[lise448]

Hi There
I just had a creditor call me stating I owed $8425.00 from Aug 2007. This is the first I have heard from them. I went through a separation at that time and to my knowledge.. all was taken care of when the house was sold. I have been living pretty minimal since then... no credit cards... no loans so I wasn't aware that my credit was in trouble.
The woman stated that she was a company acting on behalf of Capital One and that I had to make a decision by today as to offering them a proposal. She suggested $5000.
I was shocked and told her I needed to talk to my ex to see what was going on. I don't even know if this debt is mine... or if it was joint or what.
My question is what do I do now? What are my rights? What is this SOL... the debt is 4 years old... can Capital One still pursue it and take legal action against me? What is the six year limitation regarding? Will this ever go away?
I guess I would just like some advice on what is my best option.
I don't have $5000... she is suggesting I borrow from Citifinancial to pay Capital One. I really don't want to do that.
Any help would be greatly appreciated.
Thanks
Lisa

[smoothy]

Four years is well within the SOL for last activity on the account, which is seven years of inactivity... not the last charge. (I.E. if this debt was 8 years old and nothing at all had been done for that entire time... they couldn't sue you) But keep in mind... the SOL means nothing about their right to hound you for payment (that only ends with the payment of the debt)... it only applies to them being able to sue you in court for it.

Who would have "taken care of this" when your house was sold?

You can request copies of documents that show this debt as being yours. Keep in mind if it was a joint account (had both names on it) or you cosigned for it and your ex ran up the bills and they can't collect from them... they CAN come after you to pay them.

[lise448]

Thanks for your help smoothly. I actually live in Ontario so I don't know if the laws are different here... I was looking at a Canadian site stating a 2yr SOL period that a company may bring legal action... but I'm just beginning to do the research.
My ex handled all the finances previous to our separation so it is he that I refer to as to have "taken care of this". I have spoken with him and he swears he paid all debt. Obviously, this one got missed somehow.
What is a reasonable amount to offer in a proposal.. the debt is $8425?. How can I make sure that once I make the payment that they will leave me alone or can they come after me for the rest?

[smoothy]

Yes... I answered that assuming US law... someone else will have to answer in regards to the Canadian SOL.

You can make an offer of 1/2 of that... of course... make sure you get in writing that payment would result in that debt being considered satisfied in full. THe higher the amount the more likely they are to accept it.

If it goes to court... (assuming the SOL hasn't expired in your case). They are going for the full amount.

I like the idea of a loan to pay them off. It gets you away from them once and for all... and you likely get better terms.

[ScottGem]

For Ontario the SOL is 6 years.

Don't be intimidated by the caller. The fact that she offered a settlement of $5k on an $8K debt tells me they think they are on shaky legal grounds and are trying to get something out of you.

Ask for verification of the debt. They need to provide proof of the balance and that it is your debt.

[Fr_Chuck]

Agree, if they call on the phone, it could even be a scam, could be a debt from someone with a similar name,

Require that they send you any thing in writing, get their mailing address and write back denying any knowledge of this debt and asking them to send proof and verification of the debt.