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396_WAYS_TO_SPIT
05-18-2004, 06:57 PM
Ok heres the deal I have a charge off on my credit. As of feburary 12th 2004 it has now been 7 years. i have been told that they come off after 7 years. Is this true? The reason I am asking is because some rude ass company keeps calling me and harrassing me:mad: One lady told me that she will keep calling me until I pay. I told her I wont pay and I want her to stop calling me. She then told me that she will continue to call untill I pay. Can they do this? I am ready to drive to wherever they are located and beat someones ass. I could careless about the charge off. I have perfect credit and the charge off never stopped me from getting cars,jetski's,etc. Could someone help a brotha out. This is pissing me off:mad: :mad: :mad:
396

al cole'holic
05-18-2004, 07:03 PM
That was the way I assumed it worked after 7 years, but someone once told me that as long as the debt continued to be sold off year after year you would not see the end...??

welk2party
05-18-2004, 07:04 PM
The statue of limitations for collecting has expired. She is breaking the law by calling you. Just laugh at her and if she continues tell her you want the name and phone number of their legal department so you know where to send the lawsuit.
The debt is totally uncollectable. The credit bureaus should remove it as well. email me if you have further questions.

Ntwotrance
05-18-2004, 07:06 PM
and call the cops, she's stepping way over the line.

BoatFloating
05-18-2004, 07:09 PM
The 7 years is to it falls off your credit report. They can bug you as much as they want just to see if you'll pay. You are no longer obligated to pay them a dime after a year they gave up their legal right to sue you for the money and at that time they ding your credit for 7 years. So tell her you know the law and she is SOL. Just mention the Fair Credit Reporting Act and that she is now harassing you and that should do the trick...

mike37
05-18-2004, 07:11 PM
what the hell is a charge off

Debbolas
05-18-2004, 07:11 PM
Or the Better Business Bureau
You need to contact the credit companies to get that removed from your account if it has been 7 years.
Just call or write a letter, you can challenge anything on your credit report. The bad part is, if it is accurate, your letter or phone call will just validate it.
(I use to do credit repair work)

GlastronGuy
05-18-2004, 07:12 PM
Once you tell them not to call you anymore it is illegal for them to do so.

Debbolas
05-18-2004, 07:16 PM
no, really?

FRENCHIE
05-18-2004, 07:17 PM
i would say Debbolas might be the expert in this dept!:D ;)

DogHouse
05-18-2004, 07:17 PM
396, not to bust your balls or anything, but charge off or not, the question is do you have a debt that you didn't pay? Maybe it's none of my business. Ok, it's not, but still, all legal maneuvering aside, if you owe money, my thought is square up and move on. Everyone has bad circumstances now and then, but that doesn't prevent us from doing the right thing when the time/situation is right. Just a thought. Soapbox off. Sorry if I overstepped my bounds.
-brian

Debbolas
05-18-2004, 07:18 PM
:(
thats too bad..........

Boozer
05-18-2004, 07:29 PM
You can inform that you no longer wish to be contacted by phone and wish that they pursue this matter by mail.

Mandelon
05-18-2004, 07:31 PM
The original company sold the debt to someone else for 10 cents on the dollar and now they are trying to collect it. They don't care about your credit report. They just gambled that they can harass or trick you into paying them.
Ask for her name and her supervisor, look into your rights and tell them to F off. :mad: :D :mad: They have a set of rules to follow, and are not allowed to harass you. They can't put hoods on you and make you lay in a pile of naked men either.
Good Luck.

Debbolas
05-18-2004, 07:45 PM
Call the Better Business People ( I can't spell bureau);)

Mandelon
05-18-2004, 08:31 PM
If the collection company is not a BBB member BBB can't do anything to them..........you can file a complaint but what good would it do? Some agency has to regulate them but I don't know which one.
Shouldn't be too hard to figure out. They will bug you in the hopes they can wear you down and make you pay.

