Consumer complaint received 2020-05-21
Company: Southwest Credit Systems, L.P.
State: CA
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Other debt
Issue: Took or threatened to take negative or legal action
Sub-issue: Threatened or suggested your credit would be damaged

Complaint:
In or about late XXXX, I closed my account with XXXX XXXX XXXX ( XXXX ) after I suspended my service ( I had XXXX and was not able to live on my own ). XXXX billed my XXXX XXXX credit card for approx {$140.00}, which I contested through XXXX as not owed. XXXX reversed the charge/instructed me not to pay the amount in dispute. Thereafter, my recollection is the dispute was settled in my favor. In early XX/XX/XXXX, I received a collection notice from Southwest Credit ( Reference No. XXXX ) dated XX/XX/XXXX, seeking to collect {$170.00} allegedly owed for final billing to XXXX XXXX XXXX ( now XXXX ) from XXXX, with a {$25.00} fee added for the " returned charge ''. The letter gave payment options, included an " offered amount '' to accept {$100.00} as payment, and said I had 30 days from receiving the notice to dispute the amount with Southwest " or they would assume the amount was valid ''. I contacted Southwest Credit immediately and have spoken to them on several subsequent occasions, each time reiterating that I was disputing the debt. Their response each time has been to recite my payment alternatives, tell me to submit any supporting documentation to a PO Box ( Given the passage of time, I have no records relating to this dispute. ) and refer me back to XXXX since Southwest purportedly has no records. When I contacted XXXX, they told me that all the records were sent to Southwest Credit ( so I was getting a runaround ) and was told by a supervisor that " nobody here is going to help you ''. I subsequently spoke to someone in XXXX Customer Service and put the matter in dispute approximately two weeks ago ; I have not heard anything back. Today ( XX/XX/XXXX ) I contacted XXXX and was advised there was no record of my prior dispute. They confirmed that they entered a dispute today, Ticket XXXX, requesting action to get Southwest to remove negative credit report, remove amount for " charge back '' and either cancel collection or reduce settlement amount. I also contacted XXXX, but XXXX changed its credit card carrier to XXXX Visa in XXXX and no longer had any records, and XXXX Visa said they had no records extending back that far. Today, XXXX XXXX, which monitors my credit, notified me I had a negative report. Upon review, I see that Southwest Credit has reported that I am in collections on my credit report. Southwest Credit 's response is that once they have had the account for 30 days, they are obligated to file a negative credit report, and that since they received the account from XXXX on XX/XX/XXXX, it has been 30 days ( regardless of not sending a letter to me until XX/XX/XXXX ). They also advise that once they file a negative report they can not remove it. 

I feel like I am in a position where I have no options regarding the payment and now have a negative report on my credit. It is amazing to me that after all these years and without providing me with any records, they can take this kind of action. 

I have now spent hours trying to address this issue with both Southwest Credit and XXXX to no avail.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation