Cable scam? What do you think?
 

Let me share with you the insanity that took hold yesterday...

I used to live in Athens, GA. I now live in Nyack, NY. The final move-out date from Athens (after which I never lived there again) was July 2004.

When I moved, I cut off all utilities and such and paid off any balances.

Yesterday, my father checked my "billing address" which is a P.O. Box in Georgia that I use as my mail headquarters (he checks it daily) and found a collections notice associated with a cable account I had in Athens. The company is "Charter Communications."

This collections notice states that I owe $104.03 and that the account is negatively affecting my credit.

Here's the kicker...

The account was sent to the collections agency at the end of 2005. And the home address for the account??? It was a location where I have NEVER LIVED.

Account Info (each one has a separate account number):

ACCOUNT 1
-------------------------------------------------------------
280 XX Drive (Athens, GA)
*This is my real account and real address.

Start Date: 8/3/03
End Date: 7/27/04

Status: Voluntary Disconnect by customer; good standing
-------------------------------------------------------------

ACCOUNT 2
-------------------------------------------------------------
260 XX Drive (Athens, GA)
*This is the account they pinned on me where I never lived.

Start Date: 8/1/2003
End Date: 9/17/2003

(YES, that's SIX WEEKS)

Status: Cut-off by company; delinquent ($104.03)
-------------------------------------------------------------

Both accounts are listed under my social security number and my name. So, I spent the majority of yesterday on the phone with the cable company and the collections agency. I had to get my father involved since he's actually IN Georgia and I'm not.

They told me all kinds of crazy stuff. Near the end of the day, I finally got to talk to a woman at the cable company who actually listened to me and saw what I was talking about. She's the one who gave me all the above information about dates and such (no one else would release that info to me!)

My father is going into the local Athens cable office today to set them straight. I had to send a note with my signature giving him permission to access my account - the note has all my info including phone number in case they have an issue.

Here's what I think happened:

The people in 260 XX Drive had a delinquent account for a couple years. The cable company wanted its money. So, they made a little typographical "mistake" and put the account under the name of a customer who never missed a payment and paid in full at the end of the service. It's easy to see how similar "260" and "280" are. They could just say it was a mistake.

And, I'm thinking that they figured after the two years (Mind you, they don't "keep accounting records" past six months! So, I couldn't do any investigating even if I wanted to!) they could harass me to the point that I would just give them some money to leave me alone.

I suppose they didn't expect that I would cause such a ruckus! Best believe I WILL be going to my landlord (who owns both 260 and 280) and getting evidence that I never lived at 260. For heaven's sake, I never SET FOOT on that address!

So, tell me, what do y'all think?

yeah...that's completely ridiculous! If your father isn't able to straighten it out, DEFINETELY contact your old landlord and get proof that you didn't live there! I don't know if it's nessecarily a "scam", alot of people are just underqualified for their jobs i think, so it's possible they just really F*d up(and think, you may not be the only one!) but I would keep on fighting (especially since you can get actual "proof").

I think I'm sticking with Satalite...

Seriously though...if they don't have acct records past 6 months as they CLAIM (Which I know is BS - all accting records must be kept for a min. of 5 years - unless your my company - I've found faxes in this office from 1980) then how can THEY prove you owe them? The burden of proof is on them. Pull a credit report, and if they have reported it, send a certified letter to the credit bueraus, and since the cable company has no proof you owe them the money, they will have to take it off your credit report.

Ah, reaaaaaally? Thanks for the information!! I will use it wisely. ;)

I'm sorry this is happening to you. This is going to sound geeky, but Clark Howard talks about this stuff all the time. His website will have plenty of information on how to fight this and win: www.clarkhoward.com .

By the way, I know the one thing he definitely always says is to deal with it with the company itself (Charter), do not deal with the collection agencies as they have a tendency to circumvent the law if you don't know your rights.

I don't know how people who work as collections agents sleep at night. I worked at a Credit Counseling Agency as a temp. assignment once, and some of the things our clients told us the collection agents said are just crazy!! Plus, the collections agencies would call us and try to bully us into sending money (like it's our problem or something).

I had a problem with Cap1 and they had a collection agent call me and he said right off...I need you to get your checkbook and give me the # so I can debit it from your acct. I asked him to send me a statement in writing showing that they have my account (which they legally must do if requested - otherwise they have no right to continue to harrass you) and he said that they couldn't do that. I told him that I couldn't help him then, and hung up.

Why is your mail sent to daddy in Georgia if you live in New York? If you're an adult, you should be getting your own mail.

Because if she got her own mail, the cable company wouldn't have made the mistake of sending her someone else's bill, right?:rolleyes: :rolleyes:

Good gracious! I maintain a Georgia P.O. box that he checks for me, as he IS my family. It's easier than changing all my mailing information every time I move. I used to check it when I lived there. I've had the P.O. Box for years.

I appreciate your concern though.

That makes no sense.

I get so weary of people who just post to say something obnoxious, cruel or otherwise unnecessary. What's the point?

valkyrie, what joy did you get out of the posts you made in this thread? Did I provoke you, personally, in some way? If so, perhaps the adult thing to do would be to contact me over PM instead of putting your disdain in writing for all to see.

Normally, I would do this over PM myself, but it's gotten to the point with some people that I'd like for you to explain it in public, so we can all understand.

And to the counterpoint that this is just an internet forum and shouldn't be taken seriously, such a statement shows a lack of respect for the human being on the other side of the screen. I will respect everyone, online or otherwise, because I value people.

preciousjeni if you haven't already you should get a copy of your credit report to check and see if everything is okay. I'd be concerned that the people who got a free ride of cable didn't get anything else.

It made as much sense as your comment given that the topic of this thread was about her needing help with her cable bill, not jeni's choice of mail reception. My point was what difference does it make if her mail goes to Georgia or Italy? She's looking for help with a problem she has, not snide comments about things that are no one else's business.

Here's my cable story,

I have comcast cable and decided to get the high speed internet that they offer. I talked to the lady over the phone and she asked me if I needed to have someone install it for me. I told her no because I know how to do it, and I dont want to pay them $40 to do something I can do in five minutes. The day before my cable modem came in the mail I got a call from an installer from comcast saying that he had to come over to my place to install my internet for me, I told him that I was quite able to do it myself, which I did. A few weeks later I got my cable bill and low and behold was a $40 installation fee.

PiKA2001, I am NOT surprised!! LOL!

Ok - I have an UPDATE!!

God is GOOD!

My dad went over to the local cable office today and spoke to a clerk. She was less than helpful and didn't grasp that, no, we didn't want a reduction in the fees and, no, we didn't want to close the account. We wanted to detach my name from the account altogether!!

He was getting nowhere with the woman, so he said, "God, I need some help...I don't know what to do."

At this point, a woman comes around the corner of the office and says to my dad, "H*****?" (his first name) Oh yes, people, she was a woman from my home church!!! My dad and I had NO idea that she worked there.

It gets better. The woman from church, M*****, (first name again) is the supervisor of the woman helping my dad! So the woman says to M*****, "You know this man?" To which M***** says "Yes, he's the assistant treasurer at my church!" So, the woman's like awwwdaaaang!

Sidebar: I know the woman was just doing her job, but she was pretty nasty to my father.

And, she said nothing. So, M***** asked my dad what was wrong and he told her everything.

M***** then told the woman, "If H***** says this is not his daughter's account, then it's not." The woman then told my dad she'd have to verify all this and she would send it to archives (where they keep accounts that are older than 6 months) but that it would take a few weeks to go through. But, M***** said, "No, do it now."