Kachina26
05-18-2004, 08:35 PM
You didn't make any payments during the last 7 years, did you? If you did, then you reaffirmed the debt and restarted the 7 year clock:D

C-2
05-18-2004, 08:44 PM
In Arizona there is a 3 year statute of limitations on credit cards (California is 4). The statute begins when the card was charged off. The expired statute means they cannot sue you over the debt. They can still try to collect it, but nonetheless cannot sue you to enforce it. The statute does not “toll” while a person is in bankruptcy. Collection laws are governed by the Fair Debt Collection Act and should not be confused with the Fair Credit Reporting Act, which covers the seven year period below.
Negative credit accounts stay on your report for seven years from the date of origination. The origination date is the date the account defaulted, or even when it was charged off. If a collection agency acquired the account and takes the position the date of origination is when they purchased the account – they are wrong (and know it). If you dispute the origination date with the credit bureau, they will remove the negative item when they verify the origination date with the original creditor.
There is also a six month “grace” period that allows time for the bureaus to remove the information. If this is not quick enough for you, then dispute the item with the credit bureaus so they will be forced to correct the information more quickly.
Solution; Get the kind of privacy blocking on your telephone that requires 100% caller id. Most of these services will also allow you to block certain numbers from coming in. Or when you recognize the call, tell them you never heard of *you*, that it’s a newly assigned phone number and to never call again.
Threatening a collection agency or law firm by telling them you are filing a complaint with the government only validates your existence to them, and generally is a waste of time.
Comprende?
C2<----- works in collections, not some freak.

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT
05-18-2004, 08:45 PM
Originally posted by DogHouse
396, not to bust your balls or anything, but charge off or not, the question is do you have a debt that you didn't pay? Maybe it's none of my business. Ok, it's not, but still, all legal maneuvering aside, if you owe money, my thought is square up and move on. Everyone has bad circumstances now and then, but that doesn't prevent us from doing the right thing when the time/situation is right. Just a thought. Soapbox off. Sorry if I overstepped my bounds.
-brian
I feel where you are comming from but if they wanted money sooooo bad then why did they wait untill 7 years later to contact me??? if they would have done it sooner then i would have paid. But since they took thier sweet ass time they can kiss my sweet a$$. That was my only mishap I have had on my credit since I had credit;)
396

DogHouse
05-18-2004, 08:48 PM
Originally posted by 396_WAYS_TO_SPIT
I feel where you are comming from but if they wanted money sooooo bad then why did they wait untill 7 years later to contact me??? if they would have done it sooner then i would have paid. But since they took thier sweet ass time they can kiss my sweet a$$. That was my only mishap I have had on my credit since I had credit;)
396
I believe the question remains unanswered... Man, am I old fashioned or what. :rolleyes:

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT
05-18-2004, 08:54 PM
WOW,thanks for all the replies ;) I can always rely on my ***boat brothers to help a fellow boater out;) ;) I told the lady to pay the bill herself if she was so worried about it:D :D I wanted to cuss at her but I try to be respectful untill I was disrespected. She started talking shit so I cussed her ass out. I know she is doing a job but she didnt have to be rude about it. thak you all for the help and understanding;) ;)
The funny thing about this whole deal is when I had the charge off the bank didnt pay too much attention to it when I financed a Lexus and new jetski 4 years ago:D :D :D
396

Mandelon
05-18-2004, 08:56 PM
Doghouse, if you accidently get an extra order of fries with your drive through order do you go back and pay??? :D :D

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT
05-18-2004, 09:00 PM
Originally posted by DogHouse
I believe the question remains unanswered... Man, am I old fashioned or what. :rolleyes:
No your not old fashion. If you must have the story then here it goes.
I was 18 years old when I got the account. I went to pay my account(on time) and the lady said my account was charged off!!! I said what do you mean. She the said she didnt know what happened but its no longer in thier system. I said F*** you and walked out. I was young and a little hard headed. the company never sent me any info so I just blew it off. Ok so there is your story!!!! If you really had to know, THEY BLEW ME OFF SO I BLEW THEM OFF!!!!!!!! That is my answer!:rolleyes:
396

DogHouse
05-18-2004, 09:09 PM
Ok, fair enough, sounds like you tried to hold up your end of the deal. Like I said earlier, not to bust your balls or be nosey, but that is pertinent info when asking a question like that in a public forum! There is a huge tendancy in today's modern culture to shirk personal responsibility, so it is a bit of a sore spot with some. ;)
Mandy, don't you? :confused:
:D

Debbolas
05-18-2004, 09:11 PM
Originally posted by FRENCHIE
i would say Debbolas might be the expert in this dept!:D ;)
Dude, that cuts me, deep..............:(
Stupid, Stupid Head.....LOL:D

Starloans
05-18-2004, 09:14 PM
I found an article on this. It appears there are some attorneys that make a living from collection companies that violate the law. Here's the article.
Debtor act is a windfall for lawyers | $1,000 awards net attorneys way more:[1,3 Edition]
Adam Liptak. The San Diego Union - Tribune. San Diego, Calif.: Oct 6, 2002. pg. A.19
Full Text (654 words)
Hugh D. Brauer, 73, has a one-man legal practice in Highland, Ind. He does a little debt collection for a nearby furniture store, and he says he tries to treat people fairly.
"I conduct myself in a moral, appropriate way," Brauer said. Indeed, he said, many of those he has collected from have tried to hire him as a lawyer.
He was taken aback, then, when papers in a federal class-action lawsuit against him arrived not long ago, claiming the form letter he sends to debtors violates a federal law.
The law, the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, was passed in 1977 to combat collection abuses like lying and making harassing calls at late hours or to neighbors and employers.
In the past decade, the law has also given rise to what some say is an unintended consequence: thousands of federal lawsuits taking issue with the wording of collection letters. So many lawsuits have been filed that one judge denounced them as a "cottage industry" for nit-picking lawyers exploiting the act to reap many tens of thousands of dollars in fees.
Class-action lawsuits often involve weighty issues like securities fraud, environmental damage and defective products, but the collection lawsuits turn on more arcane disputes, such as whether the words "Speed-O-Gram" or "Priority-Gram" add deceptive urgency to a collection letter.
Successful plaintiffs in these cases are entitled to $1,000, but their lawyers can collect vastly larger sums.
"When they are successful, there is this bounty system in which the client gets $1,000 and the lawyers get their hourly rate, which is $40,000, $50,000 or more if the defendant decides to fight," said Richard J. Rubin, chairman of the National Association of Consumer Advocates, a sort of trade group for the plaintiffs' bar in this area. "I have no problem being the beneficiary of this bounty system as well as its instrument."
Some federal judges have expressed hostility to the law and to the lawyers who profit from it.
"While we do not profess to understand why the act refers such small cases to the busy federal courts rather than to an administrative body for determination," Judge Gerard L. Goettel wrote, "there is nothing in the act to suggest that it was intended to create a cottage industry for the production of attorneys' fees."
Other courts have given credit to Rubin for starting the collection-letter litigation industry.
The 6th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, in Cincinnati, said the more than 50 lawsuits filed by a single Ohio lawyer under the act appeared to have been inspired by an article in an American Bar Association publication about a 1992 speech by Rubin.
The court quoted the article: "Rubin makes no apologies for his tactics, despite his own admission that he relies on technical violations of the law to bring a case, makes arbitrary settlement demands irrespective of damages and earns far more in attorneys' fees than his clients are entitled to collect."
Rubin said the account was incomplete, because the cases involved serious harm to his clients. He noted, though, that "a bunch of people told me they got into this business because of that speech."
Thomas Kane, a lawyer at the Federal Trade Commission who coordinates education and enforcement effort in this area, said the agency welcomed private lawsuits.
The suits are essential to enforce the law, Kane said. "Private actions and the threat of private actions are powerful forces in regulating debt collectors."
He added: "A lot of those lawsuits are about notices that debt collectors must send to consumers. We believe those notices are very important."
No one doubts that some debt collectors use extreme methods.
"The worst cases are where they make really scary threats -- lawsuits, jail, physical harm," said Robert J. Hobbs, the deputy director of the National Consumer Law Center, which supports aggressive enforcement of the consumer laws by both regulators and private lawyers.
Credit: NEW YORK TIMES NEWS SERVICE

