Quick Answer: Bellman & Sterns appears to be a debt collection scam, as the company is not registered to do business in Florida despite claiming a Tampa address. The threatening voicemails from 833-259-6457 are likely attempts to trick recipients into providing personal information.
Question:
Dear Steve,
Every once in a while, I get a weird voice mail threatening legal action through county court services claiming the caller’s client has attempted to contact me several times. The callback number given is 833-259-6457, which a search links to Bellman & Sterns, https://www.bellmanandsterns.com/.
I’m not hard to find; having just purchased a home, I have not gotten any communication about overdue bills going to collection. On the other hand, the fact that I just bought a house means I have no outstanding collections on my report. Is this agency legit?
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I’m concerned that others may get this message and callback only to be tricked into providing their private identifying information.
Mo
Answer:
Dear Mo,
I did a Google search of 833-259-6457, and it does return many results from people that appear to be getting similar calls.
Bellman & Sterns does have a website at bellmanandsterns.com.
According to DomainTools.com the domain name bellmanadsterns was created on August 1, 2021.
Bellman and Sterns say they are at 1120 E Kennedy Blvd Tampa, FL 33602. The State of Florida has no company registered to do business under that name. There is no fictitious registered name either under Bellman and Sterns that I could find.
Reeks
It sure looks like a ploy at face value, given the lack of a company registration in Florida where they say they are located. Debt collection is a highly regulated field and being registered to do business is the first thing I look for, especially in the state they say they are located.
It is always a smart idea to keep tabs on your credit reports and not make any assumptions. You can get copies of your credit reports for free at AnnualCreditReport.com or by using a service like Credit Karma.
My very strong suspicion is the request is bogus but a quick review of your credit reports will help confirm the suspicions.
Personally, I’m exhausted by the scam calls and texts I get for an extended warranty I’ve never had that has expired, a cell carrier I don’t have that wants to give me a refund, a store I don’t shop at that says I’m due a refund, or the latest gift card scam.
Before You Sign Anything: Run any debt relief contract through the free Contract Decoder to spot hidden fees and unfair terms. Check the company’s complaint history with the Scam-O-Meter.
Compare Your Real Options: Most debt relief companies won’t tell you about all your options — especially the ones they can’t profit from. Credit counseling has a 21-27% completion rate. Settlement resolves about 1% of enrolled debts fully. Bankruptcy has a 95% discharge rate — and protects your retirement. Take the Find Your Path quiz for a recommendation based on your actual numbers.
I get calls from Bellman legal looking for “ blank” asking me to call or….
I got the same v-mail today. The “blank” was hilarious!
I was ticked as I live in Hawaii and the call woke me at 4:30 AM. I’m also ticked because I’ve been so fortunate to not have scammers, etc. bug me until now.
THESE PEOPLE ARE SCAMMERS!?!!!!!!!!!!!! DO NOT GIVE OUT ANY OF YOUR INFORMATION!
THEY CALL FROM ALL DIFFERENT PHONE #’s
1-833-910-4364. / 1-833-259-6457/ 518-414-5369
They reference this is DAVID ANDERSON from “Bellman & Sterns” PLEASE CALL -1-833-259-6457 before we place a judgement against you. I ALMOST fell victim but any lawsuit or any debt owed there is always a MAILED PAPERTRAIL not phone calls. I played along like yeah sure charge my card on Friday for over $1K. He called at 8:30am this AM I said oh yeah hey, I WILL NOT PAY YOU NADA till I have LEGAL PAPERWORK! He screamed on me. He said you will need a lawyer! I said I got one! ADIOS!!! Yeah ok, try me. I feel bad for people who fall victim to these disgusting low lifes who steal peoples hard earned money cause they are in fear of a lawsuit or jail!
Hi my name is Laura Carpenter and I’ve gotten about 8 to 10 voicemails from this bellman and Stearns stating the same thing that they have my name social license number and they’re going to take it file something in the courts judgments Etc. I think it’s all just a bunch of poop personally I’m not returning their calls because I know there’s nothing out there that they would be contacting me for. But now that I have read some of these comments I see I am not the only one so if anyone else is still getting these type of calls or has ever even talked to them please get back to me and let me know I believe they’re going to ask me for my email address below you can always email me any type of correspondence on this would be much appreciated. Thank you so much have a great weekend and be safe God bless
I’ve reported them to the Federal Trade Commission for privacy rights violation. I recommend you do the same. The more complaints they get, the easier it is for them to shut them down.
Thank you for the response! I figured as much, but wanted to get 2nd opinions first.
I’ll make sure those around me are aware, I’m sure I’m not the only person getting these calls.
Asked question about collection company that keeps calling me.
Click on the link to read my answer Mo.