Papetti v. Rawlings Financial Services, LLC

121 F. Supp. 3d 340, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102661, 2015 WL 4644225
CourtDistrict Court, S.D. New York
DecidedAugust 5, 2015
DocketNo. 15 Civ. 2933(PAE)
StatusPublished
Cited by15 cases

This text of 121 F. Supp. 3d 340 (Papetti v. Rawlings Financial Services, LLC) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, S.D. New York primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Papetti v. Rawlings Financial Services, LLC, 121 F. Supp. 3d 340, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102661, 2015 WL 4644225 (S.D.N.Y. 2015).

Opinion

OPINION & ORDER

PAUL A. ENGELMAYER, District Judge:

Plaintiff Anthony Papetti alleges that, in February 2015, defendant Rawlings Financial Services, LLC (“RFS”) sent him a debt collection letter that violated the Fair [343]*343Debt Collection Practices Act (“FDCPA”), 15 U.S.C. § 1692 et seg.1 The thrust of Papetti’s claim is that RFS’s debt collection letter was misleading and confusing, and that the portion of the letter in which RFS demanded payment from him overshadowed the portion in which RFS informed him of his right to dispute the debt. Papetti filed a putative class action Complaint on behalf of himself and other similarly situated individuals. RFS now moves to dismiss the Complaint in its entirety for failure to state a claim. For the reasons that follow, RFS’s motion is denied.

I. Background

A. Factual Background2

On October 2, 2014, Papetti’s health insurance plan with Oxford Health Plans (“Oxford”) was terminated; he then substituted Horizon Blue Cross Blue Shield of New Jersey (“Horizon”) as his primary health insurance provider. Dkt. 16. . On November 9, 2014 and again on November 24, 2014, Papetti filled a prescription at Duane Reade Pharmacy (“Duane Reade”). Compl. ¶¶ 17-18. For reasons unknown to Papetti, Duane Reade mistakenly submitted his claims to his former insurer, Oxford, rather than his current insurer, Horizon. Id. ¶20. Oxford in turn paid these claims. Id. ¶ 21.

As a result, Papetti incurred an obligation to Oxford, which became due some time before February 6, 2015. Id. 23-24. Once the obligation became overdue, Oxford, as the creditor, transferred the obligation to a debt collector, RFS. Id. ¶¶ 26-27. On February 6, 2015, RFS sent Papetti two documents enclosed in a single envelope. Id. 28, 38. The first was a debt collection letter, see Dkt. 1, Ex. A (“Debt Collection Letter”), which is reproduced below.

[344]*344[[Image here]]

As is evident, the debt collection letter was printed on RFS letterhead, and was addressed to Anthony Papetti. Id. At the top, the letter’s header stated, in bolded capital letters: “AUDIT NOTICE-ACCOUNT OVERDUE”. Id. The letter informed Papetti that “Oxford is due full reimbursement of the amounts paid.” Id. The letter then stated that, if Papetti was insured by another health plan at the time he filled his prescriptions, RFS “suggest[ed]” the following methods for “correcting a] billing error or obtaining] reimbursement,” id.:

[345]*345Method #1 — Contact the pharmacy that filled the prescription to correct the billing:

• Notify your pharmacist of this billing error and request to have the claims reversed to Oxford and billed to the insurance carrier that provided coverage on these dates of fill.
• Obtain a printout from the pharmacy indicating the claims were reversed, and return this with the payment stub below and write “billing' corrected by pharmacy” on the payment stub.

Method #2 — Make payment to Oxford using the payment stub below and submit the claims to your new insurance carrier for reimbursement:

• Contact your new insurance carrier that should have paid for these prescription claims and obtain a member reimbursement prescription claim form. Submit these claims to your new carrier for reimbursement.

Id. The debt collection letter then said, “If you did not have health insurance coverage during these dates of fill, Oxford has also asked Rawlings to process reimbursements due,” and thereafter directed the recipient to contact RFS by calling the telephone number provided to “discuss the payment options available.” Id.

• The substance of the debt collection letter ended by instructing the recipient to “SEE REVERSE SIDE FOR IMPORTANT INFORMATION.” Id. But the reverse side was, in fact, blank. Compl. ¶ 37.

Finally, at the very bottom, the debt collection letter included a detachable section, which instructed the recipient to detach it, include payment of the obligation, and return it to RFS. See Debt Collection Letter.

The second document sent by RFS to Papetti was a validation notice, which read as follows:

[346]*346l frites you dispute the validity of this debt, or any portion thereof, within 30 days after receipt of this notice, we will assume that this debt is valid. If you notify us in writing, within this 30-day period, that the debt or any portion theteof is disputed, we «ill obtain written verification of the debt or a copy ofa judgment against you. if any, and a copy of such judgment or verification will.be mailed to you. in addition, upon your written request within the 30-day period, we will provide you with the name and address of the original creditor, if different iron) the current creditor.

New York City Department of Consumer Affairs-License #11-60907

THIS COMMUNICATION IS FROM A DEBT COLLECTOR AND IS AN ATTEMPT TO COLLECT A DEBT. ALL INFORMATION OBTAINED WILL BE USED FOR THAT PURPOSE,

[[Image here]]

Dkt. 1, Ex. B (“Validation Notice”).

The validation notice stated that RFS would assume that the debt was valid unless the recipient “notified]” RFS, in writing and within 30 days, “that the debt or any portion thereof is disputed.” Id. The validation notice then stated that the communication was “from a debt collector and is an attempt to collect a debt,” and it provided details of both prescriptions that Papetti had filled at Duane Reade. Id.

The validation notice was enclosed in the same envelope as the debt collection letter, but it does not appear that it was stapled or otherwise affixed to the collection letter. See Compl. ¶ 38. As is evident, unlike the collection letter, the validation notice did not contain the RFS letterhead, nor was it addressed to Papetti.

B. Procedural Background

On April 15, 2015, Papetti filed the Complaint, alleging that RFS violated the FDCPA on two grounds: by (1) failing to effectively provide a validation notice, in violation of 15 U.S.C. § 1692g, and (2) using a “false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt,” in contravention of 15 U.S.C. § 1692e. Compl. ¶42.

On May 12, 2015, RFS moved to dismiss the Complaint, and filed a brief and decía[347]*347ration in support of its motion. Dkt. 10-12. RFS argued that it did not violate the FDCPA on either ground. Dkt.- 12 (“RFS Br.”). On June 3, 2015, Papetti filed a brief in opposition. Dkt. 15 (“Papetti Br.”). On June 8, 2015, RFS filed a reply brief in further support of its motion to dismiss. Dkt. 18 (“RFS Reply Br”). And on June 11, 2015, with leave of the Court, Papetti filed a limited sur-reply. Dkt. 25 (“Papetti Sur-Reply”).

II.

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Bluebook (online)
121 F. Supp. 3d 340, 2015 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 102661, 2015 WL 4644225, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/papetti-v-rawlings-financial-services-llc-nysd-2015.