Who is Meade & Associates?
Meade & Associates, Inc. is a third-party collection agency located in Lewis Center, Ohio. Their client base includes:
- colleges & universities
- commercial debt
- banking institutions
- service providers
- utilities
- veterinarians
You may see Meade & Associates listed on your credit report as a collections account. This can happen when you forget to pay a bill.
How can I remove Meade & Associates from my credit report?
Meade & Associates collections can hurt your credit score and remain on your credit report for up to seven years regardless of whether you pay it or not. Unfortunately, paying the collection could even lower your credit score.
However, it is possible to remove a collection account from your credit history before seven years.
(Debt collectors prefer that we didn’t tell you this, but it’s something you should know.)
Lexington Law Firm is a credit repair company that helps people fix their credit.
In addition to collections, Lexington Law can also help you remove other inaccurate information such as inquiries, late payments, charge-offs, foreclosures, repossessions, judgments, liens, and bankruptcies from your credit report.
Call Lexington Law now to learn more: (800) 220-0084
Meade & Associates, Inc. Contact Information
Address:
Meade & Associates, Inc.
737 Enterprise Drive
Lewis Center, OH 43035
Website: https://www.meadeandassociates.com
Phone number: (800) 686-3233 or (614) 436-6160
Should I contact or pay Meade & Associates, Inc.?
Nothing good can come from speaking to a collection agency on the phone. And making payments on the collection account will reset the clock. So instead of helping your credit, it could make it worse. Of course, there are times when it’s best to just pay the collection account, especially if it’s new and you’re sure that it’s legit.
The best way to handle this is to work with a professional credit repair service. They have deleted millions of negative items from companies like Meade and Associates for millions of clients nationwide.
And they can help you too.
Will Meade & Associates, Inc. sue me or garnish my wages?
In their attempt to collect a debt, a collection agency may resort to litigation. However, if you work with a law firm like Lexington Law, you have nothing to worry about. They will help you dispute the collection account and possibly remove it from your credit report. It’s also quite possible that you will never hear from or have to deal with Meade and Associates again.
Call Lexington Law to learn how they can help you avoid lawsuits and remove negative items from your credit report that will significantly improve your credit scores.
Wage Garnishment
Some states allow wage garnishment, while others do not. It is important to note that if you are in a state that does not allow wage garnishment, it is illegal for a debt collector to threaten to garnish your wages.
It is also illegal for Meade and Associates to make any claims they cannot or will not follow through on – this includes threatening to sue you or foreclose on your home.
Meade & Associates, Inc. Complaints
Most collection agencies have numerous complaints filed against them with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) and the Better Business Bureau (BBB). Most consumer complaints are about inaccurate reporting, harassment, or failure to verify a debt. If a debt collector is harassing you, you may want to consider filing a complaint.
You have many consumer rights under the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FCRA) and the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Lexington Law knows that you have rights, and Meade and Associates does too.
How Collections Affect Your Credit
Missed payments over several months will cause a hit to your credit score. With a collection account on your credit report, it will reduce your ability to qualify for new credit even more.
Debt collectors often buy and sell debt from one another, so this can lead to multiple collections showing on your credit reports for the same account.
When this happens, if you don’t dispute the accounts with the credit bureaus and get them all removed, they will harm your credit score.
Your Rights When Dealing with Meade & Associates, Inc.
There are strict regulations about what a debt collector can and cannot do in the United States. For example, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act prevents the use of abusive or deceptive tactics to collect a debt. In addition, the FDCPA provides you with many rights to ensure that collection agencies don’t take advantage of you. In particular:
- It is a violation of federal law for Meade & Associates to report inaccurate or incomplete information on your credit report.
- You have a legal right to request debt validation on an alleged debt. Send the collection agency a debt validation letter. By law, they have 30 days to prove to you that the debt is really yours and the total amount is accurate.
- Meade & Associates may not threaten or harass you, call you repeatedly, swear at you, or publicly publish a list of debtors.
- Meade & Associates must be honest about who they are and what they are attempting to do. They must notify you that they are a collection agency both orally and in writing.
- Meade & Associates cannot threaten to have you arrested, and they are not allowed to threaten to take legal action if they have no intention of doing so.
More Tips on Dealing with Meade & Associates, Inc.
Avoid the phone. NEVER talk to a debt collector on the phone. The less they know about you, the better.
Politely tell Meade & Associates it’s your policy to deal with everything in writing. Request a letter with the original debt information and then hang up. If they keep calling, send them a cease & desist letter.
Record their phone calls. If you must deal with a debt collection agency on the phone, record them. Thirty-five states and the District of Columbia allow you to record your phone conversations secretly.
In the other 15 states, you can record with the other party’s permission. If you tell the debt collector you are going to record, and they keep talking, that’s considered giving permission. They will usually hang up.
Don’t believe what they say. Debt collectors are known to make false threats, lie, and tell you whatever they need to tell you to get you to pay the debt.
Don’t attempt to hide money. Hiding money or assets from a legitimate debt collector is illegal if you owe them. However, it’s also best to avoid giving access to your bank account or credit card information.
Don’t apply for new lines of credit. It’s also considered fraudulent to apply for new lines of credit if you are unable to pay your current creditors.
Don’t ignore them. You can do things on your terms, but ignoring the situation will not make Meade & Associates go away. Ignoring them sets you up for a possible lawsuit.
Know Your State’s Statute of Limitations. Each state has a statute of limitations on debt. Once your debt reaches a certain age, it is considered “zombie debt,” and you are no longer legally obligated to pay it. The age limit varies from state to state, but it’s typically around 4-6 years.
A collection agency is still allowed to contact you about these debts, but they can no longer sue you for them, and you are not required to pay them.
Remove Meade & Associates from Your Credit Report Today!
Lexington Law specializes in disputing Meade & Associates collection accounts. They have over 18 years of experience and have removed over 7 million negative items for their clients in 2020 alone.
If you’re looking for a reputable company to help you with collection accounts and repair your credit, we highly recommend Lexington Law.
Call them at (800) 220-0084 for a free credit consultation. They have helped many people in your situation and have paralegals standing by waiting to take your call.
