Consumer complaint received 2017-07-10
Product: Debt collection — Auto debt
Issue: Written notification about debt — Notification didn't disclose it was an attempt to collect a debt
Company: JPMORGAN CHASE & CO. (PA)

I first want to apologize for the length of time it has taken me to file this complaint. I have been in the process of out processing the XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, and have been getting set back up in civilian life. In XX/XX/XXXX, my XXXX XXXX XXXX was totaled in an accident deemed to be the fault of the other driver. In the weeks following I had been in contact with both Chase Bank who was the lender of my loan, and the XXXX XXXX dealership in XXXX NC, and XXXX XXXX. Unaware of how the process works with replacing a totaled vehicle I was constantly calling both companies to ensure there was nothing that was needed for me to do on my end. I had called Chase at the end of XX/XX/XXXX to inquire whether or not I had to continue payments on the loan while the car as going through the insurance policy process. Chase informed me that I did have to continue payments, which was no problem at all. I have not missed a single payment since the beginning of my original loan starting almost exactly a year prior in XX/XX/XXXX. In the following weeks I was informed that the insurance policy from XXXX had covered all of the outstanding loan minus roughly {$1500.00}. I was under the impression that this had covered my monthly payment for the month of XXXX. Towards the end of XX/XX/XXXX, roughly the week of the XX/XX/XXXX, it had been four weeks or so since I had last spoke with Chase regarding my vehicle. I left a voicemail instructing someone from the company to call me back that week because I wanted to ensure everything was paid up and I did n't want my vehicle loan being placed into collections and effecting my credit. This phone call was never returned. At the beginning of the next week I finally was able to get a hold of a Customer Service Representative ( CSR ), who had informed me that my vehicle was placed in collections. I inquired as to why I was never informed via mail, phone call, email, or any other means. Which the customer service representative told me that Chase is not required to inform me of placing my account into collections based on a state law from NC. I told the CSR that what she had just told me did not make any sense, and that I would seek legal council. Her response was in a way mocking the fact that I said that to her. I really hope that Chase has the recording of this phone call because it was unbelievable. I had never felt so blatantly disrespected and undermined on the phone. I was then informed that they were waiting on a piece of paper from Mazda which would have completely covered the entirety of the loan, and Chase actually ended up paying me roughly {$500.00} because the extended warranty was worth more than what was owed on the vehicle. I quickly called Mazda and had that piece of paper to them within 48 hrs of our phone conversation, and I received my check from Chase roughly a week after. As I had informed the CSR, I decided to seek legal council from the XXXX XXXX XXXX at XXXX XXXX XXXX. This is where I was informed that it is a Federal Law to inform someone in writing before placing credit accounts into collections, and or statuses that can cause negative credit reporting. I was also informed of the CFPB, and if it was n't for her I would n't even be writing this report right now on your webpage. Armed with my knowledge gained I called CHASE bank back to see if I could simply request they remove the negative collections report from my credit report. After stating that I had sought the legal council that I had originally said I would, Chase Bank then attempted to say that my address was incorrect in the system which is why I never received my written notice. Here is a major problem with that. For the last YEAR I had been using the address of XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX  XXXX XXXX NC XXXX in order to verify my account information. Which I am more than certain if you have access to any of the recordings which they disclose of on their phone line you will hear this to be true. So openly on the phone they had admitted to never actually checking my address prior to releasing my credit information. Which again breaks federal law and they repeatedly over the course of the year had released my credit information without verifying my identity properly. On top of all of this they refused to go back and report the collections dispute as a mistake to the credit bureaus. Originally that was all I wanted was a simple admittance of a misunderstanding and me being able to have it removed from my credit history. At this point I am so disappointed in a company that I currently still use with one of my credit cards, and I fear that they may have done this to other people in the past. I am more than willing to discuss all matters regarding this instance, provide any and all paperwork needed, and would even be willing to testify in court if necessary. I can be reached via Email at XXXX for any and all questions. Thank you for your time regarding this matter and please look into this company and their Customer Service/ Credit Reporting Procedures.