Consumer complaint received 2026-04-15 00:00:00
Product: Debt collection — Rental debt
Issue: False statements or representation — Attempted to collect wrong amount
Company: Metro Collection Service Inc.
State: SC

Complaint narrative:
Company name : XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX Address : XXXX XXXX XXXX, XXXX, CO XXXX I am a former tenant of The XXXX ( XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXXXXXX, CO XXXX ), managed by XXXX XXXX XXXX XXXX. I vacated on XX/XX/XXXXXXXX after two years of tenancy. Following my move-out, the property referred an incorrect balance to a third-party debt collector, Metro Collection Service ( Reference No XXXX XXXX ), without first resolving documented billing disputes that had been open since XX/XX/XXXX. The following facts are supported by written documentation I am prepared to provide : 1. Incorrect amount sent to collections. The property reported a balance of {$120.00} to Metro Collection Service. On XX/XX/XXXXXXXX five days after the collections notice was dated the property 's own property manager confirmed in writing that the correct amount was {$28.00}, not {$120.00}. The inflated figure was sent to collections without correction, resulting in {$11.00} in interest charges applied to an amount the original creditor knew to be wrong. 2. Violation of Colorado law requiring accurate utility billing. My lease included a utility addendum requiring the property to provide detailed billing statements showing actual usage, billing methods, and allocation formulas. Beginning in XX/XX/XXXX, I made repeated written requests for accurate utility statements after discovering that my bills reflected estimated rather than actual meter readings due to submeter malfunctions. The property and their third-party billing provider, XXXX, were unable to provide these statements at any point during or after my tenancy. This failure implicates multiple Colorado legal obligations. Under Colorado law, landlords must ensure utility billing practices adhere to standards of accuracy, provide timely and detailed billing statements, and are prohibited from charging tenants more than their actual usage. Tenants are entitled to review actual utility bills and submeter reports upon request. The property 's failure to provide these after repeated written requests is a direct violation of these obligations. Furthermore, Colorado XXXX enacted in XXXX prohibits estimated billing methods and requires consumption-based billing for each unit. The confirmed use of estimated charges during my tenancy, acknowledged in writing by the property 's senior community manager, constitutes a violation of this standard and may constitute a deceptive practice under the Colorado Consumer Protection Act. 3. Unresolved overpayment. In XX/XX/XXXX, I paid {$99.00} under written protest for disputed estimated utility charges, then immediately requested a refund in writing. The property never resolved this dispute or issued any refund. 4. Uncorrected billing overcharges. I identified and raised in writing in XX/XX/XXXXXXXX that my monthly trash charges did not match the rate specified in my lease. The property never issued corrections or credits for the affected billing periods. The property 's decision to refer this account to collections while these disputes remained open and unresolved and to report an amount they knew to be incorrect has caused material harm, including the threat of adverse credit reporting on a debt that has never been accurately substantiated. I am requesting that the CFPB require the company to : ( 1 ) confirm in writing that no adverse credit reporting has occurred or will occur in connection with this account ; ( 2 ) provide the verified, itemized basis for any amount they claim is owed, including actual meter readings and corresponding utility statements; and ( 3 ) resolve the outstanding billing disputes that have been documented in writing since XX/XX/XXXX, including issuing any credits or refunds owed under Colorado law. I have retained all supporting documentation including lease agreements, two years of payment records, and written correspondence with the property spanning XXXX through XX/XX/XXXX. I am simultaneously filing a complaint with the Colorado Public Utilities Commission regarding the estimated billing practices.

Company response to consumer: Closed with explanation