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American Financial Investigations; 22320 Foothill Blvd., Suite 400; Hayward, CA 94541 - Order for Affirmative Sanctions
December 17, 2014
NOW COMES the Superintendent, State of Maine, Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection, and issues the following Order for Affirmative Sanctions for regulatory penalties and costs of investigation:
WHEREAS the Maine Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection (the Bureau) is established to, among other things, receive and act on complaints of violations of the Maine Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (32 M.R.S. ??11001 - 11051-A), and may issue orders that direct a person or entity to refrain from certain actions; and
WHEREAS 32 M.R.S. ? 11031(1) provides that ?[n]o person may conduct the business of a debt collector in this State without a valid license issued by the superintendent?; and
WHEREAS on October 29, 2014, the Bureau received a written complaint from a M. C., a Maine consumer, regarding contact from a debt collector using the name of American Financial Investigations, purportedly located at 22320 Foothill Boulevard, Suite 400, Hayward, California 94541-2179; and
WHEREAS M. C. reports that she received a telephone call from American Financial Investigations in which they stated that they would contact her place of employment, demean her character, place a lien on her home and vehicle, download her file to the court house, and have her arrested if the debt was not paid; and
WHEREAS Bureau staff searched the Bureau?s licensing records and determined that American Financial Investigations is not licensed as a debt collector by the Bureau; and
WHEREAS Bureau staff sent a certified letter dated October 31, 2014 (copy attached) to American Financial Investigations at 22320 Foothill Boulevard, Suite 400, Hayward, California 94541-2719; the address listed provided by M. C. in her written complaint; and
WHEREAS the letter from the Bureau was returned with the post office?s notation of November 11, 2014: ?Return to Sender/Not deliverable as Addressed/Unable to Forward?;
NOW, THEREFORE, American Financial Investigations is hereby:
ORDERED to refrain from all contact with any Maine consumer until such time as it has obtained from the Bureau a valid license to conduct debt collection activity in Maine; and it is further
ORDERED to pay $500 to the Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection no later than January 5, 2015 for the costs of this investigation, pursuant to 9-A M.R.S ?6-106(6) and 32 M.R.S. ?11051.
ATTACHMENT - American Financial Investigations - Complaint
| Date: December 17, 2014 | /s/William N. Lund |
| William N. Lund | |
| Superintendent | |
| Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection |
NOTICE OF APPEAL RIGHTS Any party aggrieved by this Order may appeal to the Superior Court pursuant to 5 M.R.S. ?11001 et seq. within 30 days of receipt of this Order. Any other person aggrieved shall have 40 days from the date the Order was rendered to petition for review.
| Date: December 17, 2014 | /s/William N. Lund |
| William N. Lund | |
| Superintendent | |
| Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection |