The King County Superior Court on Thursday issued a temporary restraining order against Cal-Western of Washington, a foreclosure trustee corporation with an office in Vancouver, based on the state attorney general’s claims that the company engaged in unfair and deceptive business practices.
The company, which the state says conducts many of its operations in southern California, had given some borrowers an incorrect phone number in their Notices of Trustee’s Sale and Foreclosure, Attorney General Bob Ferguson said in a complaint filed Wednesday. Without a way to contact the company by phone, Ferguson’s office said, borrowers had difficulty contacting the firm quickly without traveling to Vancouver.
Providing borrowers with an incorrect phone number is an unfair and deceptive business practice that violates the Consumer Protection Act, the AG’s office said. The state did not indicate how many borrowers were affected.
The temporary restraining order prevents the company from proceeding with foreclosures in Washington through May 29, when a preliminary injunction hearing is scheduled. The company’s Vancouver office is at 201 N.E. Park Place Drive, Suite 217. A message left at the company’s current Vancouver number was not returned.
