Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Texas
Collection agency reporting wrong info. to credit bureaus without first contacti
A doctor gave my account to a collection agency, although the bill was paid in full. The agency tried only once to reach me, at an old phone number in TX seven months after I had moved. After the disconnect message, they decided the account was ''delinquent''. They simultaneously reported me to the national credit bureaus and sent me a form letter, mailed to my current address, dunning me for the alleged overdue amount. I called the doctor's office, which admitted that the bill was not delinquent. They called the collection agency to cancel the account, but now the erroneous information is on my credit reports. My question: did the agency err in not trying to reach me at my current address, which they had obtained, before notifying the credit bureaus? By the way, the doctor's office also had access to my new address but failed to contact me.
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Collection agency reporting wrong info. to credit bureaus without first cont
There's no violation in not having told you before they reported the debt; the violation was in having reported it as a bad debt and in sending you a bill for money you didn't owe, among other things. There are multiple violations of the Federal Consumer Credit Protection Act & the Virginia Consumer Protection Act, it sounds like, to me. I take it you're located in Virginia, now, and I'd like to ask you more about the facts of the case, so please feel free to contact me directly.
Re: Collection agency reporting wrong info. to credit bureaus without first cont
The issue is one of federal law, rather than state law. You can have the doctor write a letter to each of the credit reporting bureaus stating that the account was sent for collection in error, that it was never delinquent, and would they please remove that entry from your credit report.
You can also demand the collection agency verify the alleged debt, or remove the report from your credit reports.
You'll want a local lawyer, familiar with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, to assist you.
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