I f@#$ing hate Bill Collectors

[WilmywoodNCparalegal]

Why do they have to threaten people with lies? Why do they have to spew obscenities? and, most of all, why is it up to me, the consumer (or debtor) to check that THEY have their records straight with the credit bureaus?

And why do we let 3 major bureaus control our destinies, without any sort of credible accountability for their mistakes?

These people disgust me. Please share your "disgusting bill collector" stories...

[ThomCat]

1. Hospital Bill

I had a hospital's collections department start calling me to harrass me for payment one day BEFORE I received the first bill in the mail and a full 3 weeks BEFORE the bill was actually due.

It was a minor bill, just the balance due after my insurance paid most of the tab. They were harrassing me for almost nothing.

:wtf:

[madrchsod]

3. these people are the worst

collection scum on the planet..challenge any medical bill with a request for a line item expense accounting..you may have been overcharged with goods and services you never recieved. also complain to the insurance company about the bill...anything to put these scum in there place-living hell....

[madrchsod]

2. it is up to us..

i certainly know that! but the best defense is offense-make them send you a full accounting of all your bills in writing. challenge any bill or debt you think may be wrong. make it plain to them not to call you about any debts owed,etc,etc.good luck!!!!!

[bobbobbins]

4. ugh...student loan

I had a student loan for computer school, the school i was going to closed down and i petitioned them to waive the loan, which they did. Two years later I find out they reported it to my credit company even though i didn't have to pay it. I've sent the credit company numerous letters(including the letter that states i don't have to pay the loan) and they have yet to even respond. When i call, all they can tell me is i need to send a letter of dispute in triplicate to their office and they have to reply within 2 months or so, I have yet to hear a response. and I have a 15,000 student loan on my credit, i can't get any credit cards, i have 19% on my car loan, and i can't get a house, all because of this bullshit.

[OWR51]

6. Contact the Attorney General

Contact the Attorney's General office in the state you live in, the state that you went to school in, the state where the home office of the credit bureau is located, and the Federal Trade Commission. File complaints with each office. You will win eventually. Since you have suffered monetary damage(s), the high interest auto loan, you also may want to contact an attorney about seeking damages.

http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/Disputing_Collections/stopping-debt-collectors.html

[EmperorHasNoClothes]

5. Hospital bills are the worst

We have tons of them, and due to our sucky insurance company many that should have been paid have not yet. At least five or six have been referred to collections, including one for something like $15. I can't imagine how much the hospital has spent trying to collect on that $15.

Don't even get me started on Blue Cross of Minnesota though...

[barb162]

7. I was the victom of identity theft and it took months to deal with

the credit card companies, the credit bureaus, etc. It is one of the most horrible things to happen...they do take your life/identity from you. I had no bill collectors bother me as I was writing certified letters to the various companies as soon as I got a bill. In my so-called spare time, I was just doing letters non-stop for months and spending a lot more money trying to follow it all. They do take all your time from your life while it is happening

[mac56]

8. Years ago I was harrassed mercilessly by loan collectors.

They were ruthless and used every trick in the book.

Jump ahead several years. I'm working for an organization that provided emergency support to employees of downsized companies. You guessed it - one group we served were employees of a particularly ruthless collector that had closed one of its offices.

Thankfully, I pride myself on being a professional. Otherwise it would have been:

"What's that? You can't pay your bills? You have mean collectors harrassing you? And they don't care about your circumstances?......

HOW DOES IT FEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEEL????!!!"

[faithnotgreed]

9. that must have been wild: tables turned on said bill collectors!

[mac56]

11. Naturally I didn't succumb to the temptation.

But it sure was tempting.

Karma's a big ol' beeyotch.

[catmandu57]

10. Don't worry about them

Let them be as nasty as they want, just listen, tell them you're listening when they come to that awkward moment of silence, don't say a word hang on the phone with them they'll get so damn uncomfortable they'll hang up on you.
Or, do what I do ask them what they're going to do? shave my head and send me to Iraq?
My credit is shot, and I don't care, I don't need credit cards, if I can't pay cash I don't need it, look at what credit has done to the federal government.