A FRIEND OF MINE WHO IS LIVING IN MONTREAL QUEBEC HAS A VERY VERY GOOD CREDIT( or I WOULD SAY hAd a very very good credit), he went to a bar and had a little too much and fell on the floor , the bar owner called the ambulance. the ambulance came and took him to the hospital and relesed him after few hours. The ambulance department or ,whoever they are, send him a bill of $70.00 to the addresse on quebec health card where he does not live anymore. he does not know anything about the bill untill he check his credit report 2 years later and and find that it was assigned for collection. that collection reduced his fico score way way lower.That poor guy called the collection agencie and asked them what to do. They instructed him to pay the amount of $190.00 and promised him they will remove it from the credit report ( he never asked them for any written agreement).After he paid the amount via western union. instead of removing it from credit report ,they only updated as if it is paid in full, for fico it does not make any significant difference. is there anything we can do it to remove it from credit report? after all he never called for an ambulance/ are we liable of something offered to us that we never requested for?if I call an ambulance for anyone without their permission , am I making them losing their credit rating in some way? Then why would I call an ambulance for? now a days ,without good credit ,he/she is a dead person anyway------

fredg

Hi,
For the part about calling an ambulance. Here in the United States, bar owners are responsible for many things in their place of business. If your friend "had a little too much to drink", meaning "drunk", fell on the floor, the bar owner would have a right, to avoid legal complications, in calling an ambulance. Many bar owners here in the US cannot continue serving those who "have had too much" to drink. Some are even responsible for seeing that a drunk person doesn't drive!
Hopefully, someone else will answer your question about the Credit Rating, and how to get back the "good rating". I do wish you friend the best.

ScottGem

I'm not sure about Quebec, but in the US many ambulance services are "volunteer". Its not uncommon for them to bill the patient when called.

Since he already paid the bill, I won't waste time dealing with what he should have done once he found out about the debt. But what he needs to do now is contact the credit bureau (which he should have done in the first place) and ask what needs to be done to restore or improve his score.

Frankly, I don't think such a small debt would have a major effect on his score. It will lower it a little, but not very much. Now that its listed as paid the score should go up.

CaptainForest

First, when you move, make sure you change the address on your health card! I hope your friend has learned his lesson.

Onto the bill…

While Quebec is the most liberal province in Canada, your friend might be able to argue that he never wanted to bill so the bar owner should pay it.

However, he PAID the bill. So a judge will probably look at that and say he acknowledged the debt was his since after 2 years, HE paid it.

But honestly, just let it drop. This 1 mishap cannot affect his credit score THAT bad. Is he planning on getting a loan any time soon?

Best bet here is to just let it drop. I don’t think it will be worth the hassle.