Consumer complaint received 2017-01-26
Company: Capital Accounts, LLC
State: CO
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Medical
Issue: Disclosure verification of debt
Sub-issue: Not given enough info to verify debt

Complaint:
I ca n't tell you if I will receive the information I need to verify the debt. I ca n't send a letter to request the debt, at least following common business practices. 

At this point, all I have received is a request for payment for a debt I may or may not owe. The instructions that came with the request said I should submit a letter of dispute within 30 days of receipt of the request. I read about how to do this on a number of websites ( including the CFPB site ), most all of which said I should send my letter registered mail. 

Unfortunately, Capital Accounts does n't provide an address to which a registered letter can be sent. All that is provided is a XXXX. 

Not to be deterred, I called the phone number provided on the request for payment, where I talked to a nice XXXX woman who could only provide me with the XXXX. XXXX address on the letter. I thanked her and moved on. 

However, within minutes, someone from Capital Accounts called me back! Her name is " XXXX. '' I asked " XXXX '' where I should send a registered letter disputing the debt. XXXX gave me an address - XXXX XXXX XXXX ( or XXXX - it was hard to understand her even though we went through the spelling three times ), XXXX XXXX, XXXX TN XXXX. 

Do n't use this address. 

Because it was hard to understand " XXXX, '' I went to verify the address using reverse look up. Two businesses exist near XXXX TN : ( 1 ) XXXX ( a quaint red-brick building with a drive up window ) @ XXXX. 

Again, not deterred, I looked up an address for Capital Accounts in Tennessee using the XXXX XXXX website. I was provided with XXXX addresses : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, TN XXXX - and - XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, TN XXXX Wanting to get it right, I called the XXXX number provided for the location on XXXX XXXX. 

Now, I have to admit I lied : I hit the " customer '' button rather than the " consumer '' button when prompted. I was not going to talk to XXXX again. 

And I was rewarded - I was put through to a native-English-speaking representative. I requested an address to which I could send a registered letter ... pause ... unexpectedly, I was transferred back to " XXXX. '' I told XXXX XXXX had apparently not written the address down correctly and she immediately transferred me to her manager, " XXXX XXXX. '' I told " XXXX XXXX '' what I needed and why. XXXX asked me what I was looking for and gave XXXX the highlights of my letter. While unable to give me any of the details I was requesting, XXXX did say he would mark my account as " in dispute '' and request an itemized billing statement from my one-time doctor. 

However, I said to XXXX, I still want to be able to send the dispute letter required by the request for payment. XXXX gave me the XXXX. XXXX address, again. I explained to XXXX that I could not send a registered letter to a XXXX and that I had XXXX addresses for Capital Accounts ( both above ). XXXX said to " forget about those - only the XXXX. XXXX will work. '' Lol CFPB is very clear about how to communicate with collections agencies : do it in writing. 

However, Capital Accounts offers no verifiable means of communicating in writing -- registered mail. In fact, it will do everything it can - including the old " pay no attention to the man behind THAT curtain '' game - to avoid following basic, ethical, business practices. 

As one of his former employees wrote about the current President of Capital Accounts, " Rarely in my 24 year career have I worked for someone whose level of integrity is only exceeded by his operational expertise and professionalism. [ He ] ... is a highly exceptional and tactful leader who truly values a collaborative approach that makes him a pleasure to work for. '' Unless, of course, you want to send the man a letter. Right, XXXX XXXX?

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