Can OC attempt collection on debt they sold off to NCO Financial?

[Webdox]

Capital One card opened and defaulted on without payment in February 2001.

Debt was assigned NCO Financial who attempted to collect this past SOL in Michigan at the end of 2007. Got them off my back with the help of a letter drafted by a local consumer protection lawyer.

Fast forward 3 years and Cap 1 sent me a $500 card offer, applied and was accepted, have been making good for last 3 months paying off in full every month.

Get a separate bill today from Cap 1 for the now almost 10 year old debt will accrued interest spanning 10 years of course.

Question:

Does opening a new account with new numbers and making payments on new account start the clock back on the old debt?

I just want to make sure I can still use past SOL as my affirmative defense if they get another 3rd party to come after me again for this.

Thanks in advance for any info. Perplexed...

Edited August 31, