Consumer complaint received 2024-07-02 00:00:00
Product: Debt collection — Other debt
Issue: Took or threatened to take negative or legal action — Threatened or suggested your credit would be damaged
Company: Aspen National Financial, Inc.
State: MI

Complaint narrative:
On XX/XX/year> I was sent an email from XXXX [ for XXXX XXXX XXXX ] regarding past due monies XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. The amount shown in the email is {$700.00}. They threatened to send the account to collections if not paid by XX/XX/year>. Because of the fact that the email was not sent from XXXX or XXXX XXXX XXXX, which is the company the XXXX is through, the email went into my spam folder and I didn't receive the letter until XX/XX/XXXX, at which point I immediately contacted them to let them know that I had only just then received the letter and had been trying to borrow money to pay the amount owed. I had been interacting with someone from the company and we had discussed setting up payments and she said she'd send me something, but I never received anything. Once again, I had been watching for emails from XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX 

I have only been able to find part-time temp work since XXXX, and have been struggling and borrowing money just to pay my utilities and meet other obligations, so this account, which I've always tried to pay on time, was put off until I was able to get enough money to pay it. 

On XX/XX/XXXX I received an email response that my account had been sent to collections ( I found out when I called the number I was given for the agency that they had received my account the DAY AFTER I had contacted XXXX XXXX, XX/XX/XXXX ). When I called Aspen National Collections I was told that my total amount owed was {$1700.00} which shocked me because it was almost 3x what I was told was owed in the email that I received from the XXXX company. I tried to explain to the gentleman [ XXXX XXXX ] at the collections agency that the amount he was telling me couldn't possibly be correct and told him I had managed to borrow {$500.00} to put toward the payment, and he threatened me at that time that they will report this to the credit agencies and it will affect my credit. Since I hadn't received anything from their office yet, I told him I would wait until I received the letter, and immediately tried to call XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX XXXX XXXX to find out what was going on. After digging the woman who I was speaking with managed to figure out that the amount that they had been telling me I owed was incorrect and it was actually double that. I pleaded my case to her regarding the email not being received and paying the {$500.00} and making payments to pay off the rest, and she tried to get her manager to approve it but was told that I would have to deal with collections. 

I finally received the letters ( yes, they sent two, apparently XXXX for each account that the XXXX company is claiming I owe ), and the letters received now show that I owe a total of {$1700.00}. 

I have had this XXXX for over 20 years and have always tried to pay on time or at least set up a payment plan. The reason I failed to set up a payment plan this time is because it really wasn't possible.

Company response to consumer: Closed with non-monetary relief