06:30 PM CDT on Tuesday, May 24, 2005
There's a suspicious letter you should see, because there may be one just like it in your mailbox. KHOU-TV And knowing what to look out for may keep telephone customers from paying a bill they do not owe. That's because some believe it's a bill of goods. 11 News obtained a copy of the bogus bill that investigators say is part of a collection agency scam. Katherine Thomas usually picks up her mail when she gets home from work. It was on her front porch last month while sorting through the bills that she came across a statement from a company that claimed to be a bill collector for Southwestern Bell. "I was astounded to see a balance of $2,918.54," says Thomas. Given their typical bill, which was $44 last month, this was the equivalent of six years of bills. And communication with the company was one sided. On the other end was Bonded Collectors LLC, which listed its address as a P.O. box in Hopkins, Minn. and listed it operations address as a P.O. box in Largo, Fla. It's hard to talk to a post office box, so she called. "You can't get them on the phone. And you'll never get those people on the phone," says Thomas. "I wanted to bring this to the attention of the public. I don't know how many people have received these letters." Officials with SBC Communications, formerly Southwestern Bell, say they've never heard of the collection agency. Katherine Thomas knows they'll succeed. "A bunch of little old people, senior citizens like us or older, will pay this. Cause this is what older people do. They get nervous." And how much did Katherine Thomas pay them? "Nuthin'." Customers who receive a bill or telephone call like this should not make any immediate payments to anyone. If you're not sure you owe the money, don't pay. A safe way to avoid this scam is to call the toll-free customer service number provided on a legitimate SBC bill and talk with a representative. Or contact the company by going to SBC.com. 
posted by Creditwrench at 11:34 AM
