Collection Agency Inquiry

[Ms J]

What is the name of your state? OH

I recently got a copy of my credit report and there is an item from a collection agency. I don't dispute that it was sent to them, however, the dates and the amount they are reporting are incorrect. This is over 2 1/2 years old and has been settled for quite some time. I called their office to inquire about it and the woman I first spoke with got confused by my simple inquiry and gave me to her supervisor who in turn got very abusive with me and started yelling at me and never let me ask the question and hung up on me. As a consumer, I believe I rights to inquire about accounts and their accuracy. He also then quoted an amount on my account that was over $100 more than anything I ever owed the orginal creditor and proceeded to say it was never paid in full when in fact it was.

If I write them a letter, what should I include with it. I have past credit reports from over 2 years ago that even show it being paid in full. I'm not sure how to handle this. I just want the facts to be correct on my report.

I was just stunned at the way this man spoke to me when I don't even owe them money!

 

[Ladynred]

If there is something wrong on your credit reports, do NOT contact the collection agency, dispute it with the credit bureaus ! That should have been your first step. Dispute it as inaccurate and paid. If you have proof it was settled, like a settlement letter, send it along with your dispute. Send it certified mail, RRR. If it comes back as verified the way it is, THEN its time to do battle with the collection agency, but NEVER call them on the phone !! Do it all in writing - you need the paper trail.

 

[Ms J]

Thank you for your reply

I did dispute it with the Credit Bureau. That is why I called them today. I wanted to clarify where they got their dates and the amount they were reporting from. I only wanted to ask a question and the guy was extremely abusive. It just disturbed me that I couldn't even ask a simple question without being berated for it. I WILL send them a letter and ask for all their documentation on the account. I have also prepared a letter to the orginal creditor regarding the issue.

Thank You

 

[Ladynred]

Well, as you have found out, calling them is a complete waste of time and all you get is their standard abuse and line of crapola. If you have proof of the settlement, then send that along with your letter to the CA. Make sure you send it certified, RRR and give them a limited time to fix it. If they blow you off, your next letter should be an 'intent to sue'.

 

[Ms J]

Thank You Again

I tried this morning to speak with the original creditor. These people are the meanest people I have ever dealt with in my life. If asked, what information does the orginal creditor have to provide and what information does the CA have to provide. The issue is that I was not notified by the original creditor about them turning it over to collections and I was also not notified by the CA until February 02.

Q1 - Does the original creditor have to provide some sort of proof that I was notified of the termination of the contract?

Q2 - Can the collection agency report a larger amount than what I paid them since payments were still being made to the original creditor and accepted? They are reporting $417 and I only paid them $177 because that was the balance on the account.

Q3 - Does the CA have to provide proof of the date I was notified of the account being turned over to them?

Why don't CA's and other creditor's use certified mail or some other system where this is verifiable. The original creditor was saying that I needed to show proof that I wasn't notified. How is that possible? I can't prove that I didn't receive something, but they inturn can't prove that they sent anything. This is just a huge mess!

 

[Ladynred]

The issue is that I was not notified by the original creditor about them turning it over to collections and I was also not notified by the CA until February 02.

The original creditor doesn't HAVE to notify you when they turn an account over to collections, though they often do send enough letters to let you know that if you don't pay the account will be charged-off. CA doesn't HAVE to notify you either, but again, they USUALLY do since they're after money.

Q1 - Does the original creditor have to provide some sort of proof that I was notified of the termination of the contract?

Nope, they don't. The 'proof' is in the charge-off date on your credit reports.

Q2 - Can the collection agency report a larger amount than what I paid them since payments were still being made to the original creditor and accepted? They are reporting $417 and I only paid them $177 because that was the balance on the account.

CA's WILL add interest and if payments were going to the OC and NOT the CA, they likely have NO record of those payments. The verification of the total owed/paid has to come from the OC you were paying.

Q3 - Does the CA have to provide proof of the date I was notified of the account being turned over to them?

No, they don't. When THEY got the account really means nothing.

Why don't CA's and other creditor's use certified mail or some other system where this is verifiable.

Because it would cost them too much money. Besides all they have to prove, if challenged, is that they have procedures in place the says they mail things out in a speficied way. Their stance, and the court's, is that if the US Post Office didn't return it, then you got -whether you did or not - and we all know how often the USPS screws up !

The original creditor was saying that I needed to show proof that I wasn't notified. How is that possible?

Its not, as you have already surmised. You have to make THEM prove that they DID and that likely can't happen without a lawsuit and discovery.

Did you pay with checks ? Do you have ANY statements showing what was paid ?? You could get copies of checks from your bank, they typically keep stuff for 7 years. Unfortunately, that's likely to cost you a bit of money.