My father passed away in 1997 with no outstanding debts. My mother passed away in 2003 with minor debt that was quickly cleared. In 2008, I began to get phone calls from Van Ru for my father -- a full 11 years after his death. When I informed them that he was deceased, they insisted that they needed a copy of his death certificate. I refused. They called so many times that I ended up setting up call-blocking on my home phone. In 2009, they began calling again with a different number. Blocked that one, and they called with yet another number. I finally put on my sweet voice and called the last number, asking for the spelling of the company name, could I please find out what this was about, etc. They never identified themselves as a collection agency, I found this out by going online. They said they wouldn't stop calling OR give me any information about the nature of their calls until I provided them with the death certificate. I'm torn about whether I should do this, because I'm afraid they will then come after me for a non-existent debt.