Cingular Wireless Unfair and unethical business practices Atlanta

I had an account with Cingualr Wireless some years ago. I felt it was incorrect and cingular wouldn't adjust it. It was some kind of set up with Bellsouth and Cingular-bad idea in the first place. I didn't pay it for some months because it wasn't correct. I got the usual letters from the collections agency and disputed them, in writing and telephoncally. Then, the collections agency sent me a settlement letter. In lieu of the $663 they were trying to charge me, cingular was offering a settlement of a little over $300. I thought that someone somewhere saw that I was telling the truth and that the bill was inaccurate so they were trying to make it right; honestly, I was tired of fighting and wanted it over with anyway.

It was still more than what I had calculated but it was better than $662 so I accepted and paid it. That was September of last year and the matter was settled and the debt was paid, or so I thought. I checked my credit report a few days ago, conducting my annual credit inspection. There is an entry from a second collection agency that I had never heard of, reporting a debt to cingular wireless. How can this be? It just so happened that the amount of the alleged debt was the difference between the original bill and the settlement offer. How can they do that, offer a settlement and then take it back after I pay it?

I have a copy of the settlement letter and the payment tracking number plus the name and address of the first collection agency. I feel like I should have just kept my $300 bucks and let the whole thing go. Has this ever happened to anyone else and what did you do? It is not right how these large companies can just push people around; we as individuals, have to live by the credit report. Anything you do wrong is on it and is held against you for a very long time. Companies should have to be accountable for the mistakes they make too.

Monica
Martinez, Georgia
U.S.A.