california civil-law collections
Can a company be sued for reporting unpaid bills to lower credit score and send the bill to collections if their payment method doesn&#39;t work?
<p>I'm trying to pay a bill but I exhausted all means to pay the bill using their payment methods. Now they sent me an email threatening to send the bill to collection since I have an unpaid bill. I have evidence that I tried to pay using different methods and the email doesn't offer any other method. If the company tries to collect using a collection agency or goes to court, am I still liable for collection fees or court fees? The jurisdiction is in California.</p>

<h1>No</h1>
<p>You owe a contractual fee for a service or good, which is to be paid in a manner of the companies choosing. Invoices contain information about what to pay and till when. This is also known as <strong>debt</strong> and the payment date is a clear indication of when to pay. You have tried to pay your debt, but an alternative method not offered is not in a manner that satisfies your contractual obligation. So you have not paid this debt.</p>
<p>They informed you that they will sell the right to that outstanding amount to another company or employ another company to try and get their money back. You are liable to pay your debts in a manner the company you have the debt with chooses. You are also liable for damages your non-payment creates, such as collection or court fees.</p>
<p>Reporting about your unpaid debt in truth is not libel or any other tort, but might be an obligation for financial service providers. Unpaid debt impacts your credit score.</p>
<p>However, if their payment methods accepted don't work at all, you need to inform them of such so they can investigate and possibly decide to take a different method - but which is up to the company.</p>
