About ten yrs. Ago, we had a DirectTV acct. When we moved from one house to another on the same property, we contacted DIRECT asking them to disconnect the service and re-connect to the new house.

A rep showed up, and disconnected the system TAKING ONLY THE BOX and CABLES. He refused to install a system on the new house, which was only a few yards from the old place. When he detached the dish he literally threw it off the roof, braking it into three pieces. He told us it was an old dish and out dated!

We called Direct TV and were told we would have to pay for the dish, as the damage took place on our property We sent a certified letter along with photos of the broken dish. We did not hear back from them after that. That was nine plus years ago.

Today we received a letter from NCO Financial Sys. Stating "We have previously notified you about the above-referenced account, which remains unpaid. When we checked our credit rating earlier this year, there were NO OUTSTANDING DEBTS or CLAIMS.

Upon receiving the letter, we could not find ANY outstanding claims for DIRECT-TV. How do we go about stopping NCO from making any negative reports on us for this outdated claim?

What probably happened is that when you refused to pay, Direct TV decided it wasn't worth pursuing and wrote the debt off. Then sold it. It has probably been sold a few times since until it got to NCO. NCO paid so little for it that they felt it was worth sending a letter to try and collect.

The fact that this debt is not on your credit report doesn't mean you don't owe it. What I would do is send a letter back to NCO, telling them that the claim was disputed at the time and since it was never pursued by Direct TV, you feel it has no merit and have no intention of paying. Further advise them, that since the Statute of Limitations has expired on this claim, that you expect them to cease and desist and further attempts to collect it.