Consumer complaint received 2023-10-27
Company: Rowland Avenue Management, Inc. A/KA Columbia Debt Recovery, LLC d/b/a Genesis
State: WA
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Rental debt
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed
Sub-issue: Debt was paid

Complaint:
On XXXX XXXXXX/XX/XXXX - I received an initial notice of collection from Genesis for a debt that was paid for back in XXXX  total {$700.00}. I then requested for a debt validation request on XX/XX/XXXX which the company sent back the requested document on XX/XX/XXXX. Upon closer inspection, I noticed that there was several discrepancies such as missing payments that was not recorded properly. I then followed up with the receipt of proofs showing that I had paid for the initial deposit. On the same report, there was also proof of credit reversal approval from the leasing company back to us which was then reverse again to shown that we owed that amount. I consulted with an attorney and here is what was written back to the collection company " On XX/XX/XXXX at approximately XXXXXXXX XXXX I contacted your office seeking an update on my ongoing matter, which was previously discussed with XXXX on XX/XX/XXXXXXXX XXXXXXXX had informed me during our previous conversation that he would contact the XXXX to provide further clarification regarding the charges in question. However, to my surprise, XXXX stated that there was no record of XXXX 's commitment to reaching out to the XXXX on my behalf. 

In light of these conflicting accounts, I felt it necessary to consult with legal counsel regarding this debt collection attempt. The attorney I consulted with carefully reviewed the evidence provided, including receipts and the ledger sent by your team. Based on their analysis, it has been determined that this debt collection effort lacks validity. 

To be absolutely clear, according to the available evidence, I do not owe any additional payments to the XXXX. Given this conclusion, I kindly request an immediate cessation of all debt collection activities related to this account. 

To provide further clarity and transparency, I would like to outline the timeline of events as follows : XXXX XXXX XXXX ] : Receipt payment for {$400.00} and {$200.00} ( attached in the earlier email ) totaling {$600.00} in deposit. Notably, {$200.00} of this payment did not reflect on the ledger. 
XXXX. [ XX/XX/XXXX ] : Lease cancellation; Spoke to an agent from the leasing company named XXXX XXXX to request for a refund. 
XXXX. [ XX/XX/XXXX ] : Approval of a {$400.00} reversal, which my attorney has noted is an admission by the leasing company that they approved the refund and can not subsequently reverse it. 
XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX : Forfeit of deposit amounting to {$100.00}. My attorney has clarified that, as we did not move in and no lease term obligates us to pay {$100.00}, this forfeiture is not valid. '' I had spoken to their reps several times and email them to no avail. I was told by the agent that because there was a requested chargeback from the credit card company for which I requested for those receipts which they had ignored. I did not received any payment from the leasing company as per what the collection agency has said.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation