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I received a call out of the blue from a collection agency looking to collect on a loan I defaulted on and never repaid.
This loan has since been removed from my credit record due to our local Statute of Limitations (6 years).
Can this collection agency still collect? Are they still within legal bounds?
If the SOL is up, then they don't have a claim. They will try to get you to reinstated the loan. Do agree to anything. They tell put it in writing. Don't forget to dispute their claim you have 30 days. Any presentation to you you must answer.
Use this link for Debt Collector Disclosure
https://www.askmehelpdesk.com/bankru...ask-29036.html
Thanks for the reply. I should have mentioned I live in Nova Scotia, Canada.
They may simply not know it's past the SOL. Dispute the bill (in writing) citing the SOL and ask them to provide proof that it is a valid debt. Include in the letter a demand to cease and desist their collection activity until and unless they can validate it.
Rick... is there a form available on the web for this?
Changed this form for you to use. Add the SOL at Question 45.
QUESTIONS TO ASK DEBT COLLECTOR WITH YOU DISPUTE THEIR CLAIM.
Debt collector name
Address
state
RE; Account
DEBT COLLECTOR DISCLOSURE STATEMENT
This statement and the answers contained herein may be used by Respondent, if necessary, in any court of competent jurisdiction.
Notice: This Debt Collector Disclosure Statement is not a substitute for, nor the equivalent of, the hereinabove-requested verification of the record, i.e. Confirmation of correctness, truth, or authenticity, by affidavit, oath, or deposition (Black's Law Dictionary, Sixth Edition, 1990), re the alleged debt, and must be completed in accordance with the Debt Collection Practices and demands as cited above Disputed Debt. Debt Collector must make all required disclosures clearly and conspicuously in writing re the following:
1.Name of Debt Collector: . ...
2.Address of Debt Collector: . .. .
3.Name of alleged Debtor: .. .
4. Address of alleged Debtor: . ... .. .
5. Alleged Account Number: .. ... .. .
6.Alleged debt owed: $ . .. ...
7.Date alleged debt became payable: ... . .. .. .. .
8.Re this alleged account, what is the name and address of the alleged Original Creditor, if different from Debt Collector?
9. Re this alleged account, if Debt Collector is different from alleged Original Creditor, does Debt Collector have a bona fide affidavit of assignment to enter into alleged original contract between alleged Original Creditor and alleged Debtor?
YES NO
10. Did Debt Collector purchase this alleged account from the alleged Original Creditor? YES NO N/A (Not Applicable)
11. If applicable, date of purchase of this alleged account from alleged Original Creditor, and purchase amount:
Date: Amount: $ ..
12.Did Debt Collector purchase this alleged account from a previous debt collector? YES NO N/A
13. If applicable, date of purchase of this alleged account from previous debt collector, and purchase amount:
Date: Amount: $ ..
14. Regarding this alleged account, Debt Collector is currently the:
Owner; (b) Assignee; (c) Other explain: . .
15.What are the terms of the transfer of rights re this alleged account? . . . .
16. If applicable, transfer of rights re this alleged account was executed by the following method:
(a) Assignment; (b) Negotiation; (c) Novation; (d) Other explain: . ...
... ...
17. If the transfer of rights re this alleged account was by assignment, was there consideration? YES NO N/A
18. What is the nature and cause of the consideration cited in # 17 above? . . ..
... ...
19. If the transfer of rights re this alleged account was by negotiation, was the alleged account taken for value?
YES NO N/A
20.What is the nature and cause of any value cited in #19 above? . ...
21.If the transfer of rights re this alleged account was by novation, was consent given by alleged Debtor? YES NO N/A
22. What is the nature and cause of any consent cited in #21 above?
23. Has Debt Collector provided alleged Debtor with the requisite verification of the alleged debt as required by the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act? YES NO
24. Date said verification cited above in # 23 was provided alleged Debtor: . ...
25. Was said verification cited above in # 23 in the form of a sworn or affirmed oath, affidavit, or deposition? YES NO
26. Verification cited above in # 23 was provided alleged Debtor in the form of: OATH AFFIDAVIT DEPOSTION
27. Does Debt Collector have knowledge of any claim(s)/defense(s) re this alleged account? YES NO
28. What is the nature and cause of any claim(s)/defense(s) re this alleged account? ... .
29. Was alleged Debtor sold any products/services by Debt Collector? YES NO
30. What is the nature and cause of any products/services cited above in # 29? .
... ...
31. Does there exist a verifiable, bona fide, original commercial instrument between Debt Collector and alleged Debtor containing alleged Debtor's bona fide signature? YES NO
32. What is the nature and cause of any verifiable commercial instrument cited above in # 31? .
... ...
33. Does there exist verifiable evidence of an exchange of a benefit or detriment between Debt Collector and alleged Debtor? YES NO
34. What is the nature and cause of this evidence of an exchange of a benefit or detriment as cited above in # 33? ... ...
35. Does any evidence exist of verifiable external act(s) giving the objective semblance of agreement between Debt Collector and alleged Debtor? YES NO
36. What is the nature and cause of any external act(s) giving the objective semblance of agreement from #35 above?
37. Have any charge-offs been made by any creditor or debt collector regarding this alleged account? YES NO
38. Have any insurance claims been made by any creditor or debt collector regarding this alleged account? YES NO
39. Have any tax write-offs been made by any creditor or debt collector regarding this alleged account? YES NO
40. Have any tax deductions been made by any creditor or debt collector regarding this alleged account? YES NO
41. Have any judgments been obtained by any creditor or debt collector regarding this alleged account? YES NO
42. At the time the alleged original contract was executed, were all parties apprised of the meaning of the terms and conditions of said alleged original contract? YES NO
43. At the time the alleged original contract was executed, were all parties advised of the importance of consulting a licensed legal professional before executing the alleged contract? YES NO
44. At the time the alleged original contract was executed, were all parties apprised that said alleged contract was a private credit instrument? YES NO
45. Statute of Limation is this alleged debt this valid within the limits of the SOL. Yes or NO_______
Debt Collector's failure, both intentional and otherwise, to complete/answer points 1 through 45 above and return this Debt Collector Disclosure Statement, as well as provide Respondent with the requisite verification validating the hereinabove - referenced alleged debt, constitutes Debt Collector's tacit agreement that Debt Collector has no verifiable, lawful, bona fide claim re the hereinabove-referenced alleged account, and that Debt Collector tacitly agrees that Debt Collector waives all claims against Respondent and indemnifies and holds Respondent harmless against any and all costs and fees heretofore and hereafter incurred and related re any and all collection attempts involving the hereinabove-referenced alleged account.
Declaration: The Undersigned hereby declares under penalty of perjury of the laws of this State that the statements made in this Debt Collector Disclosure Statement are true and correct in accordance with the Undersigned's best firsthand knowledge and belief.
____________________________________ ____________________________________
Date Printed name of Signatory
____________________________________ ____________________________________
Official Title of Signatory Authorized Signature for Debt Collector
Debt Collector must timely complete and return this Debt Collector Disclosure Statement, along with all required documents referenced in said Debt Collector Disclosure Statement. Debt Collector's claim will not be considered if any portion of this Debt Collector Disclosure Statement is not completed and timely returned with all required documents, which specifically includes the requisite verification, made in accordance with law relevant part: A debt collector may not use any false, deceptive, or misleading representation or means in connection with the collection of any debt, which includes the false representation of the character, or legal status of any debt, and the threat to take any action that cannot legally be taken, all of which are violations of law. If Debt Collector does not respond as required by law, Debt Collector's claim will not be considered and Debt Collector may be liable for damages for any continued collection efforts, as well as any other injury sustained by Respondent. Please allow thirty (30) days for processing after Respondent's receipt of Debt Collector's response.
Recording Requested by, and
When Recorded Return to:
Your name
Address
State and zip code
__________________________________________
Cc:file
Thanks, Mr. Yet!!
The above will certaily work, but short and sweet will do too:
"regarding the demand for payment of [insert the bill a/c no and amount], I am disputing the validity of it as it has gone beyond the Statute of Limitations. Cease and disist any further collection activity on this alleged debt until and unless you can provide proof of it's validity. Please notify me that you have received this notice"
I'd both send it in the mail but also call them and let them know.
From here, document all communications with them that you have... as a cya in case you need it later. I won't presume them to be less than honest, but if they are you want a good record of all of it.
Rick... do you know if Equifax or Transunion are able to provide copies of past credit reports i.e. Mar 2005?
No. While it may be true that those companies do some sort of archiving, you just cannot get an "old copy" of your credit report.
Thank you Mr. Yet for providing this form letter. I had a topic "Sprint" where I received a letter from an attorneys office statinig that I had an outstanding balance. How can you have an outstnading balance if you never used the company?
I do not want to hijack this thread, I just want to thank you (and Fr. Chuck in my post) for this form letter. I am sending mine out today.
Hello Flaloom:
There are three (3) different issues at work here, and it's helpful to know the specific vocabulary of each.
I can only speak to US law, with the assumption that Canadian law is similar.
The item was removed from your credit report due to the requirements within the Fair Credit Reporting Act (or Canada's equivalent). Negative items are required to be removed after 7 years bankruptcy after 10. Therefore, it is (1) not the statute of limitations at work there.
(2) Assuming a statute of limitations of 6 years, as you have indicated, all that means, is that they can not SUE you after that time, in order to collect. The statute of limitations has nothing whatsoever to do with debt only lawsuits. If you owe a debt, you owe it forever.
That's as it should be. Promises should have no expiration date. Therefore, they are (3) absolutely within their legal bounds to try to collect, short of filing suit.
Now, I don't disagree with any of the strategies my fellow experts have laid out, except that if they can't sue you, why bother?
You don't owe the money to me, though, so I don't care whether you pay or not. I'll leave those moral decisions to you. But, please don't fall into the trap of thinking you don't owe the money you do.
excon
Hi excon,
In other words they are legally within their rights to garnish my wages or seize any assets I might have to collect said debt?
Having said that, I suppose it also means that they are free to re-post said debt to my credit report?
How about this:
REPORTING NO NO's
"Your political affiliations, race, colour, religion, and information about criminal charges which did not result in conviction cannot be reported. That also goes for negative information more than six years old (the statute of limitations)."
Hi Fla:
Nope. Those are your words - not mine. They can only garnish your wages or seize assets PURSUANT to a judgment they get in court. Uhhh, they can't go to court, hence no judgment.
Nope. Your words again. They are not free to re-post the debt to your credit report. That doesn't mean they're not going to try. If they do, the credit bureaus have procedures for removing it, and they will.
Nope. Re-read my answer. This quote is NOT quoted from the statute of limitations law. Apparently, it's a quote from the Canadian equivalent of the US Fair Credit Reporting Act.
Look, these people are bottom feeders. They probably bought this debt in a package of bad debts, for $.05 on the dollar. They're old and VERY uncollectible. Without being able to file suit, clearly, they don't have a very big hammer. But if only 3% of the people pay when they get the phone call, the collection agency makes plenty of money.
When I answer legal questions, I use my words very carefully. In legal context, words and their meanings are very important. Actually, that was the point of my post in the first place.
excon
I see here that you mentioned of the SOL is up then they don't have a case.Quote:
Originally Posted by mr.yet
Now, if I've received a copy of my credit history from equifax, and the debt that the collection agency is trying to collect is not there, I know it's past it's statue of limitations, what are my rights with the collection agency.
I spoke to a collection agent this morning, and politely told them that I believed the debt had passed it's s.o.l. And I didn't believe they could prove validity of the debt. I asked them to cease contact unless they could prove such validity of their claim.
I was then told that they could send copies of the related information concerning the debt and that I still did owe them the money.
Now, I'm sure they can send me related info, but that Doesn't prove they have a valid claim. What can I do next? Just telling them that they have no valid claim won't stop the calls, will it? These debts in question are nearly ten years old, no longer appear on my credit history, nor have I made any payment, signed or sent any documentation in any way. They have certainly passed the statute of limitations.
What do I do next?
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