Cole Sanger
05-18-2004, 09:25 PM
Originally posted by DogHouse
396, not to bust your balls or anything, but charge off or not, the question is do you have a debt that you didn't pay? Maybe it's none of my business. Ok, it's not, but still, all legal maneuvering aside, if you owe money, my thought is square up and move on. Everyone has bad circumstances now and then, but that doesn't prevent us from doing the right thing when the time/situation is right. Just a thought. Soapbox off. Sorry if I overstepped my bounds.
-brian
You are right, but there are certain things that are hard to fix when it comes to credit. Here is my story, the short version. When I was 18 had a roommate. The phone was in my name. I got the phone turned off, and moved out of state. My ex-roommate called the phone company and said he was me and that the phone should not have been turned off. Well about 4 months later, I went to get a new phone. They said they couldn't do it due to my overdue past bill. WTF? What bill I say. Turns out the guy kept paying for a while on the phone, then just quit paying. Problem was that I was out of state, the guy had moved by this time, and I couldn't prove to the phone company that I myself had not been using the phone. To this day I can not get a phone with AT&T. It isn't on my credit anymore, and it has never stopped me from anything, but I never paid it, and never will. The one thing that I left out was that about 6 months later I got a call from AT&T customer service. They said they had someone saying they were me trying to turn the phone back on at a different location. They verified some personal information that the ex-roommate couldn't know and said they would not turn the phone on again. Of course they still wouldn't give me the time of day and wanted me to pay the previous bill.

Wet Dream
05-18-2004, 09:43 PM
396, here's a fairly similar situation that happened to me. Back in 1990 I had a hospital bill close to $10,000. I was 20 years old, unemployed at the time, no insurance and definately didn't own much of anything other than my CJ-7 which I still have. I tried to get help from the Great State of California to help me pay it off. No luck at all. So I didn't have much of a choice to let it go. There was no way I was gong to be able to pay this thing off. I got a few collection letters and phone calls over the next 2 years and they stopped. Cool with me. Fast forward 7 years. I'm married, living in a different state, working, own my own home, kids, things are going decently. I get a phone call one night and this is how it went:
Me: Hello
Her: Is this Mr *********
Me: Yes it is
Her: (her voice got happy) I have been looking for you for a long time
Me: Oh yeah, who is this?
Her: This is Ms ***** from XYZ Collection agency about a bill you have
Me: With whom?
Her: ABC Hospital
Me: Oh yeah, how much do they want now? (I'm thinking the interest rate and penalties killed me by now)
Her: Well, we actually want to settle for the original amount of $10,000. Can you put this on a credit card or we can take check by phone?
Now through this conversation the other side of my mind is processing this and I'm putting 2 and 2 together here.
Me: When did this go to collections?
Her: (She read the date, whatever it was)
Me: (Processing more in my mind ;) )
Me: So you mean to tell me that if I don't pay you tonight, this thing is completely off my credit report within a month?
Her: (momentary silence) Well no, its when WE got it from the hospital
Me: You don't really expect me to believe that BS do you?
Her: Well I have to try.
Thats the last I've heard and has been cleared since then.
Yes, I owed the debt and the hospital, but through those years, it was impossible. And the weird thing about getting help from the state. I didn't qualify because I was a single white male. :rolleyes:

396_WAYS_TO_SPIT
05-18-2004, 09:56 PM
Oh, I forgot to tell you guys something. i told her that it was my parents phone and they are 90 years old. i also told her that they went to bed at 6:30 pm. So then I told her to call my cell phone. She said "ok" like a dummy:D I said are you ready? She said "yup". i then told her my nimber is 911-2645. I told her to call me anytime you want:D :D :D The funiest thing was that she was so stupid that she didnt even recognize the number:D Next time they call I will give them my work number, It will be one of the local "sex lines":D :D Then we wil see how she likes her job!
396

C-2
05-18-2004, 10:05 PM
Slight update...
AZ statute of limitations could be six years, depends on how they term the loan or credit card [Written contract (6) or open-ended (3)]
And to clarify, nothing precludes them from filing a suit, but the case will be dismissed if you use the statute issue as a defense.
Keep an eye on your credit report though, collection agencies love to "re-age" accounts. The seven year period is solid and the FCRA was specifically modified in 1997 to clarify the issue.