So, M*****, herself, gets on the phone and does her thing. She tells my dad not to worry and she would have someone get in touch with him. He leaves the office. About an HOUR later, he gets a call from that woman who was helping him originally. She states that it is obvious that I had nothing to do with the account (they had NO record of me being associated with it - the key piece of evidence was a required original SIGNED service agreement that simply did not exist.) She wouldn't give out more info but apparently there was something fishy going on.

The account is now cleared and the collections ageny has been contacted. It'll just be a bit before everything is clear and I'll find out from the credit bureaus if there's anything else I need to do!!

PRAISE GOD who has even the smallest details of our lives well in hand!!

I would also recommend getting a letter from the cable company stating the fact this account was erroneously attributed to your name/ssn and all that to keep in YOUR files in case it should come up again. I'm sure this is what the credit bureaus will tell you as well.

Sarah

ohhh comcast is evil.. I have one too many stories about them:mad:

Preciousjeni, it's a good thing that it was resolved because some companies can be a&&holes about it. With comcast, they sent my account to the collections agency (for unreturned cable box, which was actually picked up by a technician), even though I closed the account and it was all paid for. Had to make alot of phone calls to get it cleared so it wouldnt go anywhere near my credit!

my personal assistant takes care of all finances.....you should look into them. I have never seen a bill

My Comcast story...

I cancelled them and switched to WOW. A month later I received another bill from Comcast. I called and they said to ignore it because it just hadn't finished processing yet but they had my account listed as cancelled on the correct date. The next month, I get another bill, for double the amount plus late fees. I call again and the lady said "You'll keep getting bills until the tech turns it off from the pole". I ask "Why didn't he do that when he came here to turn it off?" She says "We only do turn offs at the pole once a month". I point out that it has been two months. She assures me that I don't have to worry. They did get it straight the next month and everything was ok, but I did not trust them during that time!

Re: Cable scam? What do you think?
 

I think you did everything right and continue to document everything!

Lesson learned for all you young people - obtain a copy of your credit report every year and dispute with all three credit bureaus anything that looks suspicious.

I've had a $20 lab bill appear from 10 years back as delinquent and also found someone using my social security # briefly in error. Got those disputed and cleanee up as soon as they were discovered.

Someday when you want to buy a house and that credit score is how the whole world will view you. An 800+ credict score means you will get the best rates and terms. One little flub on there can drop your score 50 or 100 points and then you are paying .5 to 1.0% higher for mortgage rates. My brother in law is paying 9% on a mortgage he got the same year I got a 6.5% mortgage (both 30 year fixed, both within 30 days of each other). He just sucks at paying bills on time (including parking tickets people!!!)

Good luck!

Denise

Wait, what? What disdain? What lack of respect? Why are you reading that into what I said? I asked a question that seemed valid based on your post -- I don't understand why you'd have your mail sent to your father and I find it odd that you're having your dad contact the company. In my opinion, that indicates a lack of responsibility.

If you only wanted people to post in this thread to sympathize, you should've said that.

If it's nobody else's business, why in the world would she post it on a public message board?

If you'd like to pay for my round-trip expenses back to Georgia, please feel free.

It's weird. I also had a problem with a cable company. I canceled the service, but they continued to bill me. Finally, I spoke to someone sympathetic who knew what he was doing. Within a few minutes, my problem was gone after months of arguing.

When you have a problem like this, just ask to speak to the manager or the supervisor. Most people who answer the phone cannot help you. If I don't get satisfaction within a few minutes of speaking to someone, I tell them that I want the manager who has the authority to deal with billing problems or whatever problem I have.

I agree with Denise's advice.

I don't see anything wrong with what valkyrie wrote. Getting your mail forwarded doesn't take much effort. You just fill out a form at the post office.

Ok...ok...

Since this may be of some use - the Georgia address is my billing address which is different from my mailing address which is in New York.

I have all my statements sent to the address. When I close any account, I give them the billing address just in case there's a problem in the future. It's much easier and more secure to have a single address to which all my financial information is sent. And, it's easier and more secure to have a family member check the address while I'm away at school.

Why?

1) There is a time limit on forwarding mail.

