Ask Me Help Desk - Being Sued by Debt Collector

I've looked around and am still a little confused - if anyone can help clear some things up that would be great. First, my situation:

About 3 years ago I had a new Credit Card account with Bank One (I think). I used it a bit, though not extravagantly, but they never sent me a bill. Later I found out that they had changed their name and/or been bought out by Chase (this may have been the other way around actually, I can't recall) just after I had opened my account. By the time I had determined this, they were already demanding all the money up front as it had been a few months. I couldn't pay it and stupidly decided to ignore it until I could. After a while it kinda-sorta went away in that they stopped bugging me about it as I never answered their calls etc. I don't believe I ever made any payments on the account (my credit report lists Date of Last Payment as blank also).

Now I have been served with a court summons for the amount, plus another $400 dollars or so (interest at 10% for 3 years and $100 court costs) by a collector (Unifund) that they sold the account to. I have checked my credit report and it shows that the credit card company charged off the account.

I looked at the local court's website and they have filed it - so the summons is legal as far as I can determine.

Here are my questions:

1) Is this past SOL? I'm in California and it says 4 years everywhere I checked, but what date is that from? I show a 'Date Opened' of 11/04 on my credit report, so I would think not?

2) I haven't called the company as I'm not sure it will help. Should I do this and try to pay off the debt? It is about $2000, which I don't have at the moment, though potentially it may be possible to borrow from someone. I gather that I should get Validation first (how do I go about that?)

3) The court summons seems to have been filed over a month ago (I just got it on Friday), and there is no date listed in the case # on the court's website. Is this normal? How long do I have to file some sort of response (I gather that I do have to do this to avoid a default judgement, meaning I lose)? How and what do I file?

4) Less immediately critical but still of some concern - What does this do to my credit rating? Can I get them to take it off there if I pay them? What if they get a judgement in court? How about the old entry from Chase on my credit report (I assume that will stay?)

Are there any options I'm missing or overlooking? Any advice or areas to look into would be helpful. I've never been to court in my life (save for Jury Duty), and I'm really out of my element. Thanks.

1) Nope, If its 4 years, you aren't even close.

2) First you need to answer the summons with your Intent to Defend. Since you are not denying this is your debt, I would send them a copy of your Intent to Defend requesting verification and suggesting that you would be open to a settlement.

3) File your response IMMEDIATELY.

4) Its already affected your credit by listing a defaulted account. Adding a judgement will make matters worse. If you settle, it will go on your record as a settled balance.

Wow - thanks for the quick response.

In general, how do you file the Intent to Defend? Do I have to type something up or get a form or other? All this does is state that I'm not ignoring the summons, correct? What sort of time frame does that give me to work with? I can't pay now, but there is a possibility my tax refund would cover it, or most of it.

I'm checking the local court website, but I don't see any information on a standard 'intent to defend' form or similar..

The thing is I'm not entirely sure it is valid to pay these guys, as it was years ago and there are 3 companies involved. I don't want to pay this and have it come up again or anything - I'm certainly not going to until they prove they are the legal person to pay. Should I ask for Validation or Verification? I've seen both used and I'm not sure if they are different terms or interchangeable in a legal sense.. Maybe I should call the court?

If I do settle with them, is there a chance they won't make me pay the full amount (since I gather they usually purchase these things for a few pennies on the dollar of debt)? I assume they will not charge the court/lawyer fee as it isn't going to court if I settle? What about the interest (and how much can they charge - I think they were saying 10% over 3 years)?

Thanks

The summons should have instructions on how to answer it. If not check with the court.

They will need to show they own the debt, but I doubt if that will be a problem.

Yes, if you offer a reasonable settlement especially in a lump sum, they will often settle for 75% of the balance or less.

3) The court summons seems to have been filed over a month ago (I just got it on Friday), and there is no date listed in the case # on the court's website. Is this normal? How long do I have to file some sort of response (I gather that I do have to do this to avoid a default judgement, meaning I lose)? How and what do I file?

I can help you with the 3rd question, to avoid a default judgement you will have to file a Defence in court. In that Defence you can explain yourself and how you think you will be able to resolve this matter. The court can allow you to pay this debt by monthly instalments, an amount that you can afford monthly. I believe for your case the areas to look into would be: Civil Litigation; Debt Recovery.

Quote:

Originally Posted by chris215

The court can allow you to pay this debt by monthly instalments, an amount that you can afford monthly.

Excuse me? What court are you talking about? Unless you are using mediation or arbitration, the courts do not have any say over how you pay the debt. They can only rule on whether you have to pay or not. Even if you use mediation/arbitration any payment plan ordered would be subject to the approval of BOTH parties. No one is going to impose on a creditor that they have to accept minimal payments.