I have been receiving calls from unknown numbers for a couple of weeks now. Last Friday, I decided to call the number back to see who it was, and I was put into a voicemail queue, for which the voicemail box was full.
Yesterday morning, I received another call, and a gruff male voice indicated that it was extremely urgent that I contact the as-yet unidentified company immediately. I called back a few minutes later, and was shocked to learn that Capital One had sent a claim to a collection agency, seeking to recover $0.83. That's right, eighty-three cents.
A few months ago Capital One raised the interest rate on my card to 29.99%, so I called them and paid the payoff amount via check-by-phone. Apparently they undercharged me by $0.83, and since I'm a stubborn cuss, I asked the gentleman at the collection agency to send me an invoice and prove up the debt. The gentleman hung up on me. This was yesterday morning, at work. I was furious.
damn the man!
Yesterday evening, when I got home, I decided to again attempt to resolve the matter, and here is what transpired:
Call 1: dialed the number back and a grumpy-sounding woman greeted me by stating "good afternoon, Global." I told her what had happened yesterday morning, and she stated "hold on, I'll be right with you sir." Then she hung up.
Call 2: dialed the number back and was greeted by a grumpy-sounding man who simply stated "hello." I described what happened that morning, and again just a minute before, and . . . they hung up.
Call 3: dialed the number back and was greeted by a pleasant-sounding young man. I asked to whom I was speaking, he identified himself, I asked what company I was speaking with, he stated "Global International" and I explained what was going on. This young man connected me with his supervisor.
Supervisor: identified himself by name, then stated "this is an attempt to collect a debt" and asked for verifying information, which I provided. He reviewed the matter briefly and explained that it was a "misprint" by Capital One, and he would "send it back." I thanked him, and then related how each of my calls had worked out--the hanging up, no identification, no statement regarding attempts to collect a debt. He apologized.
All this for $.83. Way to go, Capital One!