out of country collector

[adamudw]

I'm a Canadian, who went to a hospital in the United States while on vacation. I had insurance which should have paid the bill. A couple months later, my insurance company contacted me by mail saying that they needed my copy of the receipt before they pay the bill. I of course don't know where that is. I'm not used to getting forms from hospitals and didn't read them. I ended up forgetting about the matter and over a year down the road a collections agency started calling me. I'm a student and can't afford to pay this. It's only $500, but I'm struggling to make ends meet and can not pay that.

The calls have since stopped, but now i'm worried about my credit. I'm also worried because I have to go across the boarder in a few weeks.

My questions are, can a US debt collection agency affect my credit in Canada? Will I be allowed to cross the boarder? Is there anything else I should be concerned about?

[Trish]

Having a collection account will not affect you crossing the boarder so don't let that worry you.

What I'm wondering is if the US CA even has any authority or license to collect in Canada. Who is the CA? If you aren't comfortable posting it publicly, you can pm me.
You could also try contacting your insurance company to explain the situation and see if they would still pay it if you provided a bill (which you can get a copy of from the hospital).

[adamudw]

Thanks for the response. The CA left me another automated message yesterday. I havn't heard from them in a couple months. The agency is CMRE Financial Services.

When I get some time I'll dig up my insurance forms and give the company a call. I really doubt that they'll do anything considering it's an insurance company.

[Trish]

You know....you may want to contact the FTC and ask them if a US collector even has the right to attempt to collect on a Canadian citizen.
The CA is based out of California.....and in California, you don't have to have a license or I would tell you to ask their licensing dept..

But the FTC should know.....or at least be able to direct you to someone that would.
Here's their toll free number:
1-877-FTC-HELP (1-877-382-4357)

[adamudw]

Thank you so much! I'll give them a call as soon as I can and update this thread.