Consumer complaint received 2015-10-07
Company: Harvard Collections, LLC
State: TX
Product: Debt collection
Sub-product: Medical
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Attempted to collect wrong amount

Complaint:
Couple of things here. This is directly connected to case XXXX of which you can share the information in each complaint with the other complaint party. 

I have yet another company attempting to claim this same unverified debt. Additionally now this debt - Which I was told went from a physicians office XXXX by Harvard Collections .... is oddly being collected XXXX as an ambulance bill. 

I have asked XXXX companies to provide proof that they actually purchased the debt .... maybe they XXXX work for XXXX as they use outsource collection agencies XXXX companies do, they make pennies on the dollar to our minimum wage - so the company saw that once vendor was collecting the amount wrong and sent it to another vendor? Or they are XXXX collecting the same thing with different descriptions? 

There is fraud all over this. I paid my co pays at the hospital that day, I am not sure why there is now a doctor charge and ambulance charge XXXX for XXXX from the same day with two different debt collectors. 

Additionally when asking for the original invoice, the notification of intent to send to credit collection agency, proof of ownership of the debt ... they guy said I can not provide you with that I can only give you the original invoice and our invoice ... XXXX well obviously I want more since XXXX agencies are trying to collect the same amount. 

So he provided me with two solutions .... 
1. I can just stop calling you and stop trying to collect, how about that? I asked if it would still be on my credit, he said yes, I said that is not good enough. 
2. Then he said I will settle this debt for you for {$150.00}, but refused to send that to me in writing with the requested verifications. How are you going to accept less as a resolution to me wanting verification of debt????? Sounds like a form of bribery to me. 

Then the XXXX manager - each time I asked for the documents I wanted they would escalate my call - told me if you want to verify that they tried to collect this debt, and that they did sell it to us you need to call them directly. You should be disputing with them and not us ... .. which would make my debt validation request pointed to the wrong party in the XXXX 30 days ... I think this is illegal. Additionally I am not disputing I was at the hospital, I am simply verifying where they are getting this amount because I have XXXX companies now that have tried to collect under different names. 

There has to be better reform ... how about transferring letters, from the original creditor and the collection agency each confirming they have completed a transaction for this XXXX debted amount. Something tangible, not just a hospital invoice and random collection company invoice ... I could make XXXX of those up and say I am the collection agent who owns the debt. The only thing this validates is that the collection company has my information. You have to come up with better regs around debt validation

Company public response: Company believes complaint represents an opportunity for improvement to better serve consumers
Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation