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Silak12 Posted 10 years ago
Grammar
To prevent future collection action?
Hi! everyone.
Could someone clarify what the sentence below, which I came on on the electricity bill today, means?
"Amount past due may not accurately reflect the full amount owing to prevent future collection action"
(My partial interpretation): Amount-past-due may not show accurately the full amount you owe us...........
I could understand the above sentence so far as the word "owing" but the clause "(to prevent future collection action) went over my head.
Thanks!
Could someone clarify what the sentence below, which I came on on the electricity bill today, means?
"Amount past due may not accurately reflect the full amount owing to prevent future collection action"
(My partial interpretation): Amount-past-due may not show accurately the full amount you owe us...........
I could understand the above sentence so far as the word "owing" but the clause "(to prevent future collection action) went over my head.
Thanks!
Top answer
org/wiki/Garden_path_sentence ). e. legal proceedings to recover money owed) when a debt reached a certain level, but that in order to prevent that happening they reduced the apparent debt on the system, for some reason that is not explained (at least not in that sentence).
- org/wiki/Garden_path_sentence ).
- e.
- legal proceedings to recover money owed) when a debt reached a certain level, but that in order to prevent that happening they reduced the apparent debt on the system, for some reason that is not explained (at least not in that sentence).
- If it's important, I would contact them and ask.
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5 Answers
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I think it is a pretty nasty sentence: "owing to" seems to be a glaring "garden path" (https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Garden_path_sentence). The only sense I can make of it is that their systems would automatically trigger "collection action" (i.e. legal proceedings to recover money owed) when a debt rea
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silak12to prevent future collection action... could mean any of the following:
to make sure they don't keep calling you on the phone and threatening you if you don't pay
to make sure they don't come knocking on your door to demand immediate payment
to make sure they don't shut off your electricity until you pay
to make sure they don't sue
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It would make more sense to write
eg "Amount past due may not accurately reflect the full amount owing. To prevent future collection action, please pay in full before the due date."
Perhaps the writer wanted to say something like this, but was betrayed by his poor English.
eg "Amount past due may not accurately reflect the full amount owing. To prevent future collection action, please pay in full before the due date."
Perhaps the writer wanted to say something like this, but was betrayed by his poor English.
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GPY The only sense I can make of it is that their systems would automatically trigger "collection action" (i.e. legal proceedings to recover money owed) when a debt reached a certain level, but that in order to prevent that happening they reduced the apparent debt on the system, for some reason that is not explained (at least not in that sentence).Sorry, look
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