Turns out the bill collector was wanting money from me for someone else's account?

Question

I've been getting calls from a bill collector for several months now. I keep telling them I don't owe any money, and to send me a statement. Everytime they have called, they have claimed to have sent a statement.

Today the same woman called, asked for ME, and once again told me I had bills from 2006, and wanted to know how I was going to pay today. I kept telling her I had talked with the hospital and I owed nothing. At that point she told me she was collecting on someone else who lived at my address.

However, I have lived here, alone, for the past five years. She said our names were 'linked' in the computer, and that's why she was asking me for the money. When I got off the phone with her she said she would get it sorted out, and get back to me.

Doesn't this violate the HIPPA laws? Why did she ask for me, and expect me to pay a bill not in my name? Isn't that illigal? I got the name of the company and the collecrot's name. What do I do now?

HIPAA not HIPPA

Answer 1

This actually has nothing to do with hippaa, and happens outside the medical field. Debt collectors will buy the original debt from whoever it was owed in the first place. Then they call people with simular names, addresses and phone numbers hoping someone will pay somewhere. It is technically illegal, but has nothing to do with hippaa. Its a scam.

Answer 2

You need to take a class together, like Financial Peace University. (These are offered at churches across the country.) These classes tend to have exercises on attitudes towards money and bill paying. While I think you have a good handle on him (50s era attitude and bad habits!), he doesn't seem to understand you and the long term nightmare he's creating by having a bad credit history. Me, I went debt free after I paid $200 in finance charges one year and realized there was the $200 I could have use to pay for something else! I suspect you've been paying $200 in just a few months in excess interest and late fees. I think it's going to take a class to get him to admit he's not perfect and he's not doing it. Even with a baby, you seem to have more free time. You can easily organize the bills and keep on top of them. (Besides, if the collectors start calling the house, it's YOU who will have to deal with the calls.) You can schedule 2 nights a month to sit down and pay the bills if he feels he has to write the checks. But YOU will have them ready to pay, stamp the envelopes, check them off and take them to the post office. You can help him decide if any of the credit cards only get minimum payments this month. You mentioned he took a business trip. Was he reimbursed or not? I used to travel frequently for work and it was a PITA to keep up with turning in the expense reports. Several of the guys I worked with had their wives learn to do the paperwork and turn them in. The reason was the wife would actually do it and if you don't turn those suckers in, you never get paid! Ditto for medical bills. Me I prefer to pay for steak than eat rice and beans and pay those interest charges!

Answer 3

Send them a certified copy of this letter and be done with these morons. I dealt with the same thing where someone used to have my phone number had some credit issues and they simply would not stop calling.

http://www.3debtconsolidation.com/diy/letters/3rd-party-debt-collection.html

Answer 4

If they call again, tell them it isn't your bill, stop calling or you will sue them. You might also call the hospital cause it is their screwup that started this and tell them to pull their head fron their rear.

Answer 5

Do you have proof of your payment? Two, check your credit report, you can sue them for libel if they have been saying bad things about you in there and the claim that you haven't paid isn't true.

Answer 6

Report them to your state agency!