Stern Recovery Services, Inc.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/12/20) */
Can you please provide the account numbers and/or the amounts as reported to credit so that we can ensure that we are responding to this complaint correctly.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/09/15) */
[redacted] was advised on 10/24/2013 that this item was on his credit as he was the guarantor for the patient, a dependent on his insurance. On 11/12/2013, we were advised by our client that the debt had been paid in full. On 11/18/2013 we...

sent a request to the credit bureaus to delete the item in it's entirety.This action was repeated on 12/03/2013.
On 09/14/2016 we received numerous phone calls from [redacted]. He was belligerent with multiple staff members. We advised [redacted] that he should file a dispute directly with the credit bureaus as we had already sent 2 requests for deletion in 2013. On the evening of 09/14/2016 we sent a 3rd and final deletion request through E-Oscar.
We will not be offering [redacted] any type of monetary resolution.

I have no signed contract with this company.  This has been reporting to my CBR for over 3 years, this needs to be remover per North Carolina state law.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2015/10/12) */
Our company has already advised Mrs. [redacted] that we would request an itemized statement from [redacted] We will forward her that information when we receive it from our client.

Please provide additional information as to the specific debt that you are attempting to dispute. The date of service that was provided was invalid. Please provide a correct date of service and balance amount so that we may research this complaint. In addition, please be advised that we are not...

required to answer any dispute from a 3rd party, credit repair agency. It has come to our attention that numerous collection agencies are currently being inundated with Revdex.com complaints, with verbatim, form-letter wording.

Please provide additional account details so that we may properly address the complaint. What is the amount(s) and/or account(s) number(s) that you are referencing?

Per our records, all items for the deceased were closed and returned to our client as of June 1st, 2016. We submitted requests for full deletion to the credit bureaus on 06/02/2016. In addition, we have initiated another request for deletion through E-Oscar as of this morning. Requests through...

E-Oscar can still take upwards of 10 business days.

We received letters requesting validation of these debts directly from Ms. [redacted]. Letters were received 12/15/2016 and again 12/23/2016. We have already requested that validation from the creditor and are awaiting their reply.
We are putting in a request to update the credit file as being "in...

dispute." No information has been shared with a 3rd party.
The validation will be forwarded to Ms. [redacted] upon receipt, as is our standard policy.

I am rejecting this response because:
I would like a copy of the tape. The actual tape.

We received the validation letter from Mr. [redacted] and noted this in our system on 01/24/2017. However, our office has already responded to that request. We mailed a letter to Mr. [redacted] on 02/22/2017 as to our position regarding his request.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/03/23) */
Mr. [redacted] contacted our office on 3/17/16, in direct response to the itemized statement we supplied, per his validation request on 02/17/16. Our office has already provided verification of the debt. Our collection manager did attempt to call...

Mr. [redacted] on 03/18/16, per his request, but there was no answer. Per our client's records, as provided to Mr. [redacted], the debt is still outstanding. However, if he has documents indicating this account was paid, those should be forwarded to our attention.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2016/03/24) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
No, because I've paid this $10 bill in 2011
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2016/03/29) */
Mr. [redacted] indicates that he paid this in 2011. Once again, our client shows this balance is outstanding. However, as stated previously, if Mr. [redacted] has documentation or proof of payment, we will be happy to review. Thus far, no such documentation has been provided to our agency.

We are in the process of requesting itemized statements from [redacted], to provide to Ms. [redacted] for verification purposes. Once those statements are available we will forward them to the address on file, and provided in this complaint. We will also be requesting that Equifax and TransUnion identify the accounts as being in dispute.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 6, 2016/04/19) */
I've located what I believe to be the account in question. The balance of $102.54 was paid to us on 06/16/2014. We updated the credit bureaus on 07/02/2014, requesting they delete the account in it's entirety.
It appears that there is an...

additional notation on 05/25/2015. Mr. [redacted] contacted us on that date to advise that this was still appearing on his credit. Our representative advised him to followup with the credit bureaus directly (to file a dispute) as we had already submitted the request in the prior year.
I have queued an additional request to have this item removed. This will be the second request from our company, to the credit bureaus.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 8, 2016/04/21) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
When the report is corrected I will be satisfied. Until then I do not accept this response.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2015/06/23) */
Can you please provide any of the following: your account number(s) as listed on the credit report; the "original creditor" as either listed on the credit report or quoted to you by our representative; the amount(s) we supposedly listed on your...

