Collection Help with Utility Bill

[Kevin7180]

Looking for some help with my situation:

Received our final water bill after we moved, and the services were transferred. ­­I called them in September 2016 and the associated walked me though their automated phone system and paid the 60.00 bill. I received a confirmation # and final bill in the mail with a 0.00 dollar balance.

Fast forward to May 2017, I received a collection letter from a local firm in the amount of the bill. I immediately sent a cert validation letter, as I knew I paid it. Received a response back several weeks later with an itemized statement with the payment not recorded. I looked through my credit card statement and couldn’t find the transaction listed. I’m not sure what happened, but it seems that they didn’t process the payment properly. I was never contacted (phone, email, letter) at all in light of this. Now I don’t believe the water company owns the debt any longer.

I don’t know what to do now, as I have 750-760 scores respectfully, and do not want anything negative to result from this. If I owe the money that’s not a problem I want the bill paid, but I can’t do their jobs at the utility company, and I don’t feel that I should result in a closed collection when it wasn’t my fault.

Any help is appreciated. Thanks.

[rmduhon]

Call and get an agreement to not report if you pay the account.

[RobertEG]

The key is whether you paid the debt prior to the date the debt collector obtained their collection authority.

If they obtained collection authority prior to the date you paid the debt, then they can legally report their collection.

However, if you paid prior to the date they received collection authority, then it is an improper collection, as there was no debt at the point where they obtained authority to collect.

The Open date reported on the collection should reflect the date they obtained collection authority.

Did you pay prior to the Open date of the collection?

If so, then you can dispute the reporting as being an improper collection.