Worst. Groupon experience. EVER. (Final Update: ATOT wins!!!!!)

[LTC8K6]

I spoke with them on the phone and they said that they are sending a "collection letter" in the mail in a few days. I'll review it, but right now all they had to say on the phone was that they had a "solid contract in place with any client who uses our services."

I explained that I never agreed verbally or in writing and demanded proof. They responded the "client provided enough proof to them to open the claim" and that "my credit will be compromised in 45 days if I don't pay."

The shady-ass collection agency that contact me is Rash Curtis and I spoke with "Shayna" and manager David Pepin on the phone. Both "strongly urged" me to pay in full so as not to hurt my credit and "attempt to dispute afterwards."

Sounds like BS to me. A collection letter doesn't mean squat. I could send you one.

They have to show proof of the debt.

 

[MrsBugi]

have you confronted her in person? maybe she'll back down if you're there.

Not yet. When I received a bill in the mail for the herbs, I called her twice. No response.

I left her a voicemail outlining what happened and basically said that it was unethical and probably illegal for her to attempt to force me to pay for something that I never agreed to buy.

She never returned my call.

I'm considering a visit to her office in-person this week. Just left her another voicemail and sent her an e-mail requesting a response to attempt to resolve the issue amicably... We'll see if she responds, I'll update with anything I get.

 

[MrsBugi]

If there is no invoice or record of receiving items, herbs--by you, then tehre is nothing that collection agency can do.

in fact, this is extremely suspicious. I know that 98% of Collection Agencies are dickscarf bullies, but to even take on "Heather's" case without any such record is, I don't know...fraud? well, maybe not fraud. But far below ethical.

No invoice, no record, period.

I'd love to file a complaint against the collection agency if I can... I'll e-mail the main guy I've been dealing with to request proof.

 

[zinfamous]

Not yet. When I received a bill in the mail for the herbs, I called her twice. No response.

I left her a voicemail outlining what happened and basically said that it was unethical and probably illegal for her to attempt to force me to pay for something that I never agreed to buy.

She never returned my call.

I'm considering a visit to her office in-person this week. Just left her another voicemail and sent her an e-mail requesting a response to attempt to resolve the issue amicably... We'll see if she responds, I'll update with anything I get.

I could be way off, but didn't you recently marry a cop--or, at least, some big scary looking dude?

send him after them, lol.

 

[Lifted]

You didn't answer the only relevant question here.

Do they have your SSN?

How do you think anything can show up on your credit report if they don't have your SSN? They are playing you for a fool.

Forget about it and get some sleep.

 

[zinfamous]

No invoice, no record, period.

I'd love to file a complaint against the collection agency if I can... I'll e-mail the main guy I've been dealing with to request proof.

state Attorney General. DO IT NOW.

 

[zinfamous]

You didn't answer the only relevant question here.



How do you think anything can show up on your credit report if they don't have your SSN? They are playing you for a fool.

Forget about it and get some sleep.

she already answered that.

she provided it during the exam.

 

[FoBoT]

if they are that shady, they can get her SSN off the internet

 

[KK]

You didn't answer the only relevant question here.



How do you think anything can show up on your credit report if they don't have your SSN? They are playing you for a fool.

Forget about it and get some sleep.

You missed it, she gave it to this quack.

 

[MrsBugi]

Here's your first move, and do it now:

call your State Attorney General. submit a complaint regarding the collection agency and the acupuncturist. You think they're going to keep bothering you with their shoddy fraud after they get a letter from the AG?


hmm, that sounds right. Heather is committing fraud, (extortion), while the collection agency is being unethical/lazy.

Of course, they could be in some sort of collusion. seriously--even for a collection agency, I'm suspicious that they would come after you based solely on this c^nt's word. think about it: Claim that some lady owes her money for service, use threat of credit hit and bullying from collection agency to claim money to get off your back.

It is not out of the realm of possibility.

sorry to hear this is happening. But, the reality is,--if there is nothing for them to put on you, then they will shrink back into the sewer from which they emerged, without your money.

and state AG's really love to go after collection agencies these days. Moreso if you are in New Jersey.

Doing this now. RIGHT NOW. Thank you, zinfamous.

 

[halik]

I just wrote a review about my experience with Heather Lounsbury, an acupuncturist who I found via Groupon ($69 for $230 worth of services, I love a deal!).

OMG. WORST. GROUPON EXPERIENCE. EVER.

Cliff notes about what happened:

- I saw Heather for an acupuncture appointment via a Groupon
- Heather performed mediocre services and afterwards, recommended I buy Chinese herbs for my hair
- I asked what the price would be for the herbs and she said she wasn't sure
- I said that I would think about it and would make my final decision dependent upon the cost
- Heather called me back a week or so later informing me that the herbs had come in and I owed her $200 for them
- I explained that $200 was much more than I thought and that now I can make an educated decision based on the price, I was not interested in purchasing the herbs
- Heather became upset and said she'd already ordered the herbs; she offered me the herbs for $100, then $75
- Unfortunately, this was still over my budget and I declined to buy them
- Heather sent me bills attempting to force me to pay for the Chinese herbs which I NEVER agreed to buy, verbally or in writing, ever
- I called her to discuss the bills to explain that you can't force someone to pay for something that they never agreed to buy
- Heather did not respond so I left a message
- Heather never called me back
- Tonight, I received a call from the Rash Curtis collections agency informing me that Heather turned my "delinquent account" over to them and that I need to pay $113 or my credit will be negatively affected

Cliff notes of the cliff notes:

- Heather Lounsbury is attempting to force me to pay for an item that I never agreed to buy and sent a bullying, threatening collection agency to me in an attempt to damage my credit if I don't pay up

If you want to read all the gory details, click here for the full review.

Has anyone ever been in a similar situation? I don't want my credit to be affected (I have EXCELLENT credit that I worked hard for!) and I don't want to be bullied into paying for something that I never agreed to buy.

I talked to people at the credit agency and they recommended I just pay the $113 so it doesn't affect my credit. I am revolted by this based purely on principle - This would be saying that it's okay to force a consumer to pay for something they never agreed to buy and don't want, period. This is NOT okay

I honestly have no idea what to do from here. I wrote reviews on every website I could think of (Yelp, Google, and RateMDs). I e-mailed Heather directly and called her again to leave a message hoping that we can resolve things amicably but based on her non-responsiveness in the past and passive-aggressive nature, I'm not sure if I'll even hear back from her.

Any feedback/advice would be GREATLY appreciated, thank you!

Rash Curtis does not have your ssoc number and thus cannot impact your credit score in any way. Deny every and all when you speak to them and tell them to go suck it.

 

[Lifted]

she already answered that.

she provided it during the exam.

Yikes, you gave your SSN to an acupuncturist???

Regardless, you didn't order anything.

Check your credit once a year, it will probably never show up.

If it does, you write the credit agencies, tell them you want proof as you didn't order anything from her, they have 30 days to provide it or it's off your credit report. Until then, you're just wasting your time. I would have LMFAO at her before hanging up the phone.

 

[Eli]

Rash Curtis does not have your ssoc number and thus cannot impact your credit score in any way. Deny every and all when you speak to them and tell them to go suck it.

Really people?

Read the thread.

 

[halik]

Really people?

Read the thread.

Really, the relevant info was halfway down the thread.

Send a debt validation request to the collections agency; no invoice and no signature = no debt.

http://www.collectionagency411.com/debtvalidationprocess.htm

 

[zinfamous]

I hope it works out. AGs love to shut down the shoddy collection agencies whenever they get the chance. Many of them are simply bogus offices of about 3 or 5 people that will bully and harass gullible people--mostly elderly--into paying them money that they never owed, and with business that they never were involved in.

In fact, so do other, legit collection agencies. This kind of bullshit is strangely common and you might actually find other "collection agency people" that would consult you on how to get rid of these assholes, as they are horrible for business.

 

[ponyo]

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre18.shtm

If the collection agency sends you a letter demanding payment, send them drop dead letter.

 

[FoBoT]

and you should sue groupon for getting involved with such scum bags

 

[abaez]

SSN for acupuncture? I would have walked straight out.

I think they have to show proof of debt.

I remember when you had the ATOT meetup at your place like 10 years ago heh.

 

[zinfamous]

Yikes, you gave your SSN to an acupuncturist???

Regardless, you didn't order anything.

Check your credit once a year, it will probably never show up.

If it does, you write the credit agencies, tell them you want proof as you didn't order anything from her, they have 30 days to provide it or it's off your credit report. Until then, you're just wasting your time. I would have LMFAO at her before hanging up the phone.

there are legit, licensed acupuncturists out there. There is an entire field of eastern medicine, for which acupuncture plays a key role.

Most of it is bull, in some way, but a good deal of it seems to provide some legit benefit to patients. Even if much of it can be attributed to placebo, we are finding that placebo and the "dulling effect" tends to be responsible for a great deal of the rigorous research and medical practice resulting from the hallowed, western-idealized scientific method.


anyhoo, providing one's SSN is not unusual to a licensed acupuncturist--insurance liability and in many ways, a legit medical professional.

 

[gevorg]

http://www.ftc.gov/bcp/edu/pubs/consumer/credit/cre18.shtm

If the collection agency sends you a letter demanding payment, send them drop dead letter.

This + certified mail w/delivery confirmation and receipt.

 

[LTC8K6]

This + certified mail w/delivery confirmation and receipt.

Yes. No proof of debt in their letter, respond with the drop dead letter.

 

[Eli]

Yep, you need to send them a letter asking them to prove you owe the debt.

Certified mail is your proof that you mailed it; regular letters get "lost"...

 

[MrsBugi]

Got the ball rolling on three things:

1. Filing a formal complaint with the Attorney General.

2. Writing a letter to the collection agency sent certified mail requesting formal proof of debt.

3. Contacting Groupon to file a complaint about the service provider.

Question: Should I e-mail Heather Lounsbury directly to inform her that I will be filing a formal complaint against her for extortion with the AG, Better Business Bureau, etc.? I'd be happy if she just dropped it and moved on with her life but from our exchanges so far, it's pretty evident she's going to pull out all the stops in terms of shadiness, lying, and stealing. I'm willing to go as far as I need to in order to expose her complete lack of business ethics.

 

[Fritzo]

So, no written agreement, no transaction, and no receipt? I would get a lawyer and sue her for harassment and damaging your credit score.

 

[MrsBugi]

So, no written agreement, no transaction, and no receipt? I would get a lawyer and sue her for harassment and damaging your credit score.

No written or verbal agreement, no transaction, no receipt.

She's harassing me but my credit score hasn't been damaged yet. The collection agency is threatening that unless I pay, my credit score will be damaged in 45 days.

I'm infuriated about the injustice but would rather not go to the point of suing and going to court. This woman is awful but honestly, I just want her to drop the charge and leave me alone so we can both go on living our lives.

If she doesn't, I will be reporting her to the BBB and am already in the process of following all the amazing and brilliant advice provided by everyone in this thread. Thank you all so much for sharing your knowledge and for your support.