| Author |
Across the Fence:  Who do I contact? UPDATE  |
|
|
mikesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
3659 Posts
Sherri
Elma
WA
USA
3659 Posts |
 Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 1:12:39 PM
|
My mom just received a "collection notice" from an agency called Bay Area Credit for $935. This notice came to the house where she used to live - I sold the house to my son three years ago who in turn has
in turn leased the house to a third party. They notified my son that my mom had some mail there. Mom has been in an Alzheimer's home for almost 5 years, and I take care of all of her bills - which only consist of her care, and her doctor, which I take her to all of her appointments and the bills come here. There is no way that she has incurred a bill in the last five years that I wouldn't know about. I looked this supposed agency up online and couldn't find it and I did a reverse search on their phone number - no luck. This obviously is a scam. Who should I report it to? Any ideas? Thanks!
Farmgirl Sister #98
Check out my new online store
http://www.shopthefrontier.com/VFstore/index.php?manufacturers_id=79&osCsid=6be4b25bf9555031c6e2e86bbde23dba |
Edited by - mikesgirl on Feb 17 2009 09:45:05 AM |
|
|
gramadinah
True Blue Farmgirl
3557 Posts
Diana
Orofino
ID
USA
3557 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 1:20:06 PM
|
It took four years for a bill to get to me that was sent to the wrong address and then it finally hit the collection so I am just saying mine was real. If it is a scam notify the Police in you area. Or the BBB.
Diana
Farmgirl Sister #273 |
 |
|
|
Alee
True Blue Farmgirl
22941 Posts
Alee
Worland
Wy
USA
22941 Posts |
|
|
palmettogirl
True Blue Farmgirl
571 Posts
sue
camden
south carolina
USA
571 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 1:43:58 PM
|
| perhaps contact the post office. tell the people there about your mom being away that you don't believe the bill to be valid. it may fall into a "mail fraud" type of thing??? |
|
|
|
FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 2:03:34 PM
|
Ok...shoot me, but I'd call an attorney to write a quick letter. It sounds like that zombie debt that follows our clients around and you'll never make any headway with these creditors. They buy the debt for pennies on the dollar and then try to collect the $ for themselves. They will consistently keep adding late fees and harrassing you and everyone else that lives near or by her.
The police really don't care...and the BBB really doesn't either, sadly--they can do little, unless it's actually fraud. If you're going to call someone, call the office of your state's attorney general, who handles these types of creditor matters. You may make little headway there, either, because it's so common.
Best bet, seriously, spend about $60 and get an attorney to dispute the debt, demand verification (including any and all statements and correspondence from the ORIGINIAL creditor) and put it on a lawfirm letterhead. It's much easier solved that way. They'll back down, believe me. |
|
|
|
MagnoliaWhisper
True Blue Farmgirl
2817 Posts
Heather
Haysville
Kansas
USA
2817 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 2:56:30 PM
|
Since she has done her mothers business all this time, it is most definitely fraud and not a real creditor, especially since there is nothing online about this "business". So the police still need to know about this fraud. They prey on old people.
http://www.heathersprairie.blogspot.com |
|
|
|
Firemama
True Blue Farmgirl
1731 Posts
Amanda
Medical Lake
WA
USA
1731 Posts |
|
|
FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 6:50:44 PM
|
Well, it doesn't have to BE a debt from the last 5 years...it can be much earlier. They are not valid creditors, but they have most likely purchased the debt...and yes, it does seem fraudulent, but the state attorney general is equipped with lists of these very organizations, and probably have received complaints already. And, most of these creditors do not have webpages or any type of available information online, but that doesn't mean they're not licensed. I work for a business and estate attorney, and debt comes in all shapes and sizes, and "creditors", though the term is loose, do as well.
The BBB must be REALLY great all over the rest of America, and just be terrible here...we are actually advised NOT to inform them, because all they can do is put a "flag" and list the business...that doesn't stop them from harrassing you. |
|
|
|
FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Feb 16 2009 : 6:56:05 PM
|
Actually, I did a search and this is what I came up with, on the first try, the first "choice" in Yahoo search. They do medical collections primarily. If this is the organization, with your mother's health issues and medicines, etc and the way these doctor's turn things over to collections after 30 days, it could be plausible. Just a thought. I'm not saying you shouldn't dispute it...I am saying that you should demand all documentation.
http://www.bayareacredit.com/resume.htm |
|
|
|
harmonyfarm
True Blue Farmgirl
785 Posts
Debbie
Southeastern
Ohio
USA
785 Posts |
Posted - Feb 17 2009 : 09:35:04 AM
|
I believe depending on the original date that the bill was incurred, there is probably a statute of limitations on it anyway..?
I'd send a letter to your Attorney General. Tell them what happened and send a copy of the statement. Chances are that this collection company is doing this to lots of other elderly people. Ask the collection company to send you a copy of the original invoice/purchase agreement statement etc. if you don't have one. When all else fails, tell them you'll see them in court. Then they have to come up with the correct paperwork and all the time they will have to spend in litigation, they'll probably just go away.....maybe.
Thanks Alee for the website info...I'm gonna go check that out!
