Hi all,
Today I received a letter from Midland Credit Management in a big UPS envelope saying a debt in my name may be collected through an attorney. I've done some initial research online and on these forums but I'm not quite sure what my initial action should be. The debt in question is just over $1800 and from a Citi credit card. In the letter, there is a lot of language about possibly forwarding the account to an attorney ("MCM is considering forwarding this account to an attorney," "possible litigation," "MCM may proceed with forwarding this account"). According to the letter, I need to respond by 11/17. I'm honestly a bit frightened by this possibility.
From what I can tell, I have several options. MCM apparently has some options for hardship (my income has been pretty low for many months now, and it's gotten especially worse since the covid pandemic), but I have also seen suggestions to send a debt validation letter. What is the best route for me to take right now? I have also seen people suggesting arbitration, and I have no clue where to start with that. I looked up my cardmember agreement which says "We’ll pay your share of the arbitration fee for an arbitration of Claims of $75,000 or less if they are unrelated to debt collection." and lists the arbitration organization as AAA.
Additional info: I am located in Illinois and I am still well within the SOL for this debt.
Please let me know if I can provide any more information. Thank you.