Predatory and unethical business practices
Atlas Financial Services is a debt collection agency which is pursuing an alleged debt from a towing company (Northwestern Towing). This company has filed a smalls claims court lawsuit against me for $532.46, despite multiple attempts on my part for cooperation and resolution. I believe their business practices are predatory and unethical. The original transaction with Northwestern Towing was a charge which I disputed with my credit card issuer, American Express. After conducting an investigation, American Express determined that the charge was improper and that I was not responsible for payment. I received an initial collection notice (in a letter sent via postal mail) from Atlas Financial Services and I promptly responded in accordance with the instructions provided. Specifically, I submitted a message through their online portal on 3/9/26. I did not receive any response to that communication. Following my attempted communication, I received no further contact from Atlas Financial Services prior to being served with a small claims lawsuit. No additional efforts were made to resolve this matter through correspondence, email, or other means. After receiving the small claims lawsuit documents, on 4/29/26 I sent a certified mail letter to Atlas explaining the situation in detail and asking them to dismiss the lawsuit. The only communication I have had with Atlas after sending my letter was a phone call on 5/6/26 where a female representative called; she shouted at me and interrupted me, repeating the same 2 sentences. This woman seemed unaware of the small claims case and the letter I sent, her responses to my specific questions were unintelligible. In my last attempt to resolve the matter, I sent an email to the named plaintiff on the small claims court documents (Penney Sabourin), inquiring about my letter and requesting a response. This woman did respond to my email, but did not address any of my concerns, simply stating: “Please review your court documents; we will not be dismissing the case.” For consumers out there searching for an agency to sell your company's debt to, beware! Their antics are likely going to get them in serious legal trouble and that could come back to bite you.
By Kathryn