A collection agency is reporting to the CRA's that they collected a bad debt from me a few years ago. This is wrong. I never dealt with them and I never had the bad debt. When I called the collection agency, they said it must be me because they had my name and they do not make mistakes. They gave me the name of the creditor (someone I never dealt with) but said they had no address or phone number for the creditor. When I disputed this with the CRA's, they contacted the CA who apparently told them what they told me so the CRA's now report it as verified. Do I now write the CRA's and ask them to verify it with the creditor somehow (if they can get an address)? Or, do I ask the CRA's to somehow get the CA to verify it with the creditor? This is over a $50 debt I never owed. The creditor has never reported anything to the CRA's. I have no way of getting in touch with the creditor because I don't have any contact info. This showed up on my report for the first time about three years after they say I paid the debt off to the CA.
I have no idea why this showed up after three years. The funny thing is I never owed the debt and I never paid them . They actually claim I made two payments but are unable to provide any proof.
I'm stumped. But then I'm pretty new at this also. Maybe some of the regulars will have an answer to this. It seems hopeless to try the CA again because they will only say verified. But you have no way of contacting the creditor either. Don't you just love these people?
Send a validation letter to the CA. (search for "validation" at the bottom of this board) Since they obviously can't show that you made payments if you didn't, and they can't give you proof that you owe any debt to the collection agency, the record must be deleted. If you ever send a payment to a CA, the rules change. Send a letter stating this, and if they refuse to report to CRAs, send all correspondence with the CA to the CRAs stating that they won't or can't submit any proof of the debt. Collection Agencies make their money from misinformation, manipulation, and harrassment, so don't be afraid to be "pushy" with them. Educate yourself with the FCRA and FDCA.
I agree with MikeB. Your case DEFINITELY warrants a validation letter. There is an excellent validation letter floating around at this site. Maybe someone would be so kind as to post it for our newcomer. I also suggest you know exactly how to proceed with this when you ask for validation. Good Luck!
