredibly bad idea. Just sue the bonding company. That's why they are there.
sailmaster1955
Senior Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 10:21p
definately get it on his credit report....
he is a contractor and will probably always be one and at some point will want to buy real estate. It might be 10 years from now and you'll get mailed a check from an escrow company.
I've paid off many people by surprise after MANY years when they've come to me for a mortgage and Fannie/Freddie rules require judgements to be paid in full prior to closing. I even had to have this couple pay off a 17K timeshare that was 14 years old one time. Judgements stick. Collection accounts do not.
larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: larryandsonja said: beethovengirl said: Why haven't you been able to collect from the bond company?
Because they insist I take him to Superior Court and name them 2nd in the suit. It's a law in WA State apparently (something I wish I had known when I knew where this scammer lived). Well, I'm not a lawyer, so feel free to totally ignore my advice, but what's stopping you from filing suit in Superior Court? You said in the previous thread that you have his address, so you can serve him. He won't show up, so I imagine the bond company will have to pay. I could be totally wrong, but I thought that's the point of a bond.
If this guy just declared bankruptcy, I can't imagine a judgment on his credit report is going to have much impact.
I can't find him, he skipped town without a forwarding address. I have 2 of his credit reports and no current address so I'm out of luck there.What difference does it make that you cant find him? You're also naming the bonding company, and they can be served. Isnt this (a 'missing' contractor) the whole purpose of the bonding company in the first place? And dont go solely by what they say (claim) - they're trying to avoid paying out a claim, possibly by telling you to jump through more hoops than are really necessary. Consult with a lawyer, because if you do go through Superior Court the finding will force the bonding co to pay out what they should have in the first place, any legal costs should be able to be included in the judgement. A simple letter from a lawyer notifying them of the intent to file suit may even be enough to prompt them to pay the claim.
Or just sell the debt to a collector and be done with it.
Are you sure his 'recent' bankrutcy didnt include the debt owed to you?
And by the way, its illegal for you to be pulling credit reports of someone other than yourself. I wouldnt be mentioning this to anyone if/when you locate him or file the suit......
codename47
Senior Member - 3K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 10:48p
And by the way, its illegal for you to be pulling credit reports of someone other than yourself. I wouldnt be mentioning this to anyone if/when you locate him or file the suit...... Collection is a permissible purpose according to the FCRA.
yep, notwithstanding the serious ethical issues It isn't an ethical thing, it is a legal thing that you will lose badly on.
codename47 said: And by the way, its illegal for you to be pulling credit reports of someone other than yourself. I wouldnt be mentioning this to anyone if/when you locate him or file the suit...... Collection is a permissible purpose according to the FCRA. I doubt a creditor posing as the debtor to get access the report is an acceptable way to exercise this "permissible purpose".
But as the OP didnt state how he actually gained access to the reports, its not a tangent worth going off on.
win333
Senior Member - 2K
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 11:06p
DEADBEATs don't have lawyers!
Has anyone EVER bent the rules or god forbid BROKE THEM!!!
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 22, 2008 @ 11:18p
Relax guys, I wouldn't get anyone to commit fraud and say he's John Doe just to get papers served. I'm trying to do this as legally as possible.
WA state has a law about suing this guy in Superior court with the bond company named as 2nd. That means I have to serve the scammer AND the bond company. RCW 18.27.040 - I looked it up. I wouldn't just take the bond companies word for it.
On a side note, I have contacted several state reps to lobby for a law change. A small claims judgment should be enough to get a bond company to pay up, unfortunately it's not ... yet.
There are a lot of services which promise a name and birthday if I punch in a SSN, are they legit? I may have found this scammer's wife. Maybe that's one way to locate him. If she has everything in her name because he's hiding ..... the rest is history.
Kanosh
Senior Member - 1K
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 4:43a
Have your BROTHER served and when they knock on the door, have your BRO answer as your deadbeat. Then the cop will swear he served your deadbeat and your deadbeat won't show up to court. By the time anyone even almost even had a thought about what happened, you'd have your money.
You gotta do what you gotta do!Reading idiotic "advice" like this again reminds us why we should not seek serious legal advice on an internet forum. No, filing false service and lying to a policeman or process server is not the way to handle this.
As someone else said, the licensing agency can probably tell you exactly how to sue this guy. Usually, you serve him at his "last known address". He doesn't forward his mail? Fine. If you succeed in collecting a judgement against this guy you can bet he'll suddenly appear if only to counter-sue you.
sfhondapilot
Cranky Member
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 7:57a
larryandsonja said: Relax guys, I wouldn't get anyone to commit fraud and say he's John Doe just to get papers served. I'm trying to do this as legally as possible.
WA state has a law about suing this guy in Superior court with the bond company named as 2nd. That means I have to serve the scammer AND the bond company. RCW 18.27.040 - I looked it up. I wouldn't just take the bond companies word for it.
