Here's a real bottom feeder

[montana59451]

AFNI just sent a letter regarding an really old bill....about 10 years old if I remember correctly. The original bill was about $500, got sold to Portfolio Recovery, went away for about 6 years then Portfolio called again, told them I would not pay bill because I did not owe that much (really didn't owe the $500 it was way less than that). It went away for a while again and now this letter from AFNI! The bill is now $4030 (where did they get that # from?) and they have offered me a WONDERFUL discounted settlement offer of $150!

Now it seems to me that Portfolio Recovery sold this account AFTER they were notified of filing for Ch 7. Portfolio was notified on several other accounts. This one was not included as it is way over SOL.

This account was not even on my credit report since it was so old. Will it now get reported again by AFNI as IIB?

Can I do anything about Portfolio selling the account AFTER they were notified of the filing?

[StartingOver08]

They can not report this bill on your credit report. When you received your Ch 7 discharge, it discharged all prior debt. Send them a strongly worded letter with a copy of your discharge. BTW, this is considered a violation of the discharge injunction. Send them the letter and if they don't permanetly remove this collection, sue them.

[DebtHater]

AFNI has to tell you what the charges are from if requested. Chances are they can't.

[pileated]

I had a collector who was calling and threatening to sue over a Visa bill on which no payments had been made for 10 years.

My lawyer told them the statute of limitations on contracts had expired after 6 years in our state, and to go away because they had no case. I no longer owed the money.

They went away.

[GoingDown]

That's the way to handle zombie debts. They're beyond the statute of limitations and they know it, but they hope you don't know it.

A simple cease and desist communications letter with an added sentence telling them that you will fight them in court using the SOL as a defense will make them go away, never to be heard from again.

[researchmode]

I was under the impression that if you admitted to the debt they could do something to try and start collecting it again. Is there a way to say that it's past the statute of limitations without reactivating the debt?

My husband has some 10+ year old debt that we still get letters and settlement offers for (which we just ignore). After we moved and switched phone numbers the calls stopped, thankfully.

[catleg]

"I have no knowledge of the alleged debt. Such an account was included in my chapter 7 bankruptcy on xx/xx/xx and/or is past the statute of limitations in this state. Please cease and desist from further communication regarding this debt."

[justbroke]

Can I do anything about Portfolio selling the account AFTER they were notified of the filing?

There has been very recent caselaw which clearly found that selling a debt when you know that it was discharged in a bankruptcy is a willful violation of the automatic stay and the assignor is the one who is at fault (the one who sold it).

However, a mere assignment while the bankruptcy is pending, is not an issue and happens all the time.

[WhatMoney]

SOL laws by State

I was under the impression that if you admitted to the debt they could do something to try and start collecting it again. Is there a way to say that it's past the statute of limitations without reactivating the debt?

Acknowledging the debt or stating it is beyond the SOL does not reset the SOL. If that were the case, it would be impossible to use the SOL as a defense in court - think about it.

In some States, making a payment will reset the SOL to the date of the last payment. In other states, a new written contract signed by the debtor, is also required to reset the SOL. So even a few payments will not reset the SOL in those states.

The statute of limitations is only extended by a new written promise to pay in these states:

Arizona, California, Florida, Iowa, Kansas, Maine, Massachusetts, Michigan, Minnesota, Mississippi, Missouri, Nevada, New York, Texas, Virginia, West Virgina, Wisconsin.

Nothing you say on the telephone about the debt can reset the SOL in any State. This is just urban legend from Internet hacks.
In some States, if you gave them your checking account number and requested that they start deducting payments from your account, then the payment would reset the SOL. Hopefully not too many debtors are that stupid. But that is what the zombie debt collectors are hoping for.

You can find the statutes on SOL's for your State here - this is a useful link to bookmark:

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/rebu...itations.shtml

[jacko]

What happens if you move from a state with a 6 yr sol to another with a 3 yr one? Does the 3 yr sol apply?

[WhatMoney]

What happens if you move from a state with a 6 yr sol to another with a 3 yr one? Does the 3 yr sol apply?

Depends of the State SOL statutes where you moved to. There is no easy answer.
See this link:
http://www.creditinfocenter.com/word...when-you-move/

Here are some guidelines:

1. Technically speaking, the statute of limitations for a debt are tied to the state where the debt was created.

2. If a creditor sues you, in general, the SOL of the state in which the suit is filed are the enforceable ones. This often works to the advantage of a consumer who moves to a state with a shorter SOL than the one where the debt was created.

3. Some states have a “borrowing statute” law on the books that allows you to use the shorter SOL from a previous state.

4. If you left the state where the debt was created BEFORE the SOL ran out, the SOL cannot be revived – not even with a ‘borrowing’ statute.

5. Florida, Kentucky, Missouri, Pennsylvania, Oklahoma and Wisconsin do not apply any residency requirements to determine whether to borrow another state’s statute of limitation. In cases filed in these jurisdictions, even if the plaintiff and defendant are residents of the state in which the suit is filed, courts will apply the limitation period of the state in which the borrower lived during the creation of the debt to determine whether suit is timely filed.

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/word...-if-ive-moved/

[tigergem]

AFNI, bless their ever lovin' hearts, you sure gotta give them credit for trying. ROFL!! They sent me a offer to settle on a 10+ year old phone bill from a place where I never even lived, much less ever had a phone. I sent them a DV letter and saw the proof they sent me and about busted a gut laughing. I never bothered to respond to them after that, and never heard from them again.

[calgirl67]

I am actually LOOKING FORWARD to some scumbag junk debt buyer contacting me over my DISCHARGED debts.

I plan on and will sue them immediately. I will not play around or send them nice letters.

[catleg]

The NY Times today has an article about "Dr Tax":

http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/24/business/24collection.html?src=me&ref=business