DVD rental store Hollywood Video has spectacularly gone down in flames with other similar businesses struggling with the emergence of online streaming and services like Netflix. That hasn’t stopped people around the country having their credit reports hit on ridiculous late fees from the bankrupt business. This is a giant debacle in the making I’m sure.
I had heard rumblings about this happening from some friends of mine that said someone they knew had gotten a letter explaining that they owed money for late fees to Hollywood Video plus interest. I know I’m not the only one whose brow raised when they read that. One case in Arizona a girl had seen her credit report was hit and that she owed the closed business $645. She called the collection agency, National Credit Solutions, and wanted to fight the charge but since the company is no longer in existence, she had no one to speak to about the issue.
The story mentions that the Attorney General of Montana has filed a lawsuit against National Credit Solutions for fraud and deception due to the amounts that thousands of former customers are being asked to pay being “exorbitant and unreasonable.” The attorney general also advises that anyone who receives these requests not to pay the money and instead dispute it.
The other eye opening aspect in this story is that many of the people being sought after for these late fees are only finding out about them when they check their credit reports. Many have not received any other form of information that they were being taken to collections over the matter and now they have a dent on their credit report that could have easily been settled in a more reasonable way and with way less money being asked for. Everyone knows how important your credit report is, especially anyone who has or may be heading out to buy a car, house, apartment etc; so to have what could have been a minuscule late fee have a significant negative effect on something that effects our lives each day is sickening. I know I fully support anyone who doesn’t want to take the issue lightly and I plan to keep my eyes on this issue for any significant news on the subject.
What do you guys think of this news? Have you been affected by these late fee requests?
