Consumer complaint received 2019-01-19
Company: ERC
State: CA
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other debt
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed
Sub-issue: Debt is not yours

Complaint:
There is an account with a collection agency named XXXX  XXXX XXXX. They are collecting for XXXX. They are collecting over {$1400.00}. The problem is, I don't owe it .... 

I want to be truthful right from the beginning so you can understand my problem. It's not that I never had an account with XXXX. It's not even that i didn't owe them money. The problem is that I don't owe anywhere near what they are attempting to collect from me. They are attempting to collect almost triple what I owed. I have had a problem with it for years and now I've had it. Well I finally have proof that they are attempting to extort and racketeer an illegal amount and I will no longer stand for it. 

Back In XXXX I went to purchase a home with XXXX XXXX XXXX. XXXX  pulled a credit report and I saw there was accounts that never belonged to me. Because there were so many, I assumed this was a identity theft case and filled out a notarized ID theft affidavit along with a police report. I submitted the fraud packet to all the credit bureaus so that the accounts that did not belong to me would get removed. It mostly worked. All the accounts on my credit report that were fraudulent were deleted from my report and an extended security alert was placed on my credit report. The only account that did not get deleted was the ERC collection for XXXX. 

I received a letter from ERC dated XX/XX/XXXX. In that letter, I received an itemization from XXXX showing a total balance of {$1400.00} for a bill of XX/XX/XXXX - XX/XX/XXXX and a bill date of XX/XX/XXXX. It had a XXXX account number which you have asked me not to place on this complaint. I'm sure ERC thought this account was now valid as they had handed me a detailed itemization with my name, address, account number, and balance due. What i'm sure they didn't expect is that this account ledger was proof that XXXX has been racketeering charges illegally and I am now close to filing a lawsuit against XXXX and ERC as a result. I hope they don't take this threat idly because I am dead serious. To show you, ERC, and XXXX that I am serious, I will provide you with the same document I provided to ERC on my complaint to them via e-mail on XXXX. 

I happen to have a collection notice from a collection agency named XXXX  XXXX. It is for a XXXX collection for the amount of {$520.00}. It has the exact same account number as the XXXX itemization of XX/XX/XXXX. Here is the kicker however. The collection notice for XXXX XXXX is for a date of XX/XX/XXXX ... Not to sound insulting, but let that sink in for a moment. Just in case however, I will describe the situation in detail. 

ERC is attempting to collect an account for XXXX with a final billing cycle of XX/XX/XXXX for {$1400.00} +. The problem is that the same XXXX account was closed off and sent to collection back in XX/XX/XXXX for only {$520.00} ... How can an account that was already closed and sent to collection in XX/XX/XXXX still be racking up charges until XX/XX/XXXX? If that doesn't prove the charges on this account are erroneous and fraudulent then I don't know what does. But it gets even worse from here. 

Since I didn't seem to be having any luck, and ERC was supposedly being verified at the credit bureau level, I decided to hire an old friend of mine to help me in fighting this. he called ERC on XX/XX/XXXX explaining the situation. he spoke with a collector named XXXX XXXX. In that conversation, he was transferred to a team lead named XXXX. XXXX asked that he submit an e-mail with the proof I had about the fraudulent account. he did so on XX/XX/XXXX with a full explanation as well as the requested documents. In that e-mail he was very specific in that I was demanding that they deem this account as fraudulent and cancel the account back to XXXX. He even warned them of the impending complaints I would be filing and the lawsuits I would be bringing up should they fail to comply. Well guess what? They didn't comply. 

On XX/XX/XXXX, my friend called ERC because we noticed the account was still on my credit report. He spoke with an XXXX XXXX. XXXX told him that they did in fact receive our documents but that the account was never placed under fraud nor was XXXX ever contacted. In the e-mail I will provide you a copy of, you will note that the first sentence in the second paragraph mentions this account as being disputed as fraud. Why would they not place this account as fraud? Why would they simply place this account as a disputed account wen they were given evidence that the itemization they provided was faulty and erroneous? I'll tell you why. because ERC does not care about the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. They are simply attempting to feign ignorance by claiming they don't have any power to change anything. My friend asked to speak to a supervisor and was able to do so but I don't have his name. That conversation pretty much went the same way. They aren't going to do anything but ask their client if this is a fraudulent account ... 

I had to read the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act because this account has been preventing me from buying a home since XXXX. I learned that under 809. Validation of Debts, if I dispute a debt, they have 30 days to provide proof that the debt is valid or cease collecting the debt. Well when ERC received the dispute on XX/XX/XXXX, they had until XX/XX/XXXX to fix this account or get proof. They never did. In fact, XXXX and the supervisor stated they would begin their investigation with XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX ... well past the 30 day mark. They were just THEN beginning the investigation. I won't stand for it. I am filing this complaint not just for me but so you can look into their practices and operations as I am sure I am not the only person they are trying to take advantage of.

Company public response: Company believes it acted appropriately as authorized by contract or law
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation