VS Story Part 1

This began back in October when I received a bill from VS for $534.18!!! The problem...I haven't used my VS credit card since 2003 (I know, poor Stacey!). I called immediately to see what had happened. I spent many, many minutes on the phone back and forth with different departments each blaming the other for the problem. The fraud department said it wasn't fraud since I had not lost a card or thrown one away lately. Now, back in 2004 while doing some shopping in Babies R US with a newborn my wallet was stolen right out of my diaper bag! It was a total scam. One lady walked up and asked me a question to the right and another lady helped herself on the left into my cart and my wallet doing thousands in damage in minutes at the mall next door! That card was cancelled and another issued. The irony: Stacey called to cancel the card back in May or something like that and since he wasn't the primary name on the card they wouldn't let him, so it was my responsiblily to cancel the account. Oops. ANYWAY, the fraud depart told me it was catalogs problem. That it looked as if someone put in the wrong numbers while typing in the account. They told me I needed to submit a letter disputing the charges and I did. They told me I would be contacted in about 4 weeks from the internal department or something like that. Oh I was contacted all right, and have been for months from the collection agency they sent my name to. Every time they called, I would explain that I wasn't going to pay what they were asking me, I was disputing the charges, but thanks for calling and have a nice day. This went on daily, sometimes 2-3 times a day. I would smile, even laugh when they called. So, I called VS. VS had not received my letter! That was crazy. They gave me the address again, and off my letter went. Calls, calls calls from the collection agency. No one had notified me from VS like they had said they would when they received my letter. The nice collection agency called again. I was so nice to them, like I was everytime before. They were just doing their job, and I understood that but I wasn't going to pay ANYTHING if I wasn't the one enjoying the duds! You know what I mean. This one collection agency girl was so nice to me. I explained what was going on and she told me exactly what to do. She told me who to call and who to ask for and that this was ridiculous! Her computer didn't say they were even looking into the case! WHAT! I think this girl really could have gotten in trouble with the advice she was giving me. She was telling me to get a lawyer and bring a case against VS for ruining my credit. I kind of laughed and thanked her and hung up after she told me that the agency shouldn't call me for 10 days. IMMEDIATELY my cell phone rang. It was the collection agency! I hung up on that lady. I called VS and was then on the phone for 1.5 hours trying to fix this situation. I kept getting transfered, they wouldn't get me a supervisor/manager or who ever I asked for. Catalog department would send me to fraud, fraud would send me to the collection agency, back to catalog. FINALLY this lady on the phone was trying to say that Stacey must have used my card! I took offense to that, but I know it happens in their line of work all the time, but I assured them if he bought it, I would have seen it! I kept referring to catalog and how they first had told me that someone must have typed in the wrong numbers to my account, and this lady got a HUGE attitude with me saying it was an internet order. THEN WHY HAVE THEY BEEN TELLING ME IT WAS A CATALOG ORDER! I asked how someone could use my account on the internet when they didn't have the number! AND how if I had to answer 10 questions with everyone I talked to on the phone to prove it wasn't fraud was someone able to use my card without answering all those questions??? Finally I asked, just where did these nice items ship to? I was expecting...Africa, New York, California! You know what they told me: Paris, Texas! WHAT! She heard it in my voice. She jumped on it! That manager said, "Oh, you know someone in Paris, Texas?" To be continued!