I have 7 accounts in good standing and a couple from 4-5 years that are charge-offs. What really affects me is a Chase account that I was only an authorized user on that was included in a BK 7 by my husband in 95. Everytime I apply for credit I am turned down because of what they call "Public Record" on your credit report......please help. Can I dispute this ????
I do not know the answer. However, it is one of the best questions ever posed on this site, and I will find out. A few questions that may or may not be relevant: were you married ( to your current husband) when you were first listed as an authorized user? Were you married when your husband's bankruptcy was approved by the court?
RE: This is the answer. "Authorized" user accounts have no legal bearing to you. You did not sign an agreement to pay for the bill. All credit card companies will remove it from your credit report. All credit bueraus will remove it. period. end of story. Now. An "AUTHORIZED" Entry WILL count against you, or "for" you. IE If mom puts her $20K Visa platinum on you as authorized with your social, it will count , believe it or not. People and computers dont usually look at the line that says "Authorized, Indiviual, or Joint". So if you want good stuff to appear on your credit, do it by all means, but be prepared to take the good and the bad. In both cases you ALWAYS HAVE THE RIGHT to remove an "authorized" line. end of story. The bank will send you a letterhead saying that the account is not yours, meanwhile while it takes 2-3 months to have it removed. One more thing: If the account is charged-off, and authorized, expect to see it reappear again in the future.
oversimplified Sam is right that when Consumer A enters into a written contractual agreement with a lender, and chooses to make Consumer B an authorized user of his credit card account, consumer B has not entered into a contractual agreement with the lender, and does not create any financial liability for herself by using the credit card. In other words, being an authorized user of a credit card does not obligate one to pay the lender anything. However, in this case, we are talking about a husband and his wife. In some (not all) states, a spouse has a legal obligation based in statute to pay his/ her spouse's debts. In states in which this is the case, it does not matter whether a wife is listed as an authorized user; if her husband has a credit card in his name alone and does not pay, the lender may sue his wife. This is true even with debts that are ammassed after a couple files for divorce, but before a divorce is finalized. If the spouse did not go bankrupt, then she has a right to have the "public record" removed from her credit report. However, it may be the case that the lender has a right to demand payment in full of the obligation. P
RE: oversimplified What a crazy state to live in! If a credit account is an "I"ndividual and not "J"oint it should never affect the spouse!! When you marry someone you don't marry into their debt legally! What states are we talking about here?
RE: oversimplified California is one ... for sure. does anyone have a list of states and their laws about this subject? I think i've found it once on the net but don't remeber where. Any info about New Jersey?
Florida is one example of a state in which all debt obligations incurred by either party during a marriage (but not before) render either spouse liable for the total debt. a summary of laws by state is available @: http://www.divorce-forms.com/prod.html#Laws
RE: Florida is one example Sorry, feel that i have to chime in here. this is a very complex subject and the law does vary from state to state. However, it is not invariablly true that a spouse becomes liable for the debt of another in all situations until the divorce decree is entered. California recognizes that even when husband and wife are living together, one spouse may incur separate debt that is not the responsibility of the other. Also, after the parties separate (even if no petition for dissolution has even been filed), the debts incurred after the separation clearly belong to that spouse and not to the other.