credit?
I am unable to locate any items under "[redacted]" and would need additional information to research this.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2015/06/24) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
The additional information requested by Stern Recovery Systems: There was no reference number listed on the credit report; the original creditor supposedly is [redacted] and that was quoted also by your customer service representative; the amount supposedly you PLACED on my credit report is $58.00.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 9, 2015/07/01) */
The current information provided is not sufficient to locate the account in question. I cannot locate an account under the name provided. If the information was taken from a credit report [redacted] or [redacted] then they also contain our agency's account number for the account. This is normally a 6 character account number that can be a mixture of alpha and numeric characters.
I can also attempt to search by your address or SS#. However, no address has been provided in this complaint and I would advise against providing your SS# over the internet. You are welcome to contact us and ask to speak with the collections supervisor, [redacted]
Final Consumer Response /* (2000, 11, 2015/07/02) */
(The consumer indicated he/she ACCEPTED the response from the business.)
THIS MATTER HAS BEEN HANDLED BY THE COMPANY NO FURTHER COMMUNICATION IS REQUIRED AT THIS TIME.

From: [redacted] Date: Tuesday, January 9, 2018 at 10:55 AM To: L[redacted] Subject: complaint #[redacted]   Good Morning [redacted],   I was starting to review the voice recordings from the various phone calls in order to respond to...

this complaint. However, I then noticed that we received a letter of cease and desist via certified mail on 01/03/2018. Therefore, I cannot respond to this item either as it would be a communication.  Jennifer N[redacted]Agency ManagerStern Recovery Services, Inc. (SRS, Inc.)[redacted]Phone: 336.272.0800 x[redacted]    I    Fax: 336.379.7381   I   Clients Only: [redacted] Did you know we have a phone line specifically for our clients?!  Call [redacted] anytime and get connected to our Administrative Department. CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICEThe information contained in this email may contain legally privileged and confidential information intended only for the use of the individual noted above. If you are not the intended recipient or employee or agent of the entity listed above, you are hereby notified that any reading, disclosure, distribution, or copying of this email communication in any way, or the taking of any action in relation to this communication, is strictly prohibited. If you have received this email in error, please immediately notify the sender and contact our Privacy Officer at (336) 272-0800 ext:[redacted]. If you were not the intended recipient, please delete it from your files. Thank you for your compliance.