Debbie
"If you can't find the time to do it right...how will you find the time to do it over" |
|
|
|
mikesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
3659 Posts
Sherri
Elma
WA
USA
3659 Posts |
Posted - Feb 17 2009 : 09:44:38 AM
|
I think I"ve finally tracked down what's going on. My mom fell out of bed at her Alzheimer's facility about a year ago and they took her to the ER. I was under the impression that they drove her (it's about 2 miles) and they never told me any different. I talked to the lady who owns the home last night and she said they 'may' have transported by ambulance - she'd have to go back and look it up. She told me that the ambulance would be paid by Medicare and then my mom's secondary insurance IF the ambulance driver got a signature from the doc. She said that bill would have been about $600 (I know - $600 for 2 miles?). Anyway, $600 plus 50% for the collection agency would be about what they're saying she owes. I'll bet they didn't even bill Medicare and Uniform but what I don't understand is if they had that address the collection agency had, Mom hasn't lived there for a long time. Where did they get that address to send a bill to, if they sent a bill ( I have never received one). And, if the bill came back to them, why wouldn't they send it to the address they picked her up from, and they would have passed it along to me. I could have at least submitted it to the insurance companies. Now, they say, it's too late to deal with the ambulance company, it's already in collections. I have never dealt with a collection company before and I'm not going to call them from our phone and let them get our number. I think I may just follow the suggestion of getting a lawyer to deal with it. Mom does not have $935 - she runs about $300-$400 in the deficit every month. If the ambulance company would have submitted the bill Medicare would have paid it with a doctors signature as medically necessary. What a mess - just another example of someone not doing their job and the common person getting stuck with the results. I'm feeling pretty bitter about this this morning.........
Farmgirl Sister #98
Check out my new online store
http://www.shopthefrontier.com/VFstore/index.php?manufacturers_id=79&osCsid=6be4b25bf9555031c6e2e86bbde23dba |
|
|
|
gramadinah
True Blue Farmgirl
3557 Posts
Diana
Orofino
ID
USA
3557 Posts |
Posted - Feb 17 2009 : 09:51:34 AM
|
Sorry about whats happening. I would call a lawyer too and also to send a letter to the Ambulance company too.
Diana
Farmgirl Sister #273 |
|
|
|
FebruaryViolet
True Blue Farmgirl
4810 Posts
Jonni
Elsmere
Kentucky
USA
4810 Posts |
Posted - Feb 17 2009 : 10:19:28 AM
|
I'm glad you may have found out what's happening, Sherri. And, I'm sorry that medical billing can be so frustrating. These places hand things over now to collections after 30 days time--, it's hard to keep track of bills like that, especially when they mail them to the wrong place! I know with my Great Aunt, she was taken from the nursing facility in an outside ambulance service for radiation, for 8 days. I received a bill for $38,000.00, just for transportation. Every month, I got a new bill, in a different amount (sometimes more, sometimes less). I waited until they FINALLY, after 2 years, charged Medicare, and then paid the final sum of....$179.00--$38,000.00 to $179.00. Unbelievable.
Here's what I do know...you are not personally responsible for the debt, even if you are your mother's poa, you are not personally responsible for the debt. You do the best you can to pay them, but you are not liable. And, if your mother is on a limited income, and if counsel discloses the fact that Medicare was never properly billed for these services, it's likely they will settle, or write it off. Now, it's already in collections, so please don't feel bad about your mother's "credit". At this point, who cares? She's elderly, and it's neither here nor there.
I would ask that an attorney do the correspondence for you, because at that point, they will be forced to communicate with the counsel's office, thereby remedying you and your family from creditor calls, and that way they won't have any of your information. |
|
|
|
mikesgirl
True Blue Farmgirl
3659 Posts
Sherri
Elma
WA
USA
3659 Posts |
Posted - Feb 17 2009 : 11:05:37 AM
|
Thanks February Violet - that's exactly what I intend to do!
Farmgirl Sister #98
|
|
|
|
Thistle Cove Farm
True Blue Farmgirl
141 Posts
Sandra
Tazewell
VA
USA
141 Posts |
Posted - Mar 11 2009 : 1:04:57 PM
|
SCC - State Corporation Commission is another good contact; along with the State legal department or state lawyer. There's a name for it but can't remember.
Thistle Cove Farm ~ God's blessings on you, yours and the work of your hands & heart ~
www.thistlecovefarm.com
www.thistlecovefarm.blogspot.com |
|
|
|
Amie C.
True Blue Farmgirl
2099 Posts
Finger Lakes Region
NY
2099 Posts |
Posted - Mar 11 2009 : 1:15:57 PM
|
I can't say that Bay State Credit will be like this, but I received a notice from a collections agency once and it was very easy to straighten things out with them.
I called the number on the letter, explained to the representative that this "debt" was a longstanding customer service issue I'd been having with a credit card company, they agreed that it was nothing I should be expected to pay, and I never heard from the collections agency or the credit card company again. The collections agency actually set the credit card company straight and got THEM to stop harrassing me.
I hope this goes as smoothly for you! Bottom line: what February Violet said, this is not something you are personally responsible for, it's just a matter of billing going astray that needs to be set straight. |
|
|
|
Sagewood
True Blue Farmgirl
106 Posts
South Carolina
106 Posts |
Posted - Mar 11 2009 : 2:49:00 PM
|
You can also check with the insurance company. Most companies have a 'submit' cut off date (usually 6 months to a year) and if the medical/doctors/ambulance etc does not submit their claim within that time period, it is no longer valid that the insurance company pay for it. WHICH if I'm not mistaken, takes you off the hook too as it is their responsibility to file their claims as long as insurance information was given.
Start at the center she is at, collect all records of the fall and transportation, etc, then go the insurance company and have them review their records for that date WITH you. If the ambulace company did not file the claim, ask the insurance company who would be responsible for the bill.
Sure hope you can get this solved..GOOD LUCK!
Sage,
Visit Sagewood Blog
http://sagewoodfarm.blogspot.com/
The Hedgewife
Are you a Hedgewife?
http://hedgewife.blogspot.com/
|
|
|
| |
Across the Fence: Who do I contact? UPDATE |
|
Who do I contact? UPDATE