JOHNNYBEGOOD
05-19-2004, 05:31 AM
This is my story on the subject. Just last week we went to closeing on a lot that we intend on building a new home. I have been married for 5 years and have excelent credit.
When we applied for a loan the bank called me and said that there is something on my wifes credit report that bugs him a little. The banker said that there is a zero balance owed but it also says that there is a debt owed to Sears. Of course I know nothing of this and ask my wife.
When she was 21 she didnt make a lot of money and quilified for a special loan to build a house. She had the house built and got all the appliances from Sears. As we all know sh!t happens and she could not pay off the debt. The debt was sold to a collector and that was the end so she thought.
The day before we close on the lot the banker calls me up and says he wants this cleared up and off her report before we close. I called the collector to find out what can be done. The total due was over 4 grand. I asked what they would settle for as I dont have that kind of money. The lady told me that they would settle foe $3000.00. I said I really do not have that kind of money and is there any thing we can do. She asked what i was thinking so I said I have $1100.00 in savings and I could give her that. She acepted my offer.
I called my banker he just put it in with the closeing and sent her a check. Now both of our credit reports and clean.
P.S. they start today digging dirt to build our new house.

diggler
05-19-2004, 05:44 AM
One of the things you definitely do not want to do if you believe the debt is discharged by the statute of limitations is begin paying the debt again.
By making payments on a debt that was legally discharged, you potentially set yourself up as having the debt once again becoming legally enforceable. While this may not occur, it is a legal "leg" for the collection agency to stand on if you begin, and then stop payment.

Kachina26
05-19-2004, 05:44 AM
Originally posted by Wet Dream
396, here's a fairly similar situation that happened to me. Back in 1990 I had a hospital bill close to $10,000. I was 20 years old, unemployed at the time, no insurance and definately didn't own much of anything other than my CJ-7 which I still have. I tried to get help from the Great State of California to help me pay it off. No luck at all. So I didn't have much of a choice to let it go. There was no way I was gong to be able to pay this thing off. I got a few collection letters and phone calls over the next 2 years and they stopped. Cool with me. Fast forward 7 years. I'm married, living in a different state, working, own my own home, kids, things are going decently. I get a phone call one night and this is how it went:
Me: Hello
Her: Is this Mr *********
Me: Yes it is
Her: (her voice got happy) I have been looking for you for a long time
Me: Oh yeah, who is this?
Her: This is Ms ***** from XYZ Collection agency about a bill you have
Me: With whom?
Her: ABC Hospital
Me: Oh yeah, how much do they want now? (I'm thinking the interest rate and penalties killed me by now)
Her: Well, we actually want to settle for the original amount of $10,000. Can you put this on a credit card or we can take check by phone?
Now through this conversation the other side of my mind is processing this and I'm putting 2 and 2 together here.
Me: When did this go to collections?
Her: (She read the date, whatever it was)
Me: (Processing more in my mind ;) )
Me: So you mean to tell me that if I don't pay you tonight, this thing is completely off my credit report within a month?
Her: (momentary silence) Well no, its when WE got it from the hospital
Me: You don't really expect me to believe that BS do you?
Her: Well I have to try.
Thats the last I've heard and has been cleared since then.
Yes, I owed the debt and the hospital, but through those years, it was impossible. And the weird thing about getting help from the state. I didn't qualify because I was a single white male. :rolleyes:
You should have told her you got hurt when you were running from immigration cause your from mexico and came here illegally.