I am rejecting this response because:
I would like this agency to provide me with the following information in accordance with the "Fair Debt Collection Practices Act" 15 U.S.C. 1692 et seq.                                 1.)The original or certified copy (NOT a photocopy) of the parse syntax grammar document contract signed by the authorized representative of your agency and autographed by myself, that each individual entered into knowingly, intelligently, with full disclosure, and with a meeting of the minds saying that I owe you or your agency payment of this alleged debt, with both your agencies authorized representative's wet ink signature and my wet ink signature.                                 2.)Proof that this debt has not been "wrote off" to an insurance company and claimed as a "business loss" and redeemed through an insurance claim by the original creditor.                                 3.)Proof that this debt has not been sold to your agency for a lesser amount, and if so the amount your company purchased the alleged debt for.                                 4.)Your agencies license to lawfully and legally collect debt in the state of Minnesota and provide me with your agencies license number.                                 5.)Validation of the alleged debt (the actual accounting showing a loss to your agency) and the CUSIP number of the alleged debt along with a copy of a completed W-9 and Total Amount Due statement.                                 6.)Verification of your agencies claim against me (either a sworn affidavit or a hand-signed invoice)                                 7.)The original or a true and certified copy (NOT a photocopy) of the Original Note or Promissory Note (Credit Agreement) under penalty of perjury, that I have with your agency showing my agreement to pay to your company this alleged debt.                                 8.)The name of the authorized representative from your agency who has carried out due diligence and what actions s/he has taken in regards to this alleged debt.                                 9.)The contract between your agency and the original alleged creditor saying they gave your agency authority to collect the alleged debt with both agencies authorized representatives wet ink signature.                                 10.) Proof that I was given FULL disclosure of any contract signed between your agency and myself, and/or proof I was given FULL disclosure of any contract signed between your agency and the alleged creditor.                                 11.) Also, pursuant to P.L. 93-579, Approved December 31, 1974 (88 Stat. 1896) Privacy Act of 1974 SEC. 7. 5 U.S.C. 552a note "(b) Any Federal,  State, or  local government  agency which requests an  individual  to  disclose  his/her  social  security account number  shall inform  that individual  whether  that disclosure is  mandatory or  voluntary, by what statutory or other authority such number is solicited, and what uses will be made of it."                                 I, hereby demand FULL disclosure of why the social security number assigned to me is used by this agency and what the purpose is this agency uses the social security number.                                 12.) The process of how your agency calculated in the fees and interest attached to the alleged debt, if any, and the proof of where I agreed to pay such fees and interest.                                 13.)Proof the Statute of Limitations has not expired on this account.                                 14.) Verification, if any, that your agency did or did not purchase alleged debt from another debt collection agency.                                 15.)Verification, if any, of tax deductions and/or tax-write offs made by your agency or any alleged creditor in regards to this alleged debt.                                 16.) Any derogatory reports made by your agency to any credit bureau agency.                                 17.)Verify that there is available "lawful" "money" to actually "pay" alleged "debt" as per the Constitution for the United States, Article 1 section 10 Clause 1.                                 18.) If the original creditor is a government agency,(i.e. County, state, municipal court) please provide proof that they are following their oath of office to uphold the Constitution for the United States of America by only asking for gold or silver coin for payment of this debt as per Article 1 section 10 Clause 1 of the Organic Constitution for the United States of America.                                 19.)Please send me information on my common law remedy to lawfully pay this alleged debt if found that I do lawfully owe any debt to your agency, and my remedy to lawfully "pay" this debt.                                 20.)Please send me any verification that "Federal Reserve Notes" is "lawful" "money" that can be used to actually "pay off" this alleged debt.                                 Please be advised, if your agency has reported invalidated information to any of the major Credit Bureaus, said action might constitute fraud under your Federal and State Laws. If any negative marks are found on any of my credit reports by your agency, this may result in a legal action against you or your agency for the following:                                 Violation of the Fair Credit Reporting Act                                 Violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act                                 Also, if your agency continues to attempt to collect any alleged debt, that I do not legally or lawfully owe to your agency that could constitute as:                                 Violation of U.S.C. title 18 Section 872; attempts to extort                                 Violation of U.S.C. title 18 Section 1341, 1342; Fraud and swindles, use of fictitious names through postal services (Addressing alleged debtor by improperly spelled name/ALL CAPITAL)                                 NOTICE TO CEASE AND DESIST:                                  Notice is hereby given that, until your agency can provide ALL requested documentation and information to validate this alleged debt, your agency must cease and desist from any further collection activities on this alleged debt in accordance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act laws of your United States Codes.                                 If and when your agency provides me with ALL of the information requested above, I will require at least 30 days to investigate and verify ALL information provided.                                 NOTICE:                                 The use of any statutes, codes, rules, or regulations by this alleged debtor, shall not be construed by your agency or any other person(s) or agencies that alleged debtor has submitted to, or entered into any jurisdiction of any agency or other person(s).                                 I do not give your agency consent to contact me by phone, I will be in contact with your agency only by mail.                                 If your agency cannot produce all said information stated above and/or does not respond to this letter within 21 days, a dishonor has occurred and you agree to the following,                                 1.)The alleged debt did not exist in the first place; OR                                 2.)The alleged debt has already been paid in full;                                 3.)There is not and never was a contract binding your agency and myself that was entered knowingly and intelligently stating I owe such alleged debt;                                 4.)Any negative remarks made to a credit reference agency in regards to this alleged debt will be immediately removed;                                 5.)You or your agency will no longer pursue this matter, you or your agency will offset the balance of this alleged debt to zero (0.00) and close this account                                 6.)I reserve the right to discharge this debt for an amount I believe is satisfactory for closing this account, the amount I send will be non-negotiable by your agency, you agree not to dishonor and refuse payment, you agree to accept for value the amount paid unto you to close this account, ONLY if your company can produce the information requested above;                                 7.)You or your agency agree to pay all fees and interest;                                 8.)Any liens against alleged debtor will be removed immediately and verification of removal will be sent to alleged debtor notifying alleged debtor of removal.