2) In my experience, forwarding takes way too long. I gave up on it. I don't even want to know how long an interstate forward would take. If the mail goes straight to that address, my dad glances over it to make sure everything's in order. I have nothing to hide and he is family, so it's all good.

3) I am in New York, so if anything (like this cable situation) occurs, in Georgia, there's pretty much nothing I can do about it. But, if my father, IN Georgia, has the paperwork, he can go into any necessary office, on my behalf, and get the issue dealt with.

4) In New York, I have switched over to paperless billing for my utilities. However, they still have the standard billing address in Georgia just in case. So, essentially nothing from NY gets sent to the Georgia address. Plus, everything affiliated with my school gets sent to my graduate box on campus (which is not open to outside postal services).

5) I don't get daily mail to the billing address. It's USUALLY just bank statements, credit card statements, etc. - all of which I can check online for discrepancies.

6) I have no desire to lug around all my financial paperwork up here (I live in a DORM ROOM, for heaven's sake!). My father gets the mail and then puts it in my files, which my parents are kindly holding in Georgia until I graduate. So, I am able to keep all the Georgia papers and the NY papers separate. (It is important to note, here, that there is no chance of me staying in NY. I will be moving to either Georgia or North Carolina, with my soon-to-be husband, after I graduate. At this time, I will get a P.O. box in the city in which I settle.)

Last, valkyrie's question was valid - why would I have my father get my mail? I understand why that would be of interest to someone, seeing as I am independent. However, it was the tone with which it was said (e.g. using "daddy" instead of "father" - if you don't know what that implies, I don't know what to tell ya!)



ETA: You know, people in the U.S. are brainwashed to think that success is complete independence from family. That's ridiculous! In my book, success is maintaining the bonds of family, supporting each other and carrying on in the love of Jesus Christ. My parents don't pay for me anymore, but I know that I always have a place in their home if tragedy should strike. Likewise, they know that I will give them shelter if something should happen to them. They are also secure in the knowledge that, as they age, I will be here 100% looking out for them.

This is a matter of where one's priorities lie. My priorities are God, family and THEN me. But, the same is true for my family - so we're all taken care of.

Jeni, if that's what works for you, then you keep it up. You don't have to explain yourself to me or anyone else. :)

I'm glad you resolved your billing problem to your satisfaction.

Soror, as always, you're handling your biz. :)

Haterz no like, but it's cool though ;)

That does sound like a nice convenience. My company is often scrambling after people who have moved multiple times and not given us the same address that the bank has on file for them.

And, I would recommend it to anyone. I've had things "disappear" in the mail. When I have proof that my billing address has been the same for...oh...12 years, it works nicely in my favor. :)

AND, it is great for temporary forwarding to have a standard address. All in all, it has worked very well for me!!

Unfortunately, my financial life is not simple. I don't have a single income...it's very complicated! Everything I do for myself is in an attempt to funnel everything into the shortest/smallest form...so, I'm not keen on opening new credit accounts, changing my phone number, forwarding mail, etc. The simpler the better!

Jeni, I'm sorry if my word choice offended you. When I say "daddy" I don't intend it to imply anything terrible. You certainly don't have to explain yourself to me, and I just wanted to point out my concern with what you had posted. I never meant any disrespect.

I HATE CHARTER!!!!

Sorry, I had to get that out. They are the worst cable company in all the world. Ever since I moved into their area in July, it's been a battle with almost every single bill. They charged us for services we never got, tried to charge us to take those fees off (what the hell??), changed our billing to online statements only without telling us, then tried to charge us late fees ... and their customer service people in our area are so unhelpful :mad:

(And you are literally on hold for over an hour every time you call them with a complaint ... so fun for your cell phone bill, and your time in general ...)

Charter sucks.

I find it VERY hard to believe that a company of that size doesn't keep accounting records past 6 months.

I found out that they don't keep records in the local offices. Apparently, there's an "archive" department that handles everything past six months.