Like some, not most, consumers, I had a difficult time financially at one point in my life. 2004-2005 was the hardest time I've ever had. I did my best over the following few years to clear up and pay down/off debts, but two slipped through the cracks. I had a utility bill charge off in Dec 04 for $360, as reported on my credit reports. In an effort to be as informed as I can of my credit worthiness, I pulled my free credit reports recently. In reading through them, 2 out of 3 say this amt and date are scheduled to report through Jun 11. Good news, so I thought. But I'm a little confused. I would have expected this to be considered uncollectable beginning Jan 09, as in Texas, the statute of limitations is 4 years (right or wrong?). So why is there another charge-off date as of Dec 09? Literally, on my reports, all say as follows: Recent Balance: $360 as of 12/2009 Why is there a recent balance shown as of Dec 09 when all 3 reports shows charge-off as of Dec 04? Account History: Charge off as of Dec 2004, Dec 2009 If the acct charged off in Dec 04, why is there a second charge off date, and why is it showing a recent balance as of Dec 09? If someone knows some details behind this, I would appreciate so I can clear up what needs to be done, if in fact, I am still legally liable for the balance. The other item was a $39 charge (assuming a late fee) that I didn't know about. Wondering what to do with that as well.
A charged off debt doesn't mean the debt actually goes away. Even after the SOL has run, the debt is still yours. You would just have an absolute defense in the event they tried to sue you to collect the debt. And if the OC charged off the debt but has continued to hold onto it instead of selling the debt to a CA, then that may be whey they're still reporting an outstanding balance at the current date. Are you sure 2 charge off dates are being reported? It's tough for me to really tell without actually seeing the reports.
Thanks for the reply. I tried to attach links to each agency's take on my utility acct (jpg's via photobucket) but I cannot due to my "new-ness" to the forum. If the OC had sold it to a CA, then I'd see that on my report as well, would I not? I'm assuming that since there are no agencies on my report, the OC kept it in-house. Not sure how else to transmit the snapshots of my reports.
If it was sold, you will usually see something like a "sold/transferred" notation and you would probably also have a collection listed by the CA. So yes, it sounds like the OC has kept it in house. If you can deal with the OC directly, that's a better scenario anyway.
