Boy do I feel like an a*! I got this notice about two weeks ago, but it got lost on my desk and I didn't see it until a couple of weeks ago. I have never received anything from a collection agency so I was/am really freaking out! It said I owe $201.63 from an old Verizon bill.
I called Verizon and eventually got an automated message to call Afni. This is where I feel like a fool... I called them! I'm reading now that that is the last thing I want to do, what do I do now!
I got a hold of someone quickly and she seemed nice enough but it just felt weird. I asked if I could have a copy of the bill and she said that it wasn't possible and started to read me off phone numbers and phone bill city abbreviations that I didn't recognize now but might have in 1997/1998! She told me that it would be best to just pay, that I could dispute it but that they had documentation that it was mine.
The bill is supposedly from an address I lived at for a year in college but they had the city wrong. She kept on trying to get my checking account and bank routing information so that she could "postdate a check" but I felt too weird and said I would call her back.
I'm such an a* I just wrote out a check but before sending it right now, I decided to google them and came across all this! I really don't know what to do now! I'm pretty sure I may have given her my home phone number but I didn't agree to pay the bill, I lied and told her that I was going to have to come up with the money first.
I have printed out a copy of Bob from Iowa's sample letter but can someone please tell me all that I should do. I've never had a problem with my credit nor have I ever received any outstanding bills but I can't prove that it's not my bill, I'm supposed to send them a copy of a paid receipt from 1997/1998. Now I'm wondering about statue of limitations and such.
Any help would be appreciated, we're screwed so many ways as consumers, I would love to prevent/fight back at least once.By the way, I ramble when I'm upset. Sorry about that!
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