Consumer complaint received 2021-02-15
Company: Credit Center, LLC
State: CT
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Medical debt
Issue: Attempts to collect debt not owed
Sub-issue: Debt was paid

Complaint:
XX/XX/XXXX : - I opened two ( 2 ) medical debt collection notices I received from Credit Center , LLC ( aka XXXX ). 
- The first billing notice ( Account # XXXX ) was for a total of {$100.00} for the following charges, and dates of service ( which I later verified with the XXXX  representative ) : o {$100.00} on XX/XX/XXXX o {$30.00} on XX/XX/XXXX - The 2nd billing notice ( Account # XXXX ) was for a total of {$80.00} for the following charges : o {$20.00} on XX/XX/XXXX o {$30.00} on XX/XX/XXXX o {$30.00} on XX/XX/XXXX - I then called their listed local contact number ( XXXX ) and spoke to one of their representatives. 
- After verifying the dates of service, I agreed to pay the amount in full, which I did, using my VISA ( bank ) debit card, but asked that they be paid separately in order to receive confirmation from them that I had paid EACH notice in full, to which their representative agreed. 
- After completing the transaction, the representative agree to send an email to me with confirmation that each billing notice was paid in full. We then pleasantly ended the call. 

XX/XX/XXXX : - I noticed that I hadnt received the email from XXXX 
- Before calling, I checked to see if the payments had been processed through my bank account. 
- I found that I had been charged 6 times by XXXX on behalf of XXXX ( the medical billing office ) for a total of {$200.00} -- {$20.00} more than I was supposed to have been charged. The charges to my bank account ( in their listed order ) are as follows : o {$79.00} o {$30.00} o {$30.00} o {$20.00} o {$30.00} o {$20.00} - I called XXXX  at approximately XXXX, and spoke to the same representative as she indicated to me, UNPROMPTED. I asked her if she could tell by the number from which I was calling and she said, No. Because I remember your name and that you wanted me to charge the two payments separately., or words to that effect. 
- I immediately agreed that my bank statement confirmed that to b true, but that XXXX also charged me an additional {$20.00}, for a total of {$200.00}, instead of the {$180.00}, I was supposed to have been charged. 
- She then said Let me check the system. while she continued chatting about what might have happened. After offering a variety of explanations ( while still checking ) she offered that, Yes. It was paid in full. I then asked whether it showed that I had overpaid by {$20.00}, since the amount take by them from my bank account had to be somewhere. She then ( eventually ) said something like, Oh, yes. It is showing that you paid an extra {$20.00}, but it hasnt been applied to your account. Or words to that effect. I then asked where the {$20.00} had been applied and she implied that it was there, but it was just not applied to my account. I then inquired, confused, why there would be a record that I had been overcharged, but that it hadn't been applied to my account. She replied that she didn't understand but that was what their system was showing. I then asked her to confirm that XXXX owed my {$20.00}, to which she said something like this is very confusing. Let me check something. Then put me on hold. She came back a couple of minutes later and made some explanations that were nonsensical to me including one that implied that I still owed the {$180.00}. I replied that was definitely NOT the case and that XXXX owed me {$20.00} AND that the bill was paid in full and that she had already told me that it had been paid. She then apologized, and said she had to talk to the person who inputs the payments and put me on hold again. I was on hold for 10-15 minutes. During that time I kept hearing a clicking sound over the music playing, like someone was typing. Then, for about 10-15 seconds, I heard a high-pitched screeching noise that would have been unbearable in my ear if I hadnt been using the hands-free option on my phone. By this time, it was almost XXXX and she came back on the phone to say that I was going to have to send XXXX a letter, along with a copy of my bank statement, requesting to be reimbursed for any overpayment. I said I was not going to do that. That I had called because it was clear that I had overpaid, that my bank statement verified it, she confirmed it over the phone, despite XXXX never having sent a confirmation that it was paid. I told her that I wanted to speak to whomever was responsible for inputting the payment and sending the confirmation letter, and although she had just come back from supposedly talking to whoever was responsible, she said they had already left for the day. She said then said I would need to talk to the Manager, and put me on hold. She came back and said, He must have left for the day, hes not answering. She then tried to get me to agree to send the letter and bank statement as a request for reimbursement of the overpayment. I CALMLY said, No. This is how its going to happen. You are going to have someone from XXXX call me back tomorrow, no later than XXXX, with a full explanation why I was overcharged by {$20.00}, and also have a solution for reimbursing me for that amount immediately. Or words to that effect. However, Im not sure how much of that she heard, because when I finished there was silence at the other end. And said, Hello? Hello?. The call had been disconnected. I then checked their stated hours and saw that their office closed at XXXX. Thats when I went to this website to find out how I could report what appears to be some sort of shell game relating to this apparent SURREPTITIOUS overdraft of my bank account WITHOUT MY PERMISSION and without explanation of that overdraft of my account not even an admission that it may have been and inadvertent error on their part.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation