Consumer complaint received 2020-01-30
Company: Interstate Recovery Service, Inc.
State: TX
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other debt
Issue: Communication tactics
Sub-issue: You told them to stop contacting you, but they keep trying

Complaint:
I'm am submitting this report regarding a company called Interstate Recovery Service ( http : //www.interstaters.com/home.html ). While I was in college approximately five years ago, I received a phone call from a man offering a sports magazine subsciption complete with a sweepstake and a giftcard. As a student on loans and a minimal budget, the idea of a giftcard appealed to me and I gullibly said " sure '', after confirming that I could cancel the subscription at any time. I believe I actually received one or two magazines, but nothing else happened ( I never received the promised giftcard ). Eventually, I called back asking to cancel the subscription, which the operator refused to do. After repeated attempts to cancel, and after the " magazine company '' withdrew ~ {$150.00} from my bank account, I canceled my card and ordered a new one from my bank. I did not receive anything else. 

Fast forward to 2020. I've been blocking/ignoring most 800 calls, but answered a call from XXXX on XX/XX/2020. The man on the line claimed to be from Interstate Recovery Service and said I owed his company ~ {$560.00} for a magazine subscription I had been receiving at my school address ( I graduated several years ago and certainly did not receive the subscription that I repeatedly called to cancel before changing by debit card ). I told him that I did not receive the subscription or the promised offer, and that I had to cancel my card to end the unauthorized withdrawals. He became increasingly aggressive toward me, saying he could play a recording of my voice consenting to the subscription, which he did not actually do. When my wife got on the line and stated she doubted the validity of his claims given the number of consumer complaints we both found after briefly researching the company, he became even more aggressive and accusatory. When she mentioned the CFPB, he said he had no clue what she was talking about and finally hung up the phone on us. 

We did some more research and found many instances of people with the same problem. One news story ( https : XXXX ) mentioned XXXX XXXX XXXX as the alleged magazine company that Interstate Recovery Service was calling on behalf of. We reached out to XXXX XXXX XXXX, and an employee ( XXXX ) stated that Interstate 's demand could not be valid and that the company distributes to stores and does not target individuals. 

Interstate Recovery Service and/or its affiliates appear to be scamming people by promising offers and refusing to fulfill them, then continuing to withdraw money from people 's accounts and refusing to cancel " subscriptions, '' then sending them to this aggressive collection agency that is making bogus demands. Other complainants stated that they never consented to receive a magazine subscription. 

Here is the contact information listed on Interstate Recovery Services website : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX VA XXXX US ( XXXX ) XXXX XXXX XXXX

Company response to consumer: Untimely response