Helen Ellis, a financial counsellor with the Shepparton and Benalla Debt Counselling Service, says that in 1999, Joe's 17-year-old daughter applied for a mobile phone with Telstra. Joe did not understand the contract but signed it. Initially Joe's daughter got the bills for the phone, but once she got behind paying her bills, the bills were sent to Joe. "Telstra then started pursuing Joe for the debt," Ms Ellis says. "After lengthy discussions with me, on Joe's behalf, with Telstra's National Collection Centre in October 1999, Telstra . . . agreed to write the bad debt off." But Joe did not live happily ever after. Advanced Credit Management issued a letter of demand for $122 in December 1999. Again, Joe took the bill to Ms Ellis, who contacted Telstra to have the matter sorted out. In March 2002, Advanced Credit Management sent another letter of demand, this time for $52.10. Ms Ellis again contacted Telstra. After that Joe received another letter, this time from solicitors Fijalski and Associates, the in-house lawyers of Receivables Management. This letter demanded the payment of $56.35. Again, Ms Ellis dealt with it. Last year, the debt was "sold" to Alliance Factoring, which sent Joe two letters of demand for both the $56.35 debt and for the first debt, which it valued at $122.10. Again, Ms Ellis had to deal with it. "This is the most incredible waste of time for everyone involved. Even if Joe had legally incurred the debt, which he had not, he is not in a position to pay for it, not even the $56 debt," Ms Ellis says. "It is a waste of my time as a community financial counsellor . . . and it's a waste of Telstra's time."

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