Brand New Debt to credit collector and on credit report

[Rweste1]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? MD

I received a letter dated July 16, 2008 saying that a bill I owed was sent to a collection agency for collection. The bill was originally assessed to me on June 16, 2008. I received it on the 18th of June. It was a bill from my previous landlord that they want money in addition to keeping my security deposit. I called and tried to dispute the bill over the phone, got no where, so I started gathering some more information. Less than two weeks later, someone called my father-in-law trying to get in touch with us, even though they had all of my husband's and my contact information. I called again and left a message 10 days ago. The message was never returned. Is it really legal for the rental agency to send the bill that we are disputing to a collection agency three weeks after recieving a single bill? I called the collection agency to let them know that we are disputing the bill and have the paperwork started to file a claim with the attorney general in Maryland. The CA's response was to laugh at me while asking if I was really going to dispute a bill for $165. I said yes, explaining the situation that it was actually more than $165 because we are also owed some of our security deposit back. He quickly said "good luck with the attorney general, it's going on your credit report, goodbye" and hung up before I could respond at all. Can he list a new debt on my credit when he knows it is in dispute? I thought we had at least 30 days to file a claim? Any help or advice would be greatly appreciated. Thank you.

Robin

[Debt Guy]

Robin

See that key over on the right side of the keyboard -- the one that says "enter"? Give it a whack every once in a while. One huge run on paragraph is hard to read and to understand.

Is it really legal for the rental agency to send the bill that we are disputing to a collection agency three weeks after recieving a single bill?

Yes.

I called the collection agency to let them know that we are disputing the bill and have the paperwork started to file a claim with the attorney general in Maryland.

The CA is subject to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). Disputes should be made to the CA in writing to have any legal basis. Download and read the FDCPA. Complaints to the AG are at your option.

The CA's response was to laugh at me while asking if I was really going to dispute a bill for $165. I said yes, explaining the situation that it was actually more than $165 because we are also owed some of our security deposit back. He quickly said "good luck with the attorney general, it's going on your credit report, goodbye" and hung up before I could respond at all. Can he list a new debt on my credit when he knows it is in dispute?

Well, technically it is not in dispute as you have not yet sent a written dispute. But, yes, the CA can report it to the credit bureau whenever they want except in one narrow situation.

If they receive your written dispute before they have reported to the credit bureau, they must not report until they have responded to your dispute.

If they have already reported to the credit bureau when the receive your written dispute, they must advise the credit bureau that the account is in dispute.

They are allowed to call relatives for location information. The best way to keep them from calling relatives is for you to not ignore calls from the CA.

The CA has no desire to get into a dispute between you and your landlord. The CA just wants their money. They will most likely just put the tradeline on your credit report and make a call every once in awhile until you pay. There is almost zero chance this would ever go to litigation.

In my opinion, your best bet is to deal directly with the landlord and try to smooth things out. Come to some arrangement that both of you can live with.

You might file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau and ask for mediation.

The AG is not likely to take any action.