Consumer complaint received 2023-03-24
Company: ProCollect, Inc.
State: OH
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other debt
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Attempted to collect wrong amount

Complaint:
Late spring / early summer of XXXX a collection notice was received from ProCollect IncXXXX, a debt collection agency, for a debt owed to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, an electricity provider for {$270.00}. 

I disputed the debt as I did not believe I owed any debt to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, and did not believe I had an outstanding balance. I was educated on what the provider was, and was told documentation would be provided to substantiate the debt. 

XX/XX/XXXX I received another letter from ProCollect, advising they were providing the documentation for the debt, and before confirming that I now agreed with the debt, advised that I needed to provide payment in full " immediately '' with the statement in the letter " To avoid further collection efforts, please forward payment in full by return mail immediately. ". 

The documentation that was provided was a " Collections Notice '' that was supposedly sent to me on XX/XX/XXXX from XXXX XXXX. However it does not explain how the debt was created. Therefore, I contacted ProCollect and advised that I still didn't understand why I owed this debt, that I didn't believe I did. I explained that all of my payments were made through my electric company, XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ), and that I had a XXXX balance with them and had been consistently making payments. I was told that XXXX collected my payments, and then sent them to XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, and I would need to contact them to obtain proof that I had paid the outstanding balance, for which I still didn't understand why I owed it. 

I contacted XXXX and they did advise XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX was a renewable energy provider and if under agreement with them for service, XXXX would collect the money and send it to XXXX XXXX. I was advised that they did not show any lapse in my payments, and that I no longer had service with XXXX XXXX. 

I did not hear from ProCollect again until I received another collection letter on XX/XX/XXXX. This letter advised me I need to " ... get this debt paid as soon as possible so your credit is not impaired. Negative information on your credit report typically remains for seven ( 7 ) years after the original due date and may significantly affect your ability to : ( 1 ) Obtain additional credit ; ( 2 ) Obtain employment ; ( 3 ) Purchase a home or car; and ( 4 ) Qualify for an apartment rental. '' Understanding this is probably a scare tactic, but unsure if they will really take the action, and unwilling to pay for a debt I don't have a memory of, nor have I been provided proof to substantiate the debt, I called ProCollect to discuss. 

Unfortunately, I didn't get the name of the person I spoke to, but I advised I had received the letter, but I was still disputing the debt. I requested the full documentation of the debt, not just a copy of a letter, to show that I owed the balance that had been placed in collections. I advised I was willing to pay the debt if it was proven that I owed it, but the documentation provided so far did not do so. I was told by the Collection Agent that my dispute didn't matter, and I needed to pay the debt. I was also told that it was my responsiblity to prove I didn't owe the debt, not their responsibility. I explained the collection agency was responsible for ensuring they are collecting on a valid debt, and to provide the adequate proof of the debt if disputed. The Collection Agent got frustrated and hung up on me. 

After this frustrating call, I called XXXX again to determine if there was anything they could do to help me get this matter resolved, as I still am unsure if they are going to report the debt on my credit, an I would like to keep that from happening in case they do intend to report it. XXXX again confirmed that I did not have any outstanding balance, and was able to advise me the date the agreement with XXXX XXXX was stopped, XX/XX/XXXX. They emailed me a copy of the " drop letter '' which contains this information. Additionally, they agreed to email me the billing statements for my account from XX/XX/XXXX - End of XX/XX/XXXX. ( I have not yet received these in the mail ) Today, XX/XX/XXXX, I received a call from ProCollect regarding this debt. I advised this Collection Agent of my dispute, my request for full documentation to show I owe this balance. The call basically went the same way as the last one, and once again ended up with the Collection Agent hanging up on me.

Company public response: Company has responded to the consumer and the CFPB and chooses not to provide a public response
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation