Qwest is Dumb

I got a call from a collection company yesterday. What? A collection company??? What bill have I not paid???

I was informed that I had an outstanding balance for October on my Qwest wireless service. Hmmm, interesting, especially since I've never had Qwest wireless service. And by the way, why on earth am I being sent to collections on a bill that is less than a month old??? (No response)

Oh, I guess it's not your wireless bill, it's for long distance. Hmmm, I canceled my Quest home service (including long distance--obviously) a few months ago. And since I paid my final balance then, how can I have a balance? The collector went on to reiterate that I must not have paid my final bill. Well, I can assure you that I pay every bill that is delivered to my mailbox...

I told the collector that I would be contacting Qwest directly.

The Qwest Rep informed me that yes, indeed, I did owe a balance for my October long distance. They explained that I had paid the final bill for my Qwest services, but long distance is a third party vendor. He said that third party charges sometimes don't get billed as promptly as regular charges. While I had indeed paid my final Qwest bill, these charges had come in since that payment was applied to my account.

OK, so then I asked why I had not received an updated *final* bill. Why had I been sent to collections instead of being sent a new bill. And on a bill dated October? Really, it's only the first part of November! I was then informed that because I had paid my final bill, my account had been closed. Because my account was closed, they couldn't bill me. What??? They have my contact information, including my address--they looked it up just now by my phone number! They couldn't put a dollar amount on a piece of paper, put it in a stamped envelope and mail it to me? They had to send it to collections instead??? Yes, I was told. That is the process. Seriously Qwest! Give me a break!!!