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I don't know about you guys, but I'm pretty damned cautious when using credit cards, writing checks, anything to do with my personal or financial information. I even shred junk mail that has my name and address on it. However, it seems that no matter how cautious you are, some scumbag will do their best to make your life miserable.
Last month, I received an invoice from a very nice resturant on Bourbon St. in New Orleans. It stated that I had a balance of $965.01. At the bottom of the invoice was a phone number, so I gave them a ringy. I explained to the billing manager that I hadn't been to New Orleans since 1996 and on top of that, I had never been to their resturant. I then asked her to fax me an itemized statement showing dates of service. She agreed to do so, thanked me for calling, and told me she'd do more research on her end.
A day or two later, I received the fax showing meals purchased from 1998 through 2003. It also included a payment made with a personal check, however, the check bounced. My first reaction was to contact my VISA representative and to make sure nothing had hit my credit card. Thankfully, I was safe on that point. My next thought was that this might be some form of scam. After further research, I concluded that the invoice and resturant were legit.
This past Friday, I received a call AT HOME from this same resturant asking when I was going to pay my bill. Luckily, I had remembered to write down the billing manager's name and she recalled our previous conversation. At this point, I started asking all kinds of questions like
1) Why was I just now being billed for charges from 1998 through 2003?
2) What forms of payment do they accept when people dine at their resturant?
Her first response was that hurricane Katrina had wrecked havoc on their resturant including some of their records. She had just joined the business and was trying to clear up unpaid balances. Her next response revealed that when diners come to their resturant, they can pay by cash, credit card, or they can request HOUSE CREDIT. Apparently, some asswipe pulled my name out of thin air and was dining at my expense charging everything to house credit.
Here's the kicker. I asked the billing manager if they required some form of picture ID when setting up house credit. She said "why would we do that?" I almost choked with that response and told her that she was setting herself up for more grief by not verifying customer's ID and credit.
After my phone call, I contacted my attorney and he drafted a letter to the resturant stating that if they didn't have concrete proof that I was a former customer, this matter was concluded. I guess I get to wait and see if they turn this bullshit over to a collection agency, but my attorney doesn't seem to be worried (yea, it's not his fucking credit that could get damaged
).
Anyway, I hope this post will enlighten and make you aware that this shit does happen.
Mr G
Last month, I received an invoice from a very nice resturant on Bourbon St. in New Orleans. It stated that I had a balance of $965.01. At the bottom of the invoice was a phone number, so I gave them a ringy. I explained to the billing manager that I hadn't been to New Orleans since 1996 and on top of that, I had never been to their resturant. I then asked her to fax me an itemized statement showing dates of service. She agreed to do so, thanked me for calling, and told me she'd do more research on her end.
A day or two later, I received the fax showing meals purchased from 1998 through 2003. It also included a payment made with a personal check, however, the check bounced. My first reaction was to contact my VISA representative and to make sure nothing had hit my credit card. Thankfully, I was safe on that point. My next thought was that this might be some form of scam. After further research, I concluded that the invoice and resturant were legit.
This past Friday, I received a call AT HOME from this same resturant asking when I was going to pay my bill. Luckily, I had remembered to write down the billing manager's name and she recalled our previous conversation. At this point, I started asking all kinds of questions like
1) Why was I just now being billed for charges from 1998 through 2003?
2) What forms of payment do they accept when people dine at their resturant?
Her first response was that hurricane Katrina had wrecked havoc on their resturant including some of their records. She had just joined the business and was trying to clear up unpaid balances. Her next response revealed that when diners come to their resturant, they can pay by cash, credit card, or they can request HOUSE CREDIT. Apparently, some asswipe pulled my name out of thin air and was dining at my expense charging everything to house credit.
Here's the kicker. I asked the billing manager if they required some form of picture ID when setting up house credit. She said "why would we do that?" I almost choked with that response and told her that she was setting herself up for more grief by not verifying customer's ID and credit.
After my phone call, I contacted my attorney and he drafted a letter to the resturant stating that if they didn't have concrete proof that I was a former customer, this matter was concluded. I guess I get to wait and see if they turn this bullshit over to a collection agency, but my attorney doesn't seem to be worried (yea, it's not his fucking credit that could get damaged
).Anyway, I hope this post will enlighten and make you aware that this shit does happen.
Mr G
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