Consumer complaint received 2024-10-10
Product: Debt collection — Credit card debt
Issue: Took or threatened to take negative or legal action — Threatened to sue you for very old debt
Company: Bread Financial Holdings, Inc. (CT)

In XX/XX/year> I completed a transaction at the Children 's Place store iXXXX XXXX, XXXX At the time of checkout out the cashier asked me if I would be using a store credit card. I informed her that I did not think my account was active any longer as it had been many years since I used the account. She checked her system using my personal information and did not find a store account. I proceeded with the transaction using my husband 's debit card, which was charged to his bank account. 

A month later I received a Children 's Place Credit card statement for {$130.00}, the exact amount of the purchase made in-store on XX/XX/year>. I contacted the company to inform them of what had happened at checkout and that I was not responsible for the charge as I paid with my husband 's debit card, not the store 's credit card ( which I did not even physically have, the store would have had to complete a card look-up. ) The agent advised me to send a copy of my bank statement verifying the transaction to the below address : Community Capital Bank XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX, Ohio XXXX I mailed a copy of the bank statement to the address and considered the issue resolved. Shortly after, I was contacted again with a credit card statement via mail, this time with a late fee. I again reached out to the company to explain all of the above. At that time the agent asked me to resend the statement. This time, I asked if there was an electronic option for providing the information so we would not run into any issues. She informed me that mailing the evidence was the only option. Once again, I made a copy of the bank statement and mailed it to the XXXX XXXX XXXX. 

For months following the second attempt to resolve this issue, I received credit card statements with increasingly larger debt due to late fees. After explaining the situation over and over, I ended up closing all three of my credit cards through Commenity bank. I no longer have a Children 's Place, Victoria 's Secret, or New York and Company account. At that time, the Children 's Place sent my bill to collections. 

When I was first contacted by XXXX XXXX XXXX, I explained all of the above and told them I was not responsible for the now {$500.00} amount. My husband even spoke with an agent after I became increasingly upset at their threats to sue me. We did not receive any help to resolve the issue and were met only with negotiations for a lesser amount due. I refused to pay any amount on a debt that was not mine. 

I have continued to receive collection notices in the mail regularly, and multiple phone calls every week from Account Services at XXXX. I have multiple pre-legal Department notifications demanding full payment and intent to sue me if I do not comply. The amount of time and XXXX  this event has cost me is insurmountable, including having to take this current action of filing a complaint against XXXX XXXX XXXX for their relentless pursuit of false debt collection. My next step is contacting the credit bureau to ensure my XXXX XXXX has not been negatively impacted by the company 's technical inefficiencies. 

I have and am happy to provide the bank statement confirming that I am not responsible for this debt to anyone who needs evidence to support my complaint. I have been entirely transparent about this event from the beginning and have made multiple attempts to resolve the ongoing issue for XXXX years with no success. 

Thank you for your time.