Credence Resource Management is collecting for someone else. Here is how to answer

A debt buyer owns what it collects. An agency like Credence usually does not: it is hired by the creditor, often called its client, to collect the balance for a fee. Credence describes its work as collecting accounts "throughout the life cycle", which includes accounts placed with it while the original company still owns them.

That matters for three reasons. First, the notice must name the creditor the debt is currently owed to, so check whether it names your provider. Second, if you already settled or paid the provider, the provider's records are your best evidence. Third, a dispute letter to Credence should name that creditor, which is why our form has a separate field for the current owner.

The federal debt collection law covers agencies like Credence directly, because they collect debts owed to others.

Search for Credence and you will find at least three Dallas street addresses from earlier years. Its current contact page lists two addresses with different jobs:

• Written disputes go to the corporate office: Credence Resource Management, LLC, 1111 Digital Drive, Suite 101, Richardson, TX 75081.
• Other correspondence goes to a P.O. box in Southgate, Michigan: Credence Resource Management, LLC, PO Box 2300, Southgate, MI 48195-4300.

Send your dispute to the Richardson address, by certified mail, unless your own notice gives a different dispute address. If you also email it to [email protected], keep the sent message.

Many Credence accounts are final bills: early termination fees, unreturned equipment charges, or a last month billed after cancellation. Before writing, gather what the provider gave you, such as a cancellation confirmation, an equipment return receipt or a payment record.

A written dispute inside the validation period stops Credence collecting until it mails verification. Verification for a final bill should show how the amount was calculated. If it does not, the second follow-up in the pack points that out.

You can also ask Credence to stop calling and use mail only.

Credence publishes the licenses it holds and some state-specific notices. If you live in one of these places, you can check the license with the state regulator named on your notice:

California 10735-99, Connecticut CCA-1134094, Maryland 1134094, Nevada CAD11478, New York City 2067278-DCA and 2067275-DCA, Buffalo, NY G18-10043309, North Carolina 119507139 and 119507140.

Credence tells Maine residents to contact the Bureau of Consumer Credit Protection (207-624-8527), tells Minnesota residents they can contact the Minnesota Attorney General (651-296-3353 or 1-800-657-3787), and says it is licensed by the Minnesota Department of Commerce and the North Carolina Department of Insurance.

Anyone can also file a complaint with the CFPB. The complaint text in our pack is written for that form.

If Credence has added the account to your credit report, our guide to removing collections from your credit report explains when an entry can be disputed. And if it is the calls that are the problem, you can tell a debt collector to stop contacting you in writing.

The quickest way to make Credence prove the debt is a debt validation letter sent inside the dispute window.

Say Credence mails a validation notice on Tuesday, December 22, 2026 for a $318.44 final cable bill.

1. Christmas Day does not count as a working day, so the fifth working day after mailing, and the day Credence may assume you received it, is Wednesday, December 30, 2026.
2. The dispute period can end no earlier than Friday, January 29, 2027, 30 days later.
3. Your equipment return receipt from November is the key document. Send a copy with your dispute and keep the original.
4. Rely on the date printed on the notice if it differs from your own count.

For the rules that apply where this example is set, see debt collection law in California.