Co-Founder of SoloSuit
George Simons, JD/MBA

George Simons is the co-founder and CEO of SoloSuit. He has helped Americans protect over $1 billion from predatory debt lawsuits. George graduated from BYU Law school in 2020 with a JD-MBA. In his spare time, George likes to cook, because he likes to eat.

Edited by 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.

Beating Universal Credit Services feels like ^^

Summary: Is Universal Credit Services suing you for a debt? SoloSuit can help you take a stand and win in court.

If you are being harassed by a debt collector affiliated with Universal Credit Services, you probably are going through a stressful time. Why is this the case? Because Universal Credit Services and other debt collection agencies may use inappropriate techniques to get you to pay what you supposedly owe to a creditor. That's why Universal Credit Services may call you all day long to try to get you to pay. They may harass you at work and attempt to connect with you on Instagram and Facebook to get money out of you.

What is Universal Credit Services and how does it work?

Universal Credit Services is a legitimate business entity, so do not mistakenly assume their correspondence is a scam or attempt to steal your identity. Universal Credit Services is a third-party debt collection agency, which basically means they assist in the collection of delinquent accounts on behalf of other businesses and organizations.

In some instances, Universal Credit Services purchased a delinquent account from an original creditor (e.g., a credit card company) and likely only paid a fraction to secure the rights to the account. The goal is to turn around and collect on the debt in the hopes of generating a substantial profit.

If you are receiving unpleasant phone calls and other communications from Universal Credit Services, or were surprised to receive a Summons related to a lawsuit filed against you, do not throw your hands up in despair. You have rights that can protect you and options to help you win in court.

Know your rights when Universal Credit Services contacts you

Universal Credit Services is known to attempt to take advantage of people who do not understand their legal rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. This law has several regulations that say what debt collectors may and may not do to collect a debt. Some of the rules include:

Universal Credit Services cannot contact you at work.
Debt collectors cannot use rude and vulgar language when they talk to you on the phone or in letters.
Universal Credit Services are not allowed to threaten you with lawsuits.
Universal Credit Services cannot call you in your house before 8 a.m. or after 9 p.m.
Universal Credit Services cannot discuss your debt with anyone buy you, your lawyer, and your spouse.

Universal Credit Services has received many complaints

As of 2022, the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau has reported 20 complaints against Universal Credit Services in the last ten years. Most consumer complaints are about inaccurate reporting, harassment, or failure to verify a debt. If you find yourself facing any of these situations with a debt collection agency, you should also consider filing a complaint.

Let's take a look at a real complaint against Universal Credit Services.

Example: “Universal Credit Services has called me several times on my cell phone to reach out to me. This has never been an issue for me, but what I'm upset about is that they have somehow reached out to my employer and called me on my private line at work. They called while I was not at work and then my co-worker and manager answered the phone and asked for me and when my coworker said I wasn't available and asked who was calling, the person from UCS hung up the phone.”

If you're feeling frustrated with Universal Credit Services, you're not alone. Luckily, you can protect yourself and beat them at their own game.

Protect yourself if Universal Credit Services sues you

If you are sued by Universal Credit Services, it is smart to respond to the lawsuit as soon as you can. It's not a good idea to ignore the lawsuit and hope it goes away. The lawsuit will still be there and the debt collection company will win by default if you ignore it. There are things you can do to fight the lawsuit and maybe get it dismissed.

Below are some smart things to do when you write your Answer:

Never admit that you owe the debt. The debt collection company must prove that you owe the debt. Don't make their job easy for them!
File an Answer with the Clerk of Court within 20 or 30 days of receiving the complaint, or whatever the timeline is.
Mail your Answer copy to Universal Credit Services and make sure it was stamped by the Clerk of Court.

Try These Affirmative Defenses In Your Answer

To beat Universal Credit Services at their own game, you need to respond to the lawsuit. You can point out any problems and weaknesses in their allegations. Remember that the debt collector has to prove that you owe the money they allege in the complaint. This means Universal Credit Services has to show these things before they can say you owe the debt:

The debt collection agency has the right to sue you.
You are the one who owes the debt.
You owe the money that is stated by Universal Credit Services in the complaint.

If the debt collection agency does not meet these requirements, you may be able to get the lawsuit thrown out.

Depending on your case circumstances, you could argue that the company did not file the suit before the statute of limitations expired. This is the amount of time someone has to file a lawsuit against someone else.

If the statute of limitations has lapsed, you may file a motion to have the case dismissed with prejudice.

Also, there are other ways that you can beat Universal Credit Services in court. Try filing a countersuit. If you can prove the company violated the FDCPA, you may be eligible for compensation and have your legal bills covered.

Respond to a debt lawsuit against Universal Credit Services

The first step to beating Universal Credit Services in court is to respond to the lawsuit by filing a written Answer. You have 14-35 days to respond before a default judgment can be entered against you. This gives Universal Credit Services the right to garnish your wages and seize your property.

Use these six tips to draft an Answer that will increase your chances of winning the case:

The Answer isn't the place to tell your side of the story in detail. Instead of using an elaborate story to respond to the lawsuit, your Answer should focus on responding to the claims listed in the Complaint document. Keep it simple. You can admit, deny, or deny due to lack of knowledge.
Deny, deny, deny. Most attorneys recommend that you deny as many claims as possible, forcing Universal Credit Services to do more work to prove their side of the case.
Include affirmative defenses. Like we mentioned above, an affirmative defense is any legal reason that Universal Credit Services should not win the case. A common affirmative defense used in debt lawsuits is the statute of limitations, which is the time period that a debt collector has to sue someone for a debt. If the debt is past the statute of limitations, then the lawsuit is void. There are several other defenses you can bring up in your Answer to help you strengthen your case.
Use standard formatting or “style”. At the head of the Answer document, be sure to include a caption where you list the court information, party information, and case number.
Include a certificate of service. It's important to serve your Answer to Universal Credit Services. At the end of your Answer document, include a certificate of service when you verify the address you used to serve Universal Credit Services the Answer.
Sign it. Most courts reject any legal documents without signatures, which is why this last step is so crucial.

SoloSuit can help you draft and file an Answer in all 50 states.

Learn more about these six tips in this video:

Overview Of Steps You Can Take to Beat Universal Credit Services in Court

We've covered a lot here, but here's a fast rundown of what to do if you get sued by Universal Credit Services:

Be sure to file an Answer within the proper time frame.
Attend any and all court hearings and be prepared to argue your case before a judge.
File a formal request demanding Universal Credit Services prove that you owe the amount they say. They also need to prove you are the person who owes the debt.
Consider raising at least one affirmative defense, such as a violation of the FDCPA by a debt collector affiliated with Universal Credit Services.

Good luck!

What is SoloSuit?

SoloSuit makes it easy to fight debt collectors.

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.

Respond with SoloSuit

"First time getting sued by a debt collector and I was searching all over YouTube and ran across SoloSuit, so I decided to buy their services with their attorney reviewed documentation which cost extra but it was well worth it! SoloSuit sent the documentation to the parties and to the court which saved me time from having to go to court and in a few weeks the case got dismissed!" – James

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