Complaint Review: Household Bank / Best Buy

Household Bank and Best Buy have put my husband and I through hell this year. It all started when we received a coupon for 10% off an appliance and no payment or interest for 6 months. So we went down to our local Best Buy and purchased a refrigerator and a couple other items. We had to go to the customer service counter because it had been years since I had used my account they had to update all my info; address, phone, ect. . Well the refrigerator was delivered to our home without a hitch. Well about 3 months later a hell broke lose. I started getting threatening phone calls at work from a crazy man named John Dean. He was claiming to be an employee of HRS. He informed me that I was in default of this loan of around $900.00 and demanded me to pay 1,200.00 right now or else. He kept on with his threatening phone calls for weeks, disturbing everyone in my office with his manner. I repeaditly tried explaining to him that I didn't even owe a payment yet no less the balance and then some in full. I traced his call after I had became suspishous of him and found out he was not with HRS but with Corporate Receivables (real nice company, check them out on the BBB), which is Best Buy and Household Bank's collection agency.

Well at this point I had figured out basically what had happened when we had gone to the customer service and gave all the new information it obviously never made it to HRS, but Best Buy obviously had our new address because we received the coupon in the mail and the refrigerator was delivered, all to the new address. Meanwhile HRS is still sending the statements, which said we owed no minimum payment to an address, which was about 41/2 years old. John Dean From C.R. informed me that it was the banks policy if they get 3 returns to sender whether or not you owe anything, they believe you are trying to run away from your future payments. We reported Corporate Receivables to the FTC for violating the Fair Debt Collection Act and made a complaint to the BBB.

We then started to try and talked to the real HRS. After several months, I have found that my credit ranking has dropped severely because HRS has reported that my account for a messily $900.00 was sent to collections. Not good for a business owner needing credit every once and a while for business expenses. All this before a payment was ever due.

We finally got a hold of the CEO's secretary after dozens of conversions with people that could do nothing. She assured me that she was going to take care of it. #1. She was going to start sending me statements as of the 6-month agreement, which I could pay anything over $10.00 per month. #2. They were to write letters to all credit reporting agency, explaining the mix up was completely their fault and to remove all derogatory reportings from them. #3. Put my account in good standing with Best Buy. Well, I have been paying on my account for 2 months and I recently went to get a house loan and did not qualify for the better rate because ITS STILL ON MY CREDIT REPORT. I had A1 credit. Also, all of my credit cards interest rates have doubled, a result of the decrease in my credit rating. So we are still trying to get this straight, after all these months. We talked with someone in Customer Complaints again today, which she promised all the same things (I'm sure nothing will ever happen). And we have no available credit on my Best Buy card, because it's NOT in good standing. I would never buy anything from them again anyway.

We are now putting together a lawsuit for damages, after much investigating we found out that they do things like this all the time. If you have a similar story about Household Bank or BEST BUY please email vdeleo@sc.rr.com