Debbolas
05-19-2004, 06:01 AM
Does it bother anyone els that my name
Deb
is so close to the word
Debt?
weird...........

Scream
05-19-2004, 07:14 AM
Originally posted by Debbolas
Does it bother anyone els that my name
Deb
is so close to the word
Debt?
weird...........
Do you really want an answer???

Debbolas
05-19-2004, 07:17 AM
Don't you have some work to do?!?
JK/LOL:D

Dave C
05-19-2004, 07:40 AM
Here is whats wrong with our legal system...... (sorry off topic) See how the laywer doesnt give a f*ck.:mad:
"So many lawsuits have been filed that one judge denounced them as a "cottage industry" for nit-picking lawyers exploiting the act to reap many tens of thousands of dollars in fees."
"Rubin makes no apologies for his tactics, despite his own admission that he relies on technical violations of the law to bring a case, makes arbitrary settlement demands irrespective of damages and earns far more in attorneys' fees than his clients are entitled to collect."

C-2
05-19-2004, 08:53 AM
Originally posted by Dave C
"So many lawsuits have been filed that one judge denounced them as a "cottage industry" for nit-picking lawyers exploiting the act to reap many tens of thousands of dollars in fees."
I’m not a fan of plaintiff attorneys, but in these types of cases I think they are great.
People that fall victim to identity theft are often victimized twice; once by the thief, and then by the creditor that refuses to believe the account was opened fraudulently. In these types of situations, enforcing the FCRA and FDCA violations against over-zealous collection agencies is a good tool used by victims to help minimize the damage caused by the thief.
And EVERYBODY, no matter how careful or protected you think you are, can fall victim to identity theft.
Not disagreeing just to disagree, only offering another perspective. ;)

My Man's Sportin' Wood
05-19-2004, 03:19 PM
It only takes seven years to have it removed. The 10 year law applies to bankruptcies. If you pay it, it will be on there for another 7 yars as a paid charge-off, so the best thing to do is just leave it alone.
When those people call, tell them that "Mr. 396" doesn't live here. Like someone else said, tell them you just got this # and you don't know anything about the "other guy", so please don't call here any more (nicely). "Sorry I couldn't help you, and oh, by the way, can you please take my # out of your system?"
I'm betting it'll work.

HighRoller
05-19-2004, 03:42 PM
Very simple to solve this problem. When they call again, make sure you stay calm because the ONLY reason she keeps calling is to upset you. When you're upset you don't think correctly. Now, next time she calls, stop her right away and ask her what her name is and what company she's calling from. Once she does, tell her you asked because you are recording the call and you expect her to comply with the Debt Collection Practices Act while she's on the phone with you. Tell her if she does not do so, you will turn this recording over to your attorney and sue them for 500,000 dollars. Then kick back and listen to how her demeanor changes. If she raises her voice or acts unprofessionally in any manner immediately stop her(calmly again) and inform her that when she wants to discuss the matter in a professional manner you'll be happy to listen. Then hang up without another word. She's obviously working for a trash debt collector that bought the debt for pennies on the dollar. I had someone do it to me for a ten year old debt. He threatened to serve me with legal papers, garnish my wages, take my car away and empty my bank account. Scared the crap out of me at first until I calmed down. Then I told him to bring it on. Of course that was after I found proof of payment and faxed it to him. Then I told him to eat me and hung up.

Roxysnow
05-20-2004, 08:13 AM
Technically, chargeoffs don't fall off your credit report until they are paid. They can be removed by the credit agency if disputed and the creditor doesn't respond back with 60 days. Remember, this is a debt you took out and owe and the creditor can continue to rate on credit forever until paid or sell the debt to a collection company. And they can hound you until paid. Would lend your buddy $5000 and not collect? Exactly! Go negociate the amount, companies would rather get something than nothing. As for companies having issues with collections, its really up to there investors. I know my company will ignore collections after a 2 year seasoning period but others require them all to be satisfied. I would dispute with the credit agencies, that is the only way to have them removed! Good Luck!