We cannot locate an account with the information that has been provided thus far. Please be aware that [redacted] is a 3rd party and is not a credit bureau. We do list with Equifax and TransUnion. If you have a copy of a report from either of these two, showing a current listing, please provide the correlating account number attached to that report. With that account number we should be able to better search our data, in case the item is not under the name or address that was provided in this complaint. Additionally, if you have copies of prior correspondence or the police report, you could attach those items as well. This would also be helpful in tracking the item in question.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 8, 2015/07/15) */
The first portion of this complaint is not applicable to [redacted] Recovery Services, Inc. as it refers to correspondence that she had directly with our client, [redacted] We cannot comment on any of her communications with them directly....


When Mrs. [redacted] states that 1 1/2 years later, "with no contact" she received a letter from us, that is not an accurate statement. The final demand letter was not the first contact attempt from our office. Four bad-debt balances were turned over to our office on 11/13/2013. On 11/14/2013, our office mailed an initial collection notice to Mrs. [redacted], to the same address provided in this complaint. We attempted to call her on 11/20/2013 at 8:09 am and there was no answer. We made another phone attempt on 11/29/2013 at 11:48 am, again with no answer. However, Mrs. [redacted] did call back at 11:50 am on that same date (11/29/2013). She did say that she had been in contact with our client directly and believed they were supposed to be putting the account on hold. She did not follow-up with us and we received no documentation. We mailed a final notice on 06/23/2015 and Mrs. [redacted] called us on 07/01/2015 at 1:32pm. Our collector did offer her a 25% discount off of the current balance of $799.33. She was given the option to pay a discounted amount of $599.50, which would be considered payment in full. She did not accept this offer. Neither our office nor our clients are obligated to offer these discounts. Patients are fully responsible for the expense of any services rendered. However, we will still extend the offer of the 25% discount. Mrs. [redacted] would need to pay the $599.50 in one lump sum.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 10, 2015/07/16) */
[redacted]Revdex.com Note: Please see attached documentation from complainant.[redacted]
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
First of all, attempting to call someone and NOT leave a message does not count as contacting them. I get plenty of phone calls with no message from unknown callers. And people do work so I am very sorry I could not answer your phone call the second you call me. As stated by Stern Recovery Services, I did return phone calls after receiving letters and/or messages attempting to settle this debt-EVERY TIME! The first contact letter was 11/13/2013 as I stated and then no other one until 06/23/2015. Any other contact between then (one phone call to them in which we actually spoke) was when I told them that [redacted] had said they were going to have their Operations Control Manager look into it and call me back. Why would I call Stern Recovery Services back after trying to settle with [redacted] with no response from them and no further contact from Stern Recovery Services after my last (and only) phone conversation in 2013? And, how would I send them "documentation"? It was a phone conversation...I called [redacted] they gave me the run around telling me some guy named [redacted] the Operations Control Manager would call me back, he wouldn't, I got second hand information and then filed a complaint with Revdex.com and never heard from them again. Mind you, neither did Revdex.com. I thought they were out of the picture. Who wouldn't when they received NO FURTHER BILLS and no return call from [redacted] as well as NO RESPONSE from [redacted] to Revdex.com? That is just absurd. So, my statement WAS accurate: the end of 2013 to the middle of 2015 is 1 and 1/2 years...do the math! Where was Stern Recoveries follow-up? You think a year and a half is a good time to follow-up? And, when there is documentation stating that a procedure has Insurance Pending when indeed it has not been filed appears VERY fraudulent and not something that I should be responsible for. Stern Recovery knew the situation from the get go, I did not hide any of this. It was also stated that I was asking [redacted] to "hold" the claim. No, I was asking them to adjust for their mistake and then they would receive full payout as the accident was settled, just like everyone else did. Same thing I am now trying to get Stern Recovery Services to do. They took over this claim with full knowledge that I was unsatisfied with the situation and that I had indeed been trying to settle it. I responded time and again, they had no intention of making things right and I am not just going to be walked all over. Stern Recovery did not have to become involved, they chose to and now are responsible for correcting the mistake of [redacted] Once again, a 25% discount, is not a courtesy, that is a PORTION of what my insurance would have paid. I pay a monthly premium for that reason. If a business states they will file insurance and then sends statements claiming insurance is pending when it has not been filed, that is not something I as the patient am responsible to do for them. I contacted them numerous times discussing filing first with insurance and then holding for a lien, and they filed PART of this service with the insurance. It is absurd to think I will pay what they CLEARLY made a mistake on. I have offered what I will pay, which is the portion of the bill after the MRI adjustment for insurance and the portion insurance would have paid on my behalf. Not a 25% discount, which is not a courtesy, it is someone asking for more money than they should receive for a mistake that they made. So sorry you can not comment on what [redacted] did or didn't do and what you think they are responsible for doing. Again, you took over this debt. They chose not to respond and make it right. If you chose to continue to state that I owe 599.50 then go right ahead and continue to tell me this. Again, I will gladly pay $417.33, the amount I would have had to pay had insurance been filed within 180 days. They had this information, explain to me why they didn't file only ONE part of the service, not even the whole service and why they could not correct their mistake in this time frame. Then tell me why I am responsible for another person's mistake and if you can make me understand that then I will have no problem giving you what you ask. But, I will never understand that, because you can't explain that any way that would make any sense. ALL of my other medical bills were paid IN FULL, but none of them made a mistake that they refused to correct. Mind you, one did make a mistake, it was pointed out, they corrected it immediately, and was still able to receive their full payment. I paid all of the other medical bills I had associated with this particular MRI, which I can assure you was exponentially more. I am not a doormat. I will pay my portion of $417.33 not a penny more, take it or leave it. Had [redacted] worked with me from the beginning, I may have given them a payment of $599.50 just to settle the bill, but they wouldn't even consider the idea that they should be held responsible for their mistake. Now, it is the principal. I offered to pay them a portion then. In fact, I was paying a portion at first until I realized their mistake. Had they just worked with me on this we would not be here. They did not. Stern Recovery decided to take over and are now stuck with the repercussions. As far as my credit, they will be receiving a letter in regards to the situation and my willingness to pay my patient portion. Stern Recovery can do what they like, but their response, as I told them over the phone, is NOT acceptable.
Final Business Response /* (4000, 15, 2015/07/23) */
While a medical provider may file a patient's insurance as a courtesy, it is ultimately the patient that is responsible for following up with their insurance provider. The patient is financially responsible for any services rendered. Perhaps Mrs. [redacted] should contact her insurance provider and inquire as to whether they will reopen and allow her to file her own claim for these charges. We have already offered her a discount against her balance, which she has not accepted.
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 17, 2015/07/25) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I am tired of arguing. Stern recovery already knows that I did that as soon as I became aware that [redacted] only filed half the claim. He told me that filing late was the same thing as insurance denying payment. Which I disagree with of course. Insurance paid for ALL of my medical bills that were filed on time like they should have been. As far as following up that has already been clarified. I did! Someone at [redacted] made a mistake that they failed to correct. Half of the bill for the EXACT same service....same day was filed. I talked to them numerous times before figuring out their mistake because the bills I received said insurance was pending....which was apparently not the truth when I finally called my insurance company after [redacted] was no help. Again, he knows all of this. I am sick of going back and forth with this company trying to STEAL a buck. When someone even says to you at [redacted]...[redacted], that [redacted] stated they didn't file because insurance doesn't usually pay on liability....that is admitting their mistake but not correcting it. I will not pay for someone else's mistake. End of story. Would you like $417.33 or nothing?

