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How to Beat Northstar Location Services

Sarah Edwards | October 28, 2023

Sarah Edwards
Legal Expert
Sarah Edwards, BS

Sarah Harris is a professional researcher and writer specializing in legal content. An Emerson College alumna, she holds a Bachelor of Science in Communication from the prestigious Boston institution.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Hannah Locklear
Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Summary: Northstar Location Services is a debt collection agency that provides services in first and third party debt collections. If Northstar has contacted you about a debt, ask them to validate it before taking any other action. On the other hand, if you’ve been sued by Northstar Location Services, you can settle the debt once and for all with the help of SoloSettle.

Finding a collections notice in your mailbox from Northstar Location Services probably isn’t your idea of a great start to the day. It may worry you, especially if you can’t repay the amount due. Ignoring the letter may seem like the best course of action, but that’s a mistake. Instead, you should face the matter to avoid future repercussions.

In this article, we’ll explain who Northstar Location Services is, how they operate, and how you can stand up for your rights and respond to debt collectors before, during, and after a lawsuit has been filed.

Sued by Northstar Location Services? Settle your debt with the help of SoloSettle.

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What to know about Northstar Location Services

Northstar Location Services has over 50 years of experience in the collections industry. The company handles first- and third-party debt collections and location services. It’s a branch of The Northstar Companies, which has a presence in the U.S. and Canada. Northstar Location Services is the company’s Canadian collection entity.

Not much is available on the company’s website. It lists several awards the company has received and charities it supports. The mailing address for Northstar Location Services is 350 Bertie St., Fort Erie, Ontario L2A 1Z5. Its phone number is (716) 817-6770.

What do online reviews say about Northstar Location Services?

The Better Business Bureau (BBB) has a profile for Northstar Location Services. The company maintains an A+ rating with the BBB but is not accredited. Clients rate the company 1 out of 5 stars, and there are dozens of complaints.

Similarly, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has received several hundred complaints against Northstar Location Services.

Many complaints appear to be FDCPA violations of the consumer’s rights. One person complained that Northstar Location Services called them and asked for personally identifiable information without telling the individual what the call pertained to.

Another consumer received ongoing calls from Northstar Location Services while in bankruptcy. The consumer told Northstar’s representative of the bankruptcy and provided her lawyer’s contact information. However, the calls continued.

One person received daily calls from Northstar for someone else in their family. They asked Northstar to stop calling, but the company continued. The person took their complaint to the BBB, which finally ended all the calls.

As a consumer, you have rights that protect you from unfair debt collection practices. It’s important to learn about your rights so you can stand up for yourself when debt collectors start calling.

Keep reading to learn more.

The FDCPA protects you from unfair debt collection

Debt collectors sometimes use deceptive practices to scare people into repaying a debt. The FDCPA protects American consumers from abusive actions by debt collectors. If a Northstar representative uses any of the following tactics when communicating with you in the U.S., file a complaint with the FTC and the BBB:

  • Calling you repeatedly throughout the day.
  • Contacting you more than once a week after speaking with them concerning a debt.
  • Telling you that they’ll send you to jail if you don’t repay the obligation.
  • Failing to identify who they are when calling you.
  • Contacting you outside of regular hours, such as before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m.
  • Failing to validate a debt upon request.
  • Lying about the debt or who they are.
  • Using vulgar, abusive, or threatening language.

The law also states that consumers may be eligible for compensation if they’ve had to work with debt collectors who violated the FDCPA.

Let’s look at an example.

Example: Northstar Location Services purchases an old debt belonging to Charles. It starts the collection process with a letter. Charles asks Northstar to validate the debt, but it doesn’t. It continues calling Charles every day, often using threats to intimidate him into paying off the debt. Northstar also contacts Charles’ friends, telling them he owes a debt. In this example, Northstar has violated Charles’ rights under the FDCPA, and he should file a complaint. He could be eligible for up to $1,000 per FDCPA violation.


When Northstar Location Services reaches out to you about a debt, the first step to defending your rights is to ask them to validate your debt by sending a Debt Validation Letter.

Ask Northstar Location Services to validate your debt

Your first communication from Northstar Location Services will probably be a letter explaining that you owe money. It will include the name of your original creditor, an account number, and the amount due. The letter should explain that you have 30 days to request debt validation. Otherwise, Northstar will assume it’s valid.

Don’t ignore the letter from Northstar. Instead, prepare a Debt Validation Letter and send it to the email or mailing address provided. In your Debt Validation Letter, ask Northstar to provide you with additional information to validate the debt, including:

  • The original account number with the creditor.
  • Proof that Northstar now owns your debt.
  • The last transaction made on your account.
  • An analysis of the amounts due, including interest and fees.
  • Calculation of the debt’s age.
  • Whether the debt is past the statute of limitations.
  • Northstar’s debt license number for your region.

Until Northstar provides you with all the information you request, it must cease collection activities. If Northstar doesn’t have the records it needs to validate your debt, you’re unlikely to hear back.

However, if Northstar provides complete debt validation, you must decide on your next steps.

Draft a Debt Validation Letter today.

You can repay the debt with Northstar

If Northstar holds a valid debt within your area’s statute of limitations window, it’s best to repay it. Repaying the debt stops Northstar from further collection activities, like a lawsuit.

If you have the money to repay the balance, do so. Paying your debt will stop Northstar Location Services from reporting it as an open collections item. If it appears on your credit report, it will show as paid in full. Most future creditors ignore collections items that you have repaid.

You may have the option to set up an installment agreement. In an installment agreement, you’ll make regular payments until you repay the debt. However, Northstar may charge you additional interest or fees, so carefully review any agreement before deciding to proceed.

You can settle the debt with Northstar

Another option to consider is debt settlement. In a debt settlement, you offer Northstar a percentage of the amount you owe in exchange for releasing you from the remaining amount due. Your settlement is a one-time, lump-sum payment.

Settlements can save money while allowing you to move forward from a tough situation. Collection agencies often accept settlements when they know collecting your total debt is unlikely.

Identify how much you can afford to pay Northstar to start the settlement process. We’ve found 40% of the debt to be a good starting point, but the company may ask for more. Once you arrive at a settlement amount, make your payment. After Northstar receives it, it will report your account settled to the credit bureaus.

If you’re not sure about debt settlement, watch the following video to determine if it’s the right choice for you:

SoloSettle, powered by SoloSuit, can help you settle your debts once and for all. As a tech-based approach to debt settlement, you can use SoloSettle to settle debt on your own by using its software to send and receive settlement offers until you reach an agreement with Northstar Location Services.

Once an agreement is reached, SoloSettle helps you manage the settlement documentation that should be filed into your debt lawsuit case.

Plus, you won’t have to worry about your financial information being compromised, because SoloSettle will transfer your payment to the collector on your behalf, keeping your financial information private and safe.

Northstar Location Services probably won’t go away until you respond

The key to stopping collection activities is knowing your rights. Your first step is to require Northstar Location Services to validate the debt. The agency must stop contacting you if it cannot validate the debt. But if you have a valid obligation with Northstar Location Services, repay it or attempt to settle it before it becomes a bigger issue.

Is Northstar Location Services suing you for unpaid debt? Settle your Northstar Location Services debt with SoloSettle.

What is SoloSuit?

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You can use SoloSuit to respond to a debt lawsuit, to send letters to collectors, and even to settle a debt.

SoloSuit's Answer service is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your Answer. Upon completion, we'll have an attorney review your document and we'll file it for you.

>>Read the FastCompany article: Debt Lawsuits Are Complicated: This Website Makes Them Simpler To Navigate

>>Read the NPR story on SoloSuit. (We can help you in all 50 states.)

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