John Barry or Berry and Associates

[MattH]

Anybody know anything about these people? I got a call from them this morning; when I told her my birthdate she said I was not the person by my name whom they were seeking and she would make a note to that effect in the file. I hope this actually will be the end of the matter; I will of course monitor my credit reports very very carefully to make sure nothing gets inserted: I want to keep my history clean.

[Anonymous]

They called and asked for YOU (by name), and then told you that they were seeking a different name as well as different personally identifying information?

[hoping2rebuild]

We have a Jon Barry and Associates here in North Carolina they do alot of Med collections could this be the one's your refering too?

[haulingthescoreup]

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@Anonymous wrote:

They called and asked for YOU (by name), and then told you that they were seeking a different name as well as different personally identifying information?

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I read it as the collection agency was looking for someone with the same name as MattH, but that person had a different birthdate. It's been a long day, though.

[Anonymous]

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

They called and asked for YOU (by name), and then told you that they were seeking a different name as well as different personally identifying information?

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I read it as the collection agency was looking for someone with the same name as MattH, but that person had a different birthdate. It's been a long day, though.

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LMBO! One of the many moments when my eyes see one thing, and my brain decides to take a left in Albuquerque.

[MattH]

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@haulingthescoreup wrote:

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@Anonymous wrote:

They called and asked for YOU (by name), and then told you that they were seeking a different name as well as different personally identifying information?

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I read it as the collection agency was looking for someone with the same name as MattH, but that person had a different birthdate. It's been a long day, though.

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Yes, I believe that's the situation.  She asked whether I was [Name], then asked my birth date to make sure she had the right person.  She then said the [Name] they wanted had a different birth date and they would make a note in their files that I was not the [Name] they wanted.  So I have no idea how much this other [Name] owes or to whom.

[MattH]

I have learned a little more because a different collection agency called.  They told me the address of the person they seek for an AT&T account that was opened in 2008 and was referred to their agency early this year, and when I said, "I have never lived in that town, which is about 30 miles from the town where I have lived since 1992," they said, "so you are not the [Firstname Lastname] with a social ending XXXX?"  I replied, "that is my first name and my last name but the last four digits of my SS number are different so you clearly have the wrong person."  When she demanded proof that I am not the person she sought, I replied "since I am not the person you seek, finding the right [Firstname Lastname] is your problem not mine, further calls to my cell phone from your number will not be answered, if you wish to communicate with me you must do so in writing," then hung up.

So there is apparently somebody in the next county with the same name as me who is not paying his bills.  This promises to bring endless joys to me; I shall need to check my credit history even more carefully than ever before.

I have changed the voicemail greeting on my cell phone to "This is [Firstname Lastname], who has resided in [Town] since 1992, if the person you seek has an address in another town then you have the wrong number."  I wonder if that will make any of them go away.