Have you engaged a lawyer? What does WA law state if the defendant cannot be located? Notice via publication?
larryandsonja
Thrifty Member
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 12:46p
sfhondapilot said: larryandsonja said: Relax guys, I wouldn't get anyone to commit fraud and say he's John Doe just to get papers served. I'm trying to do this as legally as possible.
WA state has a law about suing this guy in Superior court with the bond company named as 2nd. That means I have to serve the scammer AND the bond company. RCW 18.27.040 - I looked it up. I wouldn't just take the bond companies word for it.
Have you engaged a lawyer? What does WA law state if the defendant cannot be located? Notice via publication?
Hmmm, I think WA allows that. I'll have to check into it. Thanks for the tip!
Oh and I've called many lawyers, they're not interested. The original judgment was for $1400, I could go for 3 times the amount in Superior Court (Consumer Protection Act), but it's still not enough to cover what a lawyer thinks he's worth for the trouble. I'm on my own here.
My guess is that you will have to pay an attorney at least $500 just to have them file paperwork for you.
If it were me, I would go ahead and file the suit. Ask the court if the bond company has to go to court if the person cannot be located.
BTW..... You should be doing this. I am glad to see someone take a stand. This guy deserves what is coming his way. What a bum.
sfhondapilot
Cranky Member
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 2:18p
larryandsonja said:
Hmmm, I think WA allows that. I'll have to check into it. Thanks for the tip!
Oh and I've called many lawyers, they're not interested. The original judgment was for $1400, I could go for 3 times the amount in Superior Court (Consumer Protection Act), but it's still not enough to cover what a lawyer thinks he's worth for the trouble. I'm on my own here.
My only other suggestion would be to google "skip tracers", possibly adding WA into the search equation.
codename47
Senior Member - 3K
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 2:26p
My guess is that you will have to pay an attorney at least $500 just to have them file paperwork for you. It will probably cost you 2-300 to file at least, so why not do it on your own? I am thinking that if you have a judgment, why not try to use that as the basis to go after the company's bond?
Lawyers aren't going to be interested in most consumer problems, and you are most often on your own. Get used to it.
ifyouhavetoask
Senior Member - 1K
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 3:01p
You're doing all this because of $800?
You've wasted $1,600 worth of time trying to collect $800.
Even if you get the money, you still lose.
A smart businessman/woman knows when to take a loss and move on. Be one of those.
Being a smart businessman/woman has very little to do with revenge or justice. Those are quaint notions, best reserved for ex husbands or wives
Not necessarily true that it's not "worth it". In my case, I got a judgemement for a whole lot more, but I was primarily interested in getting a documented judgement. I later used this to help prove a criminal prosecution against him. My main concern was helping to ensure that he didn't stick it to anyone else, but I got some satisfaction as well. Overall, I got:
a 20k+ judgement against him
His state license revoked
Criminal charges filed against him
His name and business publicized as deadbeats
He pled guilty to 2 counts of felony contracting fraud and is currently sitting in jail.
gosocks
Senior Member
posted: Apr. 23, 2008 @ 10:17p
I don't think I understand. You can't sue him again. You already sued him and won. The issue has already been adjudicated. Of course the bond company is going to make you go through more hoops...but in reality you have already done all that you need to as far as getting a judgement and now it the time to go after the bond company if they refuse to pay.
win333
Senior Member - 2K
posted: Apr. 24, 2008 @ 12:58a
ifyouhavetoask said: You're doing all this because of $800?
You've wasted $1,600 worth of time trying to collect $800.
Even if you get the money, you still lose.
A smart businessman/woman knows when to take a loss and move on. Be one of those.
Being a smart businessman/woman has very little to do with revenge or justice. Those are quaint notions, best reserved for ex husbands or wives
WOW I finally agree with you, I bet you make a great EX-wife
But yes, the OP has wasted way to much time on this! I have atleast 50,000 that deadbeat tenants owe me, I'd go crazy trying to collect it all.
Oh wait a minute, I'm the person who DOESN"T RESPECT SERVICE!!!!! I guess I am crazy
The REBEL
PS you guys stay middle class and sleep well knowing that you stand for "justice and the American way". I just count my money til I fall asleep. Needless to say, I have my service done by a family member Because EVERYONE knows when the sherriff knocks on the door EVERY deadbeat tenant will answer it!!! RIGHT!!! Wake up and smell the coffee!!!
My EX had a PI serve me, he threw the papers on the ground at my last known address. What could I do about it but show up to court.
Skipping 19 Messages...
ClaimsGuy
Senior Member
posted: May. 22, 2008 @ 7:46a
larryandsonja said: fasttimes said: How is the bond company liable for triple damages?
In WA state, there is something called the Consumer Protection Act (RCW 19.86.090) which states that one could sue for treble damages if a business willfully takes advantage of a consumer. I have to sue this scammer 1st and name the bond company 2nd. They'll end up paying the tab because this guy is a loser.
The bond may have an exclusion for fraud. You'll get your economic damages from them but they will not cover fraud, punitive damages, exemplary damages or treble damages and you will still be stuck trying to recover those from the deadbeat.
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