Consumer complaint received 2021-07-17
Product: Debt collection — Other debt
Issue: Written notification about debt — Didn't receive notice of right to dispute
Company: ERC (CA)

A company called Enhanced Recovery Company ( " ERC '' ) has been attempting to collect a disputed debt. The alleged debt is for {$110.00}, which originated from XXXX XXXX XXXX ( " XXXX '' ). I first disputed the alleged debt with XXXX in XX/XX/XXXX. 

Sometime thereafter, XXXX sold the alleged debt to a collection agency in Texas called XXXX XXXX. XXXX XXXX engaged in harassment and other unlawful collection attempts. I twice disputed the alleged debt with XXXX XXXX, in writing, on XX/XX/XXXX, and XX/XX/XXXX. I never heard back from XXXX XXXX after my second letter. 

It appears that ERC ( the company that is the subject of this complaint ) acquired my account from XXXX XXXX. Because I previously disputed the alleged debt in writing with both XXXX and XXXX XXXX multiple times, ERC very likely knew, or at least, should have known when it bought my account from XXXX XXXX that the debt had already been disputed. 

Despite ERC being on notice of my prior dispute, ERC, on XX/XX/XXXX, reported my account as Collections to XXXX  and XXXX. Additionally, ERC reported such negative status to these credit agencies without first providing me with any notice that it acquired my account. The first I learned that ERC acquired this account from XXXX XXXX was when I received notice on XX/XX/XXXX from XXXX and XXXX  that ERC had negatively flagged my credit report. 

Apart from ERC failing to provide me any notice before providing a negative " collections '' report to XXXX  and XXXX, which is the main part of this complaint, given past events, I'm very concerned that this problem may never go away. In other words, each time I dispute this exact same alleged debt originating from XXXX, the collection agency apparently just sells it to another collection agency, and that subsequent collection agency once again tries to ding my credit report. It's a never ending cycle. I.e., an alleged debt, once disputed, can apparently be sold to another collection agency, which then resets the clock, requiring me to start the dispute process all over again. How will this problem ever go away, unless I just succumb to what is essentially extorsion? 

I would like my complaint to apply equally to XXXX, as they breached the internet service contract in the first place by raising my rate during a 12-month fixed price contract. More specifically, about halfway through the contract, XXXX contacted me, claiming that the sales rep misquoted the price. Thus, according to XXXX, they had to raise my monthly fee, despite that the 12 month service contract had already been in effect for about 6 months. I decided to cancel the contract when XXXX refused to honor the contract price. However, XXXX continued to bill me at the increased rate. XXXX made it exceedingly difficult to cancel the contract. Each time I called, they would transfer me around to various departments, putting me on hold for literally hours. Sometimes they would simply disconnect the call. I finally sent a written request to cancel service. Only then did they cancel, but it took them two months to shut off service, and they billed me for that extra time. 

This entire ordeal has been over-the-top unethical, and likely unlawful. Starting with : 1. XXXX trying to overbill me and breaching the 12 month guaranteed fixed rate contact. 

2. XXXX not timely cancelling my service. 

3. XXXX selling the alleged debt to XXXX XXXX. 

4. XXXX XXXX repeatedly harassed me, and ignored my initial requests to stop contacting me. 

5. XXXX then sold the collection account to ERC. 

6. ERC reported my account as a " Collection '' on my XXXX  and XXXX  credit report, before notifying me that they bought the account from XXXX XXXX. ERC only sent me a " Notice of Rights '' letter AFTER I disputed the negative collection report that it made to XXXX  and XXXX. 

ERC and XXXX ( and any other collection agency that buys this bogus debt account ) should be sanctioned. Thank you.