I have received a summons to appear in small claims court by a credit collection agency. I have very limited time, to try to work this out. They are probably some of the nastiest people I have ever tried to work with. As I dont have the full $2600 to pay off, or even half of that, I have no idea what to do. The original charge was from Utah, and was from about 5-6 years ago, but I now live in California, and my court appearance is set for Sept, in California. I do not have a lawyer, and am stuck. I offered to pay a monthly amount, until it was paid off and they basically laughed at the amount I offered to pay. How old can these charges be, before it is too late to come after me? The total charges were only $1600 to begin with, now there is a $1000 in interest and fees??!!! Can anybody help me???!!
Well if you can't pay, then you can't pay. They can get all the judgements in the world. you can't get blood from a turnip. So don't worry.
Go to court because you dont want a default judgement. Look up the SOL. If its past, then they can't get you anyway.. just say your honor, its past the SOL. case gets dismissed
This web sites says the SOL is 4 yrs and 2 yrs. You might also want to post on creditwrench.com as Bill has some kinda letter where he sends creditors a payment (I think $10.00) and they can do it for as long as they like. As a matter of a fact I think someone was trying to serve them with summon papers. I don't remember the whole story, but I kow I liked it.
Someone help me out here. If the SOL is past then isn't attempting to sue someone for this a violation of trying to collect on an uncollectable debt? I have read so many posts that they are all getting jumbled together. Was it really a summons to appear in small claims court? Does it have a case number or is it on their company letterhead? Threatening to sue someone without actually intending to do so is a violation of one of the regulations. I just don't remember which one!!!!! I think this might be a tactic worth looking into. Possibly you could sue them for false threat to sue on an uncollectable debt that is past the SOL. Good Luck and hope that someone else know the answers to the questions that I have asked! Sirrowan
State of California-The Department of Consumer Affairs http://www.dca.ca.gov/legal/small_claims/index.html http://www.dca.ca.gov/legal/small_claims/basic_info.htm#what Who Can File or Defend a Claim? With certain exceptions, anyone can sue or be sued in small claims court.... An individual can sue another individual or a business, but may not file a claim against a federal agency. Businesses, in turn, can sue individuals or other businesses. "However, an assignee (a person or business that sues on behalf of another, such as a collection agency) can't sue in small claims court." Also the Statute of Limitations is 4 years, this is past the SOL. No Lawyers are allowed in Small Claims court in CA. There are also limitations on how often somebody can sue in Small Claims court in CA for claims over $2500(2 a year) You need to slow down and do some research. If your court date is to soon, you can file for a continuance. Read the info at the above site. Also try here: http://www.courtinfo.ca.gov/selfhelp/
Thank you all for your valuable advice! I will get on these suggested websites and do some research. The original charge was at the very least 5 years ago, perhaps even 6 years. So, it sounds like what I need to do is find out what the SOL is - question is, do I look it up for the state of Utah, since that is where the charge happened, or to Calif, which is where I now live, and have been serviced summons? (And yes, there is a case number on the summons) The terrible thing is, I have no problem paying back debt that I made - they just dont want to work with me on monthly payments I can afford. This website is awesome, I feel so relieved to have some help.
where did you find information on SOL ? I have tried a few websites, and dont know if Im looking for the SOL for California or Utah. Utah is where the debt was incurred, and Calif is where I now live, and the summons was served. My question is, does the SOL start from the date the charge was made, or the date the account was "sold" from the electronics store to the collection agency?
SOL starts with "cause of action" meaning date of default (in your state). When did you first default on this debt? Be careful, there are folks posting in this thread who do not have even the vaguest idea what they are talking about. You want SOL for CA. If they were using the UT SOL, they would have to sue you in the state of Utah. This debt, from what you are saying, is uncollectable. The CA cannot sue you in small claims court. Are you just assuming it is small claims, or did they say that? Do you have a summons? did they send you a letter? Did they threaten you over the phone? It sounds like someone is just trying to scare you into paying a debt they really cannot collect on any other way. Re taking Bill Bauer's advice, as suggested above: don't do that in this case - you would waive your right to use the SOL as a defense, and you do not want to do that.
I agree. The SOL is 4 years in Cali. Make sure there is a suit fied against you, too. It is illegal for them to threaten you with a suit. They hope you don't know your rights. Is this a credit card debt? After 7 years it will be off your credit report anyway. Keep that 2600.00 and go on a vacation. Paying it off will do you no good.
The SOL information for California is in the links I gave you, in the information about small claims court.
A further clarification. A collection agency can't sue, but they can hire an attorney to sue. Your summons should have an attorney's name on it. Also, the date normally used for the SOL will be the last date you made a payment. If it's longer than four years ago you're in the clear.
BREEZE ARE YOU THERE? Its me again, I found out when the last payment I made toward my delinquent account - persistance paid off!! I last paid on this original account on 8/13/1998 -- it was then charged off 2/19/1999 to another company. It is now in the hands of a collection agency/lawyer, in which I received the summons to appear in court. Am I past the SOL, if my court date is 9/2002? Does the Sol start from the date of the last payment to the actual date of the court appearance that is scheduled? Thank you so much in advance for your advice.
I have a debt that I am trying to settle with a CA. I want to be sure I understood the above posts. My last payment to Pac Bell was Oct. 1997, the phone was disconnected in March 98. On my credit files it was placed for collections 7/2000, the same company has had it for the whole time. I read that the SOL is 4 years, would the 4 years start from Oct. 97? If so the collection company legally couldn't collect right? Would I just send them a letter stating my last payment date and the SOL law in Calif.? Thanks in advance.
When you made that last payment, were you already behind in your payments? If so, did that payment bring the account up to date? If you were already delinquent and did not bring the account up to date at that point, then you need the date you first became delinquent (missed a payment) that is when the SOL starts, not your last payment. If that payment is the last one you made on time, and you became delinquent after that, they they gotcha - go get yourself a lawyer who is sympathetic with consumers, or a bk lawyer, if you qualify, and dump the whole load. One other thing to do - call the court and make sure this is a real summons. Also, if you were never contacted by the CA, and never had a chance to make them validate this account, you have a good chance of beating them in court even if you are not past the SOL.
