I contacted by a collector. account opened 1997 - last payment 00. they want $

They said it was a negative on our credit report. I just looked at all 3 credit reports - the one I think they are talking about is showing "closed" - is this just a fishing for a collector to make money due to the age of the account. seems like they are running credit reports looking for aged accounts.

Yes this is a bottom feeder collection agency. BUT is the debt beyond your states statutes to take legal action? Use this link to find your states statute:
http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/SOL-by-State.html

Even though a debt is "time barred" and has past the SOL or credit reporting, there is nothing that prevents them from trying. I would just ignore them, and throw it in the trash. If they continue to bother you, send them the following letter certified mail/return receipt. You just fill in the blanks

Today's Date
Your Name
Your Address
Collector's Name
Collector's Address
RE: [insert account number or name of account or name of debt]:
Dear [insert collector's name or company name],
This letter is in response to your [letter dated xx-xx-2005] (copy enclosed) or [phone call on xx-xx-2005], concerning the collection of the above referenced [account or date].
I do not believe I owe what you say I owe therefore I dispute this debt. I am well aware of my rights under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) and my state laws so I hope to save both of us a great deal of time by letting you know that not only do I dispute the validity of this debt, I have also checked with my State Attorney General and verified that the Statute of Limitations for enforcing this type of debt through the courts in (insert your state or the state in which the contract was signed) has expired. Therefore, should you decide to pursue this matter in court I intend to inform the court of my dispute of this debt and that the "statute of limitations" has expired.
This letter is your formal notification that I consider this matter closed and demand that you, or anyone affiliated with your company, stop contacting me regarding this or any other matter except to advise me that your debt collection efforts are being terminated or that you or the creditor are taking specific actions allowed by the FDCPA or my state laws.
Be advised that I consider any contact not in accordance with the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act a serious violation of the law and will immediately report any violations to my State Attorney General, to the Federal Trade Commission and, if necessary, take whatever legal action is necessary to protect myself. Be advised that I tape record all phone calls and violations of the FDCPA can result in you or your company being personally fined up to $1,000 per incident.

Hope this answers your question
LEGAL DISCLAIMER: The advice contained herein is for informational purposes only. It is not to be construed as Legal Counsel nor Legal Advice.

Negatives fall off your credit report 7-1/2 years from the date of first deficiency. NOTHING re-starts this period. This is per the FCRA.

The Statute of Limitations (SOL), the timeframe to bring lawsuit, varies from state to state but typically starts from the last payment. Check the SOL for your state: http://www.fair-debt-collection.com/SOL-by-State.html

If the debt is beyond your state's SOL, send the collector a certified, return receipt letter telling them the debt is beyond the SOL and to cease and desist all contact. They have to stop. They might try suing but more likely will sell the debt off to another zombie debt collector. Just send another cease and desisit letter.

This should not be on your credit. Accounts that are charged off should only stay on your credit report for 7 years after the last missed payment check to see when the last payment was made

Check your states statute of limitations on debt collection. Sine your debt is over 10 years old, it has most likely expired (However some states last as long as 15 years). Most likely, you are not required to pay it back by now, but be sure to contact someone with professional legal knowledge to make sure.

Legally, the statute of limitations determines whether you still owe the money. The laws vary from state to state, and there's a lot of people on the boards (including myself) who doesn't really understand how (or if) the statute of limitations resets if you send them a couple bucks.

Morally, if the ORIGINAL person you owed the money to still holds the debt and simply wrote it off, you owe him, so pay him.

If he sold the debt, then he's been repaid.
The collection agent who bought the debt is simply a bottom-feeder, and I don't consider it a moral obligation to pay him.

It is supposed to be cleared after 7 years, as is any bad rating on your credit.

Hi there, since your account is over 7 yrs and still on the report, I suggest that you write to the credit Bureau, tell them the seven years has expired and it must be removed at once. For you to have a good credit account.

If you still experiencing credit problems feel free to visit this site for inquiries : http://www.erasingbadcredit.com/

hope it helped :-)

If it's not showing up as open on your credit report, I don't see how they can hurt your credit. Looks like fishing to me. I would tell them to stop calling immediately

As far as this company, most likely, they wrote it off as a loss debt, but they will probably continue to hound you to make up for the money. If you owe, you need to pay. That's your legal obligation. What the "closed" means is that the account is closed. You can't continue to use it. However, they still want to collect on unpaid monies.

ive had this problem recently and had to go to court where it was dismissed. come to find out after 7 years things are suppose to be erased. but how they get tricky is that they sell your account to another company which opens it back up cause now you owe that company. but (and this is the good part) with the switch of hands of your account info gets lost and they don't have all of the records they need to completely prosecute you for it.

good luck

Take out what money you have and hide it in a differant acount and tell them that you have no money and to sue you...

It isn't on your credit report because it is Over 7 years old. If you pay it, then it will show back up as a current bad dept only recently paid.

If there was a balance on a card - then, yes you owe.

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