Product: Debt collection

To the C.F.P.B., This complaint is about what I believe to be complete unfairness on behalf of XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX  and their collection agency Conserve. It begins a few months ago during XXXX of 2024. 

A few months ago, I receive a collection notice from Conserve about an amount owed to XXXX XXXX XXXX. I saw the notice, and I immediately called Conserve to pay the amount owed. I expressed to Conserve that I had never once received a bill about this from XXXX XXXX XXXX, but that I had no issue paying it, so I paid it. During the conversation with Conserve, I asked if this was hurting my credit? If it was, would this be removed from my credit report? Conserve said they would let the credit bureaus know this was paid. Little did I know that didn't mean they were going to delete it. 

On XX/XX/XXXX of 2024, I called Conserve because I noticed this account was on my credit report still. I asked if they were going to delete this account from my report, but I was told No. They said no because in my initial call to them when I paid the account, they said I confirmed my address. Conserve said that because they had the right address, there was no reason to remove this from my credit report. This is very frustrating, and I do not believe it is fair nor right. I may be a young man barely about to begin in life, but I know how important credit is. My credit before this collection hit my report was perfect. Not a single collection, late payment, charge-off, repossession, foreclosure, bankruptcy, or anything else that reports on credit reports. My credit was technically perfect. Now it is being ruined because a university has bad billing practices, and their collector won't acknowledge that it is not my fault I never received a notice about this debt before I received their own initial collection notice. 

Why should I have to suffer credit consequences for 7 years because XXXX XXXX XXXX decided to simply send an account to collections without notifying me first? No chance to pay it, no chance to dispute it, no chance to investigate why I owe it, no chance for anything. I also know for a fact the University never tried billing me because I have never been notified or billed for a single unit before. My tuition was being covered and paid for by my father 's VA benefits. The university was billing the VA directly or someone other than me. Another way I know I have never been billed before is because I live in the same address now as when I was enrolled in the University. They can't claim they didn't have my address or billed a previous address either. I ask again, how is it possible a university can just send me to collections and hurt my credit without first giving me an opportunity to address any bill owed? 

As for the collector saying they had my correct address, what does that have to do with anything? Yes, they had my correct address. That is why I received their first notice, called them about the initial notice, and paid them. What does that have to do with me being sent to collections without being billed previously? What does that have to do with me having a negative mark placed on my report for something I was previously unaware about? Am I not allowed a chance to dispute a bill or inquire about it before a negative entry is placed on my report? I never received that opportunity. All I know is I received a collection notice, saw it was from a University I hadn't attended for about a year and a half, notified the collector this was the first of me hearing about it, asked for any negative entry to be removed from my report upon paying it, and paid it immediately. Again, why do I have to suffer credit consequences for 7 years for everyone else 's mistake or bad billing practices? 

After the phone call with Conserve where they refuse to remove this account from my credit report, I called the credit bureaus immediately to dispute this collection to have it removed from my credit report. I just received their notices where the bureaus verified this account. Truth be told I am completely at a loss right now. No bill until I receive a collection notice, and now I have a damaged credit report even though I paid it immediately. What am I supposed to do now? Sue? I guess if this complaint does not work out, I will have to as I have done everything else I can think of.