During conversation with our representative Mrs. [redacted] was advised that the balance was $566.55, which she agreed to pay via credit card. At no point during the conversation was an amount of $183 mentioned or discussed. There was no error on our part or the part of our representative. Mrs. [redacted]'s desired resolution was a billing adjustment, the refund of the $566.55. Per her request, we have already processed the refund of that transaction.

Initial Business Response /* (1000, 5, 2016/08/19) */
As of 08/19/2016, our office has not directly received any type of correspondence, written or verbal from Mrs. [redacted]
If Mrs. [redacted]is alleging that she is the victim of fraud then she should forward our office a copy of the official police...

report regarding that incident and we will review and process accordingly. It is our internal policy that any allegation of fraud or identity theft will not be considered until we are in receipt of an official police report.
Initial Consumer Rebuttal /* (3000, 7, 2016/08/22) */
(The consumer indicated he/she DID NOT accept the response from the business.)
I have sent in the proper paperwork
Final Consumer Response /* (4200, 13, 2016/08/31) */
Final Business Response /* (4000, 15, 2016/09/08) */
Please be advised that as of 09/08/2016, our office has not received any documentation or correspondence. In cases of potential identity theft claims, all police reports are forwarded to my attention, directly.
Please mail or fax that documentation at your earliest convenience. We cannot investigate any claims of identity theft without a copy of an official police report. If needed, our fax number is [redacted].