Consumer complaint received 09/22/2017 about Debt collection (Other debt) with GC Services Limited Partnership (CA).
Issue: False statements or representation
Sub-issue: Attempted to collect wrong amount

Complaint: About 2 years ago I had cancelled my service with XXXX XXXX because I was moving locations and XXXX XXXX informed me that they could n't service my new location. I had been with XXXX XXXX for years and never once had I had my services cancelled for lack of payment. I was current with my bill. When I called to cancel, the cancellation process went rather smoothly or so I thought. I was told that there would be no issues since I was a month to month customer at that point. When I moved to my new location I asked them to forward me all future correspondences for the final bill. I also asked them to forward me the prepaid labeling packages so I can turn in all their equipment since they refused to come pick it up from me. Well I never once received anything from them. I called XXXX XXXX several times over a few months but all they would tell me was that they had already sent out all correspondence and boxes. 

After a while I simply gave up. I was not going to spend time worrying about something I had no control over. That was not the end of this fiasco however. 

I come to find out that XXXX XXXX had assigned the account to collections. Not only that, but I find out that they also placed it on my credit report as a {$1000.00} unpaid balance. It should come to no one 's surprise that I was both shocked and furious at this. At first I disputed the account because I did not owe {$1000.00}. After the credit bureau sent me a notice saying that the account was verified as a legitimate debt I called the collection agency. I spoke with the collection agency GC Services around XX/XX/XXXX and they told me that they were collecting for boxes that were never returned. I tried to explain the situation to GC Services of how XXXX XXXX has never billed me or sent me the prepaid labeling packages after multiple requests but they did n't care.They just wanted money. 
I finally started communicating with XXXX XXXX and began chewing them out because of what they were doing. Again I asked for boxes and again I was not receiving anything. It was n't until about a month later that I decided to go to my old address and see if I was receiving anything in my name. Sure enough, I see that XXXX XXXX was sending the pre-paid labeling packages to that address ... One could assume that XXXX XXXX was simply sending the packages to the address in their file and that I was at fault because I never game them my forwarding address. One would be wrong. I was beyond outraged. I gave them my new address upon cancellation and I gave them my new address for those few months I was calling them to send me the boxes and final bill. I also gave them my new address several months later when the collection agency was contacting me about this bill. To continue sending any bills or packages to an address I had not lived in for almost a year and notified them on various occasions of my new address is ridiculous. Either they did it on purpose, or " the left hand did n't know what the right hand was doing. '' In either case, this is not my fault but simply a billing error or error on procedure on their end. 

Again that is still not the end of this fiasco however. Simply turning in the boxes did n't do me any good. Even though I had to do all the legwork for XXXX XXXX to get their equipment back, the collection account remained on my credit report. It did n't state that I owed any money anymore, it stated it was a paid collection. That however is not accurate. I did n't pay a {$1000.00} collection. The {$1000.00} collection never existed. I never owed that money and I was never billed anything from XXXX XXXX. Had I been billed, I would have paid them like I had been for the last 10 Years!!! I called GC services to try and explain to them the entire situation and again they did n't care. They claimed that they can only report accurate information on the credit report and they did n't have the right to remove accurate information. I then spoke with a consumer advocate and we got all the way to the Office of the president for XXXX XXXX for this situation. 

My advocate was very good at his job. He explained the situation to XXXX XXXX and pretty much summed up everything I said. He explained that I was never billed properly, that assigning it to a collection agency with an improper balance was an unfair practice, that reporting information which was not accurate was against the Fair Credit Reporting Act, and attempting to collect an invalid debt was against the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. He gave them every opportunity to attempt to fix their mistake but XXXX XXXX refused and simply tried to get me to dispute the account which I had already done. In the end, I am the one that is suffering because XXXX XXXX ca n't bill people or send boxes to the address provided to them even after being told the proper address for nearly a year. A " paid collection '' is still a derogatory mark on my credit report lowering my credit score for 7 years. It will affect my interest rates on all credit purchases and may even cause me to be denied for credit. In essence, they are slandering my good name and my credit worthiness because THEY DID NOT BILL ME OR GIVE ME A LEGITIMATE OPPORTUNITY TO TURN IN THEIR EQUIPMENT! I could n't even turn it in to a facility as none exist for me to do so. I literally had to depend on them to send me a box in order for them to receive their equipment. 

Well enough is enough. I am now asking that you look into their practices and fine them or sanction them if need be. After what I went trough I am certain I am not the only person this has happened to. If they wo n't fix this then I will have to sue as I spent far too much time and energy doing what I was supposed to in a business deal only to be punished for someone else 's mistake.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation