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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Aug 2019
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    5

    Default Problems with Fiserv

    I recently joined a new bank, but the bank couldn't figure out why my bill pay didn't work. Eventually, I was referred to Fiserv Collections. I provided my name, zip code, DOB, etc., etc., and I was told that there were no barriers to using the bill pay system. So, they sent me over to customer service. After a bit, customer service sent me back to their collections department. They are seeking $135.77 for a debt allegedly incurred on February 23, 2004 in the state of California. At the time the debt was allegedly incurred, I was residing in Peru. I have now been residing in Utah county, Utah for two years.

    I was told that if I wished to have bill pay turned on, I would have to pay $135.77. The statute of limitations in California is 4 years. In Utah it is 6. Either way, the statute of limitations is more than double up.

    It seems that the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act offers no help because Fiserv is, at least allegedly, the initial creditor. Accordingly, I am looking into California law for remedies that may make this alleged debt go away. Does anyone have any insight?

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
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    18,340

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    A statute of limitations is a deadline for filing a lawsuit. It is not a deadline for collecting a debt. A creditor can, theoretically, attempt to collect a debt for the rest of your life by continuing to ask for it as long as the creditor doesn't violate any fair credit laws.

    California has it's own Fair Debt Collections Practices Act that does apply to the original creditor as well as collection agencies:

    http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...pter=&article=

    However, I don't see anything in the prohibited acts that prevents a creditor from saying "You want something from me, you pay what you owe."

    If you cannot convince the creditor that you don't owe the $135.77 and don't want to pay it then the ability to use bill pay is not in your future and you'll have to pay your bills by writing checks or using your credit card and paying your credit card bill in full to avoid paying outrageous interest rates.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
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    8,238

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Quote Quoting Zosimus
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    The statute of limitations in California is 4 years. In Utah it is 6. Either way, the statute of limitations is more than double up.
    The statute of limitations (SOL) is simply a defense available to you should the creditor sue you on the debt. Be aware that under the laws of at least some states the SOL does get extended for the time you are living outside the state. So depending on the facts here it may be that the SOL is still open, e.g. if you were in Peru from 2004 until 2 years ago.

    Because the SOL is irrelevant outside a lawsuit, a creditor may refuse to provide you services until you pay a debt you owe to the creditor even if the SOL has expired. So if you want the service from the creditor, you have to pay up. Your other choice is to find some other company to provide the service you want.


    Quote Quoting Zosimus
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    It seems that the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act offers no help because Fiserv is, at least allegedly, the initial creditor. Accordingly, I am looking into California law for remedies that may make this alleged debt go away. Does anyone have any insight?
    You live in Utah, so it is Utah law on debt collection that would apply, not California. It does not matter where the creditor is based; it matters where the debtor is located. It appears that Utah does not have its own law regulating debt collection that is analogous to the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) or the California version of the FDCPA. That means that if this company is indeed the original creditor and the FDCPA does not apply then there isn't any particular restriction on what the creditor may do to collect the debt.

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Mar 2013
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    18,340

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Quote Quoting Taxing Matters
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    You live in Utah,

    Oy, missed that.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Oct 2006
    Posts
    16,474

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Quote Quoting adjusterjack
    View Post
    A statute of limitations is a deadline for filing a lawsuit. It is not a deadline for collecting a debt. A creditor can, theoretically, attempt to collect a debt for the rest of your life by continuing to ask for it as long as the creditor doesn't violate any fair credit laws.

    California has it's own Fair Debt Collections Practices Act that does apply to the original creditor as well as collection agencies:

    http://leginfo.legislature.ca.gov/fa...pter=&article=

    However, I don't see anything in the prohibited acts that prevents a creditor from saying "You want something from me, you pay what you owe."

    If you cannot convince the creditor that you don't owe the $135.77 and don't want to pay it then the ability to use bill pay is not in your future and you'll have to pay your bills by writing checks or using your credit card and paying your credit card bill in full to avoid paying outrageous interest rates.
    Most bills can be paid online using a debit card. However, one thing that confuses me about this, I was not aware that there were any connections between a specific bank's online banking, where you can pay bills, and this FISERV. They provide technology to banks. I do not see how they can prevent banks from issuing electronic checks.

  6. #6
    Join Date
    Oct 2014
    Posts
    8,238

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Quote Quoting llworking
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    I do not see how they can prevent banks from issuing electronic checks.
    If the company is providing the service for the bank and the contract with the bank allows the company to refuse to process a transaction where the originator of the transaction owes money to the company then it certainly could refuse to provide the service.

  7. #7
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
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    2,745

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Quote Quoting Zosimus
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    I recently joined a new bank, but the bank couldn't figure out why my bill pay didn't work. Eventually, I was referred to Fiserv Collections.
    This doesn't make a lot of sense. When you wrote that you "joined a . . . bank," I assume that means you opened a bank account. However, why would the "bill pay" not working result in you being referred to what I assume is a collection agency. Assuming "my bill pay" refers to the bank's online bill payment service, one would expect that the "bill pay" not working would be handled by the bank's IT staff, not a collection agency.


    Quote Quoting Zosimus
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    They are seeking $135.77 for a debt allegedly incurred on February 23, 2004 in the state of California.
    Who are "they"?


    Quote Quoting Zosimus
    View Post
    I was told that if I wished to have bill pay turned on, I would have to pay $135.77. The statute of limitations in California is 4 years. In Utah it is 6. Either way, the statute of limitations is more than double up.
    A statute of limitations is a law that provides how long after the accrual of a cause of action a person has to file a civil lawsuit. It has nothing to do with the situation you have described. Let's say you and I went to high school together (30+ years ago) and you crashed my car and never paid for it. I'm now in the landscaping business and you want to hire me to landscape your backyard. After I come out to your home for an estimate and realize who you are, I decline to do anything more than mow your lawn. The statute of limitations has LONG since run, but it has nothing to do with my willingness to do business with you.

    And, even if the statute of limitations were relevant, when you're out of the state, the statute stops running.


    Quote Quoting Zosimus
    View Post
    It seems that the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act offers no help because Fiserv is, at least allegedly, the initial creditor. Accordingly, I am looking into California law for remedies that may make this alleged debt go away. Does anyone have any insight?
    Nothing other than payment will "make this alleged debt go away," and neither the FDCPA nor the California analog have any application to this situation. If you want to use this particular bank's bill pay service, then it looks like you're going to have to cough up the $135.77. Otherwise, find a different bank.

  8. #8
    Join Date
    Aug 2019
    Posts
    5

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Okay, perhaps I haven't provided enough context.

    In 2002, I purchased a vehicle from a dealer, and that dealer financed me through Premier America Credit Union in Chatsworth, CA. Subsequently, I began to bank there and began using their bill pay system, which was provided by Fiserv. In 2003, I totaled the car and ended upside down on the loan. I also lost two lawsuits related to real estate. I can only say this: Don't rely on the insurance provided by your HOA. Always have your own insurance policy because, at the very least, it will hire an attorney for you.

    So, in late 2003, I filed chapter 7 bankruptcy. Premier America hired an attorney to dispute the bankruptcy and recover some amount because I had used the credit card within the past 30 days of filing bankruptcy. The company figured I would be easy prey because I hadn't used an attorney to do the chapter 7 filing. But, I filed a motion to dismiss, and Premier America found itself paying for an attorney and losing most of the gains they hoped to make. So, we settled the amount in November.

    But, the whole time, Premier America was hounding me for payments on the discharged car loan. Every time I used the ATM machine, it would ask me to make a payment. Every time I spoke to a teller, he/she asked for a payment. Every time I used the website, it would ask me to make a payment. Finally, Premier America's system took a payment out of my checking account for the discharged car loan. I sued and won. In January 2004, I received the payment from Premier America, closed my account, and left the US for Peru on January 31, 2004. I am a Peruvian citizen.

    According to Fiserv, about a month after I left the USA, Fiserv processed a payment in the amount of $135.77 through this credit union to pay Pacific Bell. I did not have any business relationship with Pacific Bell. Prior to leaving for Peru, I was living with my mother. The only debt I had was with AT&T Wireless. Anyway, $135.77 seems like a lot for a one-month phone bill.

    In June 2017, I returned to the US and began living in Utah. I established accounts with UCCU and Wells Fargo. I use their bill payment without problem. But, a new bank (Bank of the West) offered me $250 to open an account with them and put my direct deposit there, so I did.

    But, the Bill Pay system doesn't work for me. So, they gave me the number for Fiserv. My SS# is blacklisted and Fiserv wants me to pay for an amount that they allegedly paid on my behalf to a company I didn't do business with through a closed credit union account some 15 years ago.

    So, what's the venue? As far as I know, I never signed anything with Fiserv, but maybe I did when I opened the Premier America Credit Union account. If so, these documents normally say that a specific state (such as Delaware) has jurisdiction. Alternatively, it could be argued that California law has jurisdiction. I really don't see how Utah figures into the matter. The federal FDCPA says that I can be sued in the county where the contract was initially signed, and that's Los Angeles county.

    Of course, Fiserv doesn't plan to sue me. It just has me blacklisted. In all likelihood, the company has nothing except for a computer entry to demonstrate that I owe money. Of course, I could simply limp along with Bank of the West for a few months, get my $250, close the account, and go back to using UCCU as primary. Or, I could try to dispute the debt.

    Utah law provides no help, but California law is far more consumer friendly. I am especially interested in the new AB 1526, which has modified the Rosenthal FDCPA to cover time-barred debts, such as the one in question.

    I was hoping to find someone here who knew about that.

  9. #9
    Join Date
    Oct 2016
    Posts
    4,301

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    I doubt you are going to find any law that requires Fiserv to do business with you. I don't think they are really even trying to collect a debt from you. They have simply told you they won't do business with you while the debt is outstanding.

  10. #10
    Join Date
    Jul 2018
    Posts
    2,745

    Default Re: Problems with Fiserv

    Quote Quoting Zosimus
    View Post
    Utah law provides no help, but California law is far more consumer friendly. I am especially interested in the new AB 1526, which has modified the Rosenthal FDCPA to cover time-barred debts, such as the one in question.

    I was hoping to find someone here who knew about that.
    Assembly Bill 1526 was a bill that amended section 1788.14 of the California Civil Code and section 337 of the Code of Civil Procedure. Those amendments became effective on January 1, 2019.

    As I mentioned previously, the Rosenthal Act has nothing to do with your situation because no one is attempting to collect a debt, and the statute of limitations is irrelevant because no one is suing you. The company who apparently handles your new bank's bill pay service is refusing to do business with you. It is completely entitled to do that.

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