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Gas Bill with Harvard Collection Service

Date: Wed, 02/22/2006 - 11:24

Submitted by anonymous
on Wed, 02/22/2006 - 11:24

Posts: 202330 Credits: [Donate]

Total Replies: 5


My client (homeless) has a large gas bill at Harvard Collection Service for an address where she never lived. Neither the gas co. nor collection agency will provide teh dates of the service. How can she contest this?


Virginia

If your client is having troubles communicating with them, she'll have to send a certified letter to the collection company, and perhaps forward a copy to the gas company. Below is a sample...

When you are ready to submit this letter, send it certified mail. Keep the signed notification as proof they received it. If after 30 days you receive no reply, you can request to have all negative information removed from her credit file. If they are still unwilling to cooperate, you can fileyour complaints with the credit bureaus, and the BBB.

[quote]Date: Thursday, January 26, 2006

Re: Acct # xxxxxxxxx

To Whom It May Concern:

This letter is being sent to you in response to our telephone conversation on January 24, 2006. Be advised that this is not a refusal to pay, but a
notice sent pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, 15 USC 1692g Sec. 809 (b) that your claim is disputed and validation is requested.

This is NOT a request for "verification" or proof of my mailing address, but a request for VALIDATION made pursuant to the above named Title and Section. I respectfully request that your offices provide me with competent evidence that I have any legal obligation to pay you.

Please provide me with the following:



  • What the money you say I owe is for;
  • Explain and show me how you calculated what you say I owe;
  • Provide me with copies of any papers that show I agreed to pay what you
    say I owe;
  • Provide a verification or copy of any judgment if applicable;
  • Identify the original creditor;
  • Prove the Statute of Limitations has not expired on this account
  • Show me that you are licensed to collect in my state
  • Provide me with your license numbers and Registered Agent


At this time I will also inform you that if your offices have reported invalidated information to any of the 3 major Credit Bureau's (Equifax,
Experian or TransUnion) this action might constitute fraud under both Federal and State Laws. Due to this fact, if any negative mark is found on any of my credit reports by your company or the company that you represent I will not hesitate in bringing legal action against you for the following:


  • Violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act
  • Violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act
  • Defamation of Character


If your offices are able to provide the proper documentation as requested in the following Declaration, I will require at least 30 days to investigate this information and during such time all collection activity must cease and desist.

Also during this validation period, if any action is taken which could be considered detrimental to any of my credit reports, I will consult with my legal counsel for suit. This includes any listing any information to a credit reporting repository that could be inaccurate or invalidated or verifying an account as accurate when in fact there is no provided proof that it is.

If your offices fail to respond to this validation request within 30 days from the date of your receipt, all references to this account must be deleted and completely removed from my credit file and a copy of such deletion request shall be sent to me immediately.

It would be advisable that you assure that your records are in order before I am forced to take legal action. This is an attempt to correct your records, any information obtained shall be used for that purpose.

Best Regards,

Jane Doe[/quote]


lrhall41

Submitted by Teleport on Wed, 02/22/2006 - 11:32

( Posts: 1388 | Credits: )


Hi! welcome to the forums. If I was in this spot, I think the thing to do would be to send both the gas co. and collection agency validation request. Requesting that they send everything to you in writing, proving that your client is in fact, responsible for oweing what they say she owes. She says shes not, so its up to them to prove that she is. Actually you could probably just send the validation request to the collection agency and see where things go from there. But I thought that maybe if the gas co got something in writing, maybe they would respond. Most likely they won't though since only one of them can talk to you about the account and if its in collections, then its the collection agency that you need to be talking to. If you can't get validation proving that this debt is your clients, then you write the credit bureaus and let them know the situation. debt doesn't belong to client, you asked for validation, never got it...lada lada lada, then attach a copy of the letter you sent asking for validation. With having done this, the bureaus should remove this from your clients report. But you have to follow these steps. Also make sure when you send your validation requests, you send them through certified/return receipt, so you have proof of them. hope I have helped. shirley


lrhall41

Submitted by imkimssister on Wed, 02/22/2006 - 11:38

( Posts: 1301 | Credits: )


Writing letters will serve as proof but keep a follow up over the phone also. You will know how things are shaping up.

I would have sent my request to the original company, collection agency as well as the credit bureau at the same time. When the first two companies have failed to give me the details, I have already placed my dispute with the credit bureau. By this time, either the bureau will give me the results of their investigation. Or if they fail to send me anything, I can send them a follow up letter. I will save some time in disputes and my credit file fixes at the earliest.


lrhall41

Submitted by john on Wed, 02/22/2006 - 12:40

( Posts: 1231 | Credits: )