hi Sheila & Marcie.

Thank you for your kind input. Actually as of writing this post today, I have cleared all the ambulance debt. I paid directly to the collection agency, and I still have not establish credit history, by obtaining loans or credit cards or mortgage. Although, now that I have paid off the debt, and like sheila mentioned, I still wonder if any letter or 1 report has been sent to TU or Equifax, the debt in question was five months old with the ambulance and three weeks old with the collection agency.

I guess now, I have to find out if a report or any letter is already waiting till I try to get credit. Or maybe I should contact the two credit bureau to see what they currently have on file for me.

HI, with myself as being an X collector or as the collection industry likes to be called “ recovery officer” I can tell you that when you agreed to go into the ambulance you agreed to be responsible for any cost that where not covered by health plan. Also you most likely signed an agreement allowing them to disclose your personal information such as name DOB and address to a 3rd party in the matter of collections to get cost paid.

Now having said that.... most collections do not report ambulance bills to credit bureaus. But if the debt is old enough that the ambulance has sold the debt to a collection agency ... all bets of off ... some will report all debts they have purchased. They send out 1 letter and report and wait till you try to get credit. Once the client has found out they have a collection item on their credit repot they normally pay it just to get it off their report.

I know there are things you can do to have collection reports removed from your credit report.... Such as you can write the credit bureau in dispute of collection items on your report and in Ontario it is the creditors that has to prove you owe that debt... if they can’t it will be removed from your record.

Being an x collector ( and I was very good at my job) there is no reason to threaten the consumer.

I hope this helps

that's really very informative, thanks. But if the health services provide my personal information to this collection agency, isn't that breach of data protection law?. I mean I have to had give some sort of consent for any disclosure to third party.

No this is not quite right. The information can be disclosed to a third party for debt collection purposes without consent (BC PIPA 12(1)(j)).However, the third party can't further disclose the information (BC PIPA 12(2)) without consent, this would include reporting the matter to a reporting agency .

BC and AB PIPA are similar.

shouldn't have some one have to move cause of my brother not paying what he owes

Certainly hear what you're saying and would love to fill in those blanks. Unfortunately, I can't comment any further, but maybe one of the other bloggers could?

that's really very informative, thanks. But if the health services provide my personal information to this collection agency, isn't that breach of data protection law?. I mean I have to had give some sort of consent for any disclosure to third party.

. This is not a case of national security, emergency or some sort of investigation, so what rights do they have to full disclosure of my personal details, bear in mind I did not sign any document giving the ambulance services the full power to provide such information to debt collectors.

From my experience (and I'm recalling 20yrs back right now), once you apply for your first credit line or loan, your personal data will be recorded in Equifax's or Trans Union's databases. That said, if you have yet to apply for credit anywhere, thus haven't yet given Equifax or T/U any data about you, then whoever is holding the debt (hospital or C/A) could create a fresh entry for you with Equifax or T/U by using your Name, Date of Birth, Address (which the hospital probably collected). If they do this, then the next time you apply for major credit, the lending agency will locate this entry when digging for your credit history.

My 2cents on the subject.. Maybe others could fine-tune the answer, too.

Hi thanks for your reply, actually it was addressed to me from the start, not the previous tenant, I have also used the ambulance in Feb, didn't realized at the time I have to pay for that, since I do not have a job yet I have no way of paying that debt within 6 days as requested. My question is this, how and where will they registered the debt against me without any credit history, no loans or credit cards, and no bank account, I have just collected SIN last month, can they get those digits from service canada to use against me as a judgement? I'm confused. I would really like to pay up immediately but not within 6 days. So if I'm not able to pay by deadline or anytime soon is it possible and how will they screw my ratings up.

Right from the start, was it addressed to you or the previous tenant? Next, have you had to use local ambulance services since you've been here? If so, depending on why the ambulance was needed, a service fee can be applied.

I immigrated to canada in January 2013, i have not established credit history. I recently received a letter to my temporal address, from a collection agency for a delinquent account and asked to pay within 6 days, it was for an ambulance fee, the health services had apparently send an amount of $100 for collection and they threatened to register this debt with a national credit agency. Is this possible? even though I do not have any credit accounts, have yet to establish permanent address also.

Thanks