It can be quite a shock to discover that Medical Revenue Service has reported a collection account on your credit report.
It’s possible that you don’t even recall the medical service they’re referring to, much less having authorized anyone to report a derogatory item about you to the credit bureaus. Yet here it is, pulling down your credit score and holding you back from your financial goals.
Typically, the first step most people take is to panic and call the collection agency. That is the last thing you want to do. Before you take any action, you must understand who Medical Revenue Service is, and why the standard advice about paying debt will actually cost you more than you anticipate in this particular case.
Who is Medical Revenue Service?
Medical Revenue Service is the public face of a debt collection company called Medical Data Systems, Inc. This Florida-based company is exclusively a medical debt collection agency, and they’ve been in business since 1985. Here’s a snapshot of the company information:
Company Name: Medical Data Systems, Inc. (MRS, MDS)
Address: 2001 9th Ave, Suite 312 Vero Beach, FL 32960-6413
Phone: (888) 773-2255
Years in Business: 38 years (established in 1988)
Florida License: CCA0900156
The company’s website claims that it collects debts for more than 600 health care providers across the country. But despite the respectable-sounding claims, the truth about their consumer relations is much uglier.
What the Records Show about this Debt Collection Company
There are 1,233 complaints filed against Medical Data Systems with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau database. Yes, you read that right. Over 1,000 consumers were so upset about their experience with this collection agency that they filed a formal complaint with the federal government.
Over 180 lawsuits have been filed in federal court against Medical Data Systems for violating the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act. These aren’t just disgruntled rants on the Internet. These are people who hired lawyers and pursued legal action because they felt their rights had been violated.
The company’s rating with the Better Business Bureau is an A-minus, which would suggest that it’s a reputable company. But the consumer review rating is just 1 out of 5 stars, based on the actual consumer reviews. The BBB has identified a pattern of complaints against Medical Revenue Service, stating, “A pattern of complaints concerns consumers requesting validation of the debt, and not receiving it.”
Here is a typical description of the experience of dealing with MRS, from a consumer review left on the BBB site in June 2024:
I was contacted by MDS on 6/12/24, I have not received a validation letter stating the debts owed or stating the business information. They asked me financial/personal information without proving with tangible or written evidence whom they are. They would not work with me for a payment lower than 346 dollars a month. Honestly, heartless.
This is not an accident. This is a business model.
Why You Should Not Pay Medical Revenue Service
The Paid Collection Trap
Your immediate reaction upon seeing a collection account on your credit report is probably to pay it off and make it go away. That’s the wrong reaction. When you pay a collection account, it does not get deleted from your credit report. Instead, it simply gets noted as paid.
A paid collection account will remain on your credit report for the full 7 years from the date of the original delinquency. Lenders will still see it. Credit scoring models will still consider it. You’ll pay your money and get very little in return.
The debt collection industry relies on you not knowing that. They try to create a sense of urgency and fear that will prompt you to pay immediately, before you have time to think about it strategically. Do not fall for it.
Paying for Deletion Does Not Work
You may have read about a strategy called pay-for-delete, in which you negotiate with the collection agency to delete the account from your credit report in exchange for paying it off. That sounds like a great idea, but it almost never works the way you think it will.
There is no law that requires a debt collector to delete information from your credit report even after you pay it off. Many will happily take your money and leave the account on your credit report anyway. The account will still report. Your credit will still suffer. But you’ll be out whatever money you paid them.
The better strategy is to challenge the accuracy of the information before you pay. If the account cannot be verified, it must be deleted. That’s the law working for you instead of against you.
Disputing the Account Information
How Credit Report Errors Work to Your Advantage
A 2012 study by U.S. PIRGs found that 79 percent of credit reports contain errors or discrepancies. Yes, you read that right. Nearly 4 out of 5 credit reports contain some kind of error that could be affecting credit scores and limiting consumer opportunities.
Medical debt is particularly susceptible to errors. Medical billing codes can be entered incorrectly. Insurance payments can be misapplied. Accounts can be sent to a collection agency before an insurance claim is even processed. In any of these cases, the account information on your credit report will be wrong.
And Medical Revenue Service has a documented history of failing to validate debts according to the BBB. If they cannot prove the debt is valid, yours, and currently collectable, the credit reporting agencies must delete it.
Using the 30-Day Rule to Your Advantage
When you dispute information on your credit report, the credit reporting agencies have just 30 days to investigate and respond. That creates a tight deadline for collection agencies to produce whatever documentation they need.
The reality that debt collectors do not want you to know is that medical debt may change hands several times before it reaches a collection agency like Medical Revenue Service. The hospital may sell it to a debt buyer, who sells it to another debt buyer, who assigns it to a collection agency. With each transfer, documentation can get lost, incomplete, or corrupted.
When a debt collector is faced with a tight deadline to verify an account, it is common for them not to be able to produce the documentation. If they cannot verify, they cannot leave the item on your credit report. That’s why the dispute process is such a powerful tool for consumers.
Common Consumer Mistakes to Avoid
The Single Worst Move: Calling the Collection Agency
Don’t even think about picking up the phone. Your very first move should never, ever be to contact the collection agency directly. The minute you engage with a debt collector, you are giving up leverage you didn’t even know you had.
Debt collectors are professional negotiators. They do this all day, every day. They know exactly what to say to get you to admit that you owe the debt, commit to a payment plan, or unwittingly restart the clock on the statute of limitations. One misstep in your conversation could undermine everything you will do from this point forward.
At the very least, consult with a professional credit repair expert before you have any direct contact with a collection agency. Let them handle the communications for you. In this case, silence really is golden.
Don’t Fall for the Pay-for-Delete Trap
The Internet is full of stories about successfully negotiating a pay-for-delete agreement. People share scripts and templates and make it sound like a piece of cake. But you’re only hearing the success stories. You’re not hearing about all the times it did not work.
Collection agencies have zero incentive to abide by a pay-for-delete agreement. They already have your money. What are you going to do—sue them? For most people, that’s just not realistic. And the debt collector knows it.
Even if a collection agency agrees in writing to delete an account once you’ve paid it off, they can always claim it was a clerical error and the credit reporting agencies may put the account right back on your report. You’ll end up in exactly the same place you started, except now you’ll be out however much money you paid them. The dispute-first strategy completely sidesteps that risk.
Why MRS Does Not Care about Your Complaints
Understanding Their Business Model
The reason Medical Revenue Service can rack up more than 1,000 complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, and more than 180 federal lawsuits, and still retain an A-minus rating with the Better Business Bureau, is that they just don’t care what you think about them.
They don’t need your approval. They don’t need your positive review. They don’t need you to refer your friends and family to them. Their customers are the health care providers who hire them to collect money. Consumers are just the targets of that collection activity.
Once you understand that fundamental disconnect, you can see why the company can continue to operate in its usual manner despite more than a decade of documented consumer complaints. You cannot shame Medical Revenue Service into removing your account. You cannot reason with them into doing the right thing. You cannot appeal to their sense of fair play.
You have to use the legal mechanisms available to you, because those are the only ones that have the power to hurt them.
What the A-Minus BBB Rating Really Means
An A-minus rating with the Better Business Bureau suggests a respectable, responsible company, right? Not necessarily. The BBB rating measures how well a company responds to complaints—not whether it actually resolves them satisfactorily.
In their response to the pattern alert, Medical Revenue Service provided only general policy statements and refused to acknowledge any wrongdoing. Yet that was enough to maintain their A-minus rating. The disconnect between the official rating and the consumer experience could not be more stark.
So do not be fooled by a decent BBB rating into expecting this company to treat you fairly. The 349 complaints filed in just the past 3 years tell the real story.
How to Deal with Medical Revenue Service the Smart Way
Bringing in a Professional Matters
The information gap between collection agencies and consumers is enormous. The collector knows the laws, the loopholes, and the strategies. The typical consumer has never dealt with this before, and is likely going through it during an already-stressful financial time in their life. That is just not a fair fight.
A credit repair expert helps level the playing field. They understand the dispute process and the most common errors that can get accounts removed. They understand how to document everything properly and apply the right pressure to get the job done.
When a collection agency gets a dispute letter from a credit repair expert, they know they are dealing with someone who understands the rules of the game. That changes the dynamic entirely.
Credit Repair as Consumer Advocacy
Do not make the mistake of thinking that credit repair is about enabling people to shirk their legitimate debts. Nothing could be further from the truth. Credit repair is about holding collection agencies to the same standards as everyone else. When Medical Revenue Service fails to validate a debt properly, or fails to deliver required disclosures, or reports inaccurate information, they are breaking the law. Consumers have every right to call them on it.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act and the Fair Credit Reporting Act exist for the express purpose of reining in abusive debt collection practices. These laws give you tremendous power, if you know how to use them.
Working with a credit repair expert is not manipulating the system. It’s using the system the way it was intended to work. Debt collectors certainly use every tool at their disposal. Why shouldn’t you?
Conclusion
If you see Medical Revenue Service on your credit report, do not wait and do not try to navigate this on your own. This company has more than 1,233 federal complaints and 180 federal lawsuits. It has a documented history of failing to validate debts, and the consumers who have dealt with them give it just 1 star out of 5.
Paying them will not make the account disappear from your report. Calling them will only put you at a disadvantage. Hoping they will do the right thing ignores decades of history to the contrary.
The dispute process is your best tool for dealing with a collector like this. Inaccurate, unverifiable, or otherwise flawed information can be deleted from your credit report if you challenge it properly. That is not a loophole—that’s the law.
What to Do Next
If you are facing an account reported by Medical Revenue Service, do not wait any longer. Contact us at FightCollections.com today for a free consultation. Our experts will walk you through the dispute process and help you determine the best way to deal with your unique situation. We will fight the debt collectors for you.
Remember, your credit report affects everything from the interest rates you pay to the jobs you can get. Do not let one out-of-control debt collector dictate your financial future. Act now.
