Consumer complaint received 2021-05-25
Company: PORTFOLIO RECOVERY ASSOCIATES INC
State: MD
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Credit card debt
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed
Sub-issue: Debt was paid

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX, I received my welcome letter from XXXX XXXX for my XXXX XXXX credit card with a credit limit of {$1800.00}. I opted in to purchase the " Card Security Debt Cancelation Program ''. The the verbiage below is copied directly from the Card Security Debt Cancelation program document, I fully qualified for a claim under my covered event " unemployment/job loss '' to have my full account balance cancelled. Furthermore, since my balance was less than {$10000.00}, my balance also fully qualified to be cancelled under this agreement : Cancellation amount for Job Loss, Leave of Absence and Disability Covered Events : After the Benefit Start Date, Your minimum payment shown on the first billing statement after Your Benefit Start Date is cancelled. 
After 30 days in a row of the Covered Event Your minimum payment shown on the second billing statement after Your Benefit Start Date is cancelled. 
After another 30 days or 60 days total in a row of the Covered Event Your minimum payment shown on the third statement after Your Benefit Start Date is cancelled. 
After another 30 days or 90 days total in a row of the Covered Event Your full Account balance is cancelled, as of the Benefit Start Date minus any payments already cancelled for this Covered Event. 
The total amount cancelled will not exceed the amount You owed on Your Benefit Start Date, up to a maximum of {$10000.00}. 

I placed my claim for these benefits with XXXX XXXX XXXX  via Benefit Request # XXXX and XXXX XXXX began making my payments for me under the Card Security Debt Cancelation program. When I saw XXXX had stopped making payments I contacted them to find out why and filed a dispute to the debt because I was still under the Card Security Debt Cancelation program and my debt qualified to be paid off under the plan. XXXX XXXX stopped returning my calls and emails, so I assumed they had paid off the debt as they were obligated to do under the program in XXXX. It wasn't until XX/XX/XXXX that I received a letter from XXXX XXXX stating they had sold my debt to Portfolio Recovery Associates, LLC and to contact them with my dispute. I wrote Portfolio Recovery XX/XX/XXXX with my first dispute explaining the above and provided them with the original claim paperwork to XXXX XXXX with further explanation for why I do not owe this money and asked them to contact their customer XXXX XXXX for more information if needed. Portfolio Recovery responded on XX/XX/XXXX, that they reviewed my dispute but didn't find it was enough to establish its validity ...?? I sent a second dispute per their instructions on the back of their letter to them via email on XX/XX/XXXX and included attachments of the Card Security Debt Cancelation program, the supporting documentation I sent to XXXX XXXX with my unemployment information and benefit request form, the proof that XXXX XXXX had been making my payments for me under the plan, and the correspondence I received from XXXX XXXX regarding payments, showing a payment made in XX/XX/XXXX. The documentation Portfolio Recovery sent me with their letter of XX/XX/XXXX included a statement date of XX/XX/XXXX which did not include payments that were made XXXX, XXXX, XXXX and XX/XX/XXXX and forward. I told them that the XX/XX/XXXX documentation they sent in their letter dated XX/XX/XXXX is irrelevant to this case and the balance they are trying to collect on is incorrect even if I didn't have the protection program! I asked that they again, please coordinate with " XXXX XXXX XXXX '' for an accurate account balance through at least XX/XX/XXXX. Then, at least that would be close to the remaining amount, after all payments made by XXXX XXXX  to my account and those made by me, that should be canceled under the Card Security Debt Cancelation program! I gave Portfolio solid proof of my actual statement dated XX/XX/XXXX and they refused to acknowledge all the original and additional data I had provided them in my second dispute by saying in their response dated XX/XX/XXXX that they have already reviewed y information and claim it alleges no new facts, which it absolutely did, solid proof that first the amount they are trying to collect is WRONG because they refuse to use the most recent statement of account I provided them from XXXX XXXX AND refuse to acknowledge the debt cancelation program. They further advised me any further communication from me would be ignored and that they consider the matter closed! This is unacceptable and wrong. I submitted my dispute and gave all the same information to the credit bureaus as well. If this hard proof of evidence I've submitted is not investigated and considered by Portfolio recovery, I will have no choice but to escalate this matter via every avenue available to me under consumer protection as I have started to do beginning with CFPB. Thank you for your time and your help to serve justice where it is due.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation