Consumer complaint received 2016-07-20
Company: Merchants Credit Bureau, Inc.
State: MD
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: I do not know
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Attempted to collect wrong amount

Complaint:
The XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX has been demolished. I have reported the collection amount of {$1600.00} as being fraudulent previously. All residents were told well before the News XXXX Report on XXXX XXXX, XXXX and the Resident Meeting on XXXX XXXX, XXXX where the Housing Authority 's Planning and Development Director, XXXX XXXX explained what was happening and the events that followed ; Evacuation completion the summer of XXXX and the demolition which occurred XXXX. I witnessed the plans in action as the fences in the development were removed. I had an open case with the Housing Authority after my household XXXX from the stove leaking gas. I had reported to maintenance about trouble lighting the stove several times. The same stove was then dismantled by maintenance, and the gas turned off. No workable stove was in the unit. Once the stove was dismantled and the cause of the malfunction was found to be no fault of mine ( the renter ) the stove was due to be removed/replaced. More than three months passed where we were without a stove in the house at all, and more than six months total including the issues mentioned above when the stove was in-operable, the gas leak, and dismantling for investigative purposes I was told. When the new stove arrived maintenance asked me to sign saying I would pay for it, I asked them to please check with the rental office because I was told I would not be charged the {$200.00} for the cost of the stove. The stove was not delivered though the office stated via walkie-talkie that I did not have to pay for the stove because the cause of the previous stoves malfunction was not mine. Since XXXX after falling down the stairs the maintenance department regularly had to fix the banister for me to climb the stairs my family was treated unfairly, harassed, and harmed. By XXXX maintenance told me ( with the impending closing and demolition of XXXX XXXX XXXX ) that the banister would not be fixed again. My family therefore moved my bed ( XXXX of XXXX bedrooms ) downstairs. The Housing Manager informed me since XXXX that I would be moved to a single level dwelling because I had fallen down the stairs some XXXX or more times, possibly XXXX times and I could not have a bed in the livingroom. The case remains open to my knowledge since XXXX as I never have been able to get any acknowledgement or response to finalize a decision since XXXX ; All correspondence stopped and the case was closed with no explanation I 'm assuming. I still have not given-up on this fraudulent account in collections. The Manager started refusing to take my rent XXXX XXXX. I gave my 30-day notice and moved from an also violent area XXXX XXXX. It has been recorded that I was in the dwelling unit until XXXX XXXX and I can prove I fled and was in another state in a XXXX and prior to that I was traveling out-of-state and made it to another state in XXXX of XXXX. My {$88.00} money order was refused after the prior months rent/ a {$44.00} money order was lost by the XXXX Housing Authority 's Office. I had to trace it to get my money back. My rent was {$44.00} monthly. I had to trace the previous money order because the main office on XXXX XXXX informed me they had lost it. That caused me to lose the fee for the trace which I believe was about {$15.00} that I had to replace to get the above mentioned money order for {$88.00} since I owed XXXX months rent by then. I was told face to face by the Manager ; that the reason they would not re-certify me since XXXX XXXX, accept my payments for rent for XXXX and XXXX XXXX, nor move me to a single level dwelling since XXXX ; was because I had an open case with the Federal Government 's Fair Housing Office. There is no way I owe the amount of {$1600.00} in collections when the rent was {$44.00} a month.

Company public response: Company disputes the facts presented in the complaint
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation