Civil Demand Letter

D

Damraha

New Member
Hi, I live in Texas and was fired from my job along with several other co workers for what was called "coupon misconduct". Long story short, I had to pay $58.50 in restitution for 5 coupons that they said were scanned more than once. Anyway, so I paid my restitution in full. I got a call from a law firm that is apparently in charge of sending notices to people who havent paid- a debt collector. I called the firm to inform them my debt had been paid and was told there is a $300 "incident fee". Confused I called my former employer who I paid the $58.50 to (NOT the "firm") and was told I paid my debt to them and they dunno what the $300 is for because it has nothing to do with them- that it must be a civil demand and they had no information about it. My questions are how can this 3rd party collector charge me anything? My payment never went to collection! Should I pay them or tell them to shove it? - can they have me arrested if i dont pay? Does the civil demand affect my ability to get another job? Thanks in advance!
 
Damraha said:
Hi, I live in Texas and was fired from my job along with several other co workers for what was called "coupon misconduct". Long story short, I had to pay $58.50 in restitution for 5 coupons that they said were scanned more than once. Anyway, so I paid my restitution in full. I got a call from a law firm that is apparently in charge of sending notices to people who havent paid- a debt collector. I called the firm to inform them my debt had been paid and was told there is a $300 "incident fee". Confused I called my former employer who I paid the $58.50 to (NOT the "firm") and was told I paid my debt to them and they dunno what the $300 is for because it has nothing to do with them- that it must be a civil demand and they had no information about it. My questions are how can this 3rd party collector charge me anything? My payment never went to collection! Should I pay them or tell them to shove it? - can they have me arrested if i dont pay? Does the civil demand affect my ability to get another job? Thanks in advance!
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Anyone can scam you.
Its a demand, and has NO force of law.
Its small, that way a scared person is more likely to pay.
A smart person asks why, and then decides, no way.


Here's the "civil demand law" in Texas, as explained by a Texas lawyer.

https://roselawtx.wordpress.com/tag/civil-demand-for-theft-payment/

The Texas law that allows retailers (not scammers) to ask you to pay money, or risk being sued is for shoplifters, NOT other alleged law breakers. According to you, you DIDN'T shoplift. LOL

As a Texas licensed lawyer and judge, I advise my clients to ignore those letters and the scammers who send the letters.

The worse that could happen is you get sued in small claims court.
That has never happened in the history of the law.
How do I know?
I researched it, and I requested our county law librarian research it, and one of my paralegals also researched it.

Not one civil case has ever been filed under that law.
If you're the first (don't hold your breath), you simply ask for a jury.
Yes, in Texas, small claims litigants can demand a jury to decide their fate.
Not to worry, keep your hands clean, don't communicate with scammers.

LOL, the scammers are so desperate in Texas, they're trying to use the law to scare coins outta people who didn't shoplift. LOL

No, you won't be arrested for ignoring the letter.
I suggest you simply stop responding to the scammer.
Good luck.
 
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You are not being charged anything. You are being asked to, pretty please, give away hundreds of dollars.
You have no legal obligation to pay. It is not a bill or a fine. With the circumstances you describe it should be completely safe for you to ignore them. Cease all communication and do not attempt to explain yourself. The more contact they have with you the more they will hound you over it.
Don't worry about any threats to sue you.
 

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