Hi, I need some advice on how to proceed best in this situation. Four years ago, I had a misfortune of visiting a dental office for cleaning. After the procedure, they did not submit a claim to the insurance company for several months and did so only after the insurance deadline. The insurance company rightfully declined to pay, and the dental office started billing me directly (the bill also included procedures they clearly did not perform). After my complaint to the State's Attorney General, they agreed to clear my account and sent me a "zero-balance" statement. Two years have passed since then, and they've started recharging me the same amount they've cleared from my account. They have turned the matter over to collections, to which I promptly responded and sent them the "zero-balance" statement that I had. The collection agency ignored my reply and listed the matter with the credit bureaus. My questions are: 1) Can the dental office start re-billing a debt after they've agreed to delete it? 2) Can the collection agency completely ignore my no-debt reply and list the matter with the credit bureaus? 3) What is the right course of action for me under the circumstances? I am planning to take the matter to court. Which violations can I state in my complaint (if you know the reference points of law, I'd appreciate that) and which remedies can I seek? Thanks in advance for any help!
I would first call the dentist directly and try to find out any information you can from them first. Maybe something happened in their computer system that said that you were un-paid. Remind them that the issue is resolved. They are the ones that hired the collection agency. They will be able to remove them from your CR. They will call the collectors, and tell them it was a mistake. Make sure you tell them that you want the entries off your CR. If that doesn't work, then file a dispute with the credit agencies, and provide that statement saying the account is closed, and you want the item removed from your account. Best of luck to you!
I did fax the dentist a copy of my letter to the credit agency enclosing a zero-balance statement. They completely ignored it, and sent me another billing statement with interest accrued... I guess, I will be looking for an attorney to take the case - it just seems unfair to me to have to pay the attorney's fees for such blatant violations on the dentist's part. Thanks for the reply - I will try to see if they've already posted the matter with the credit reporting agencies and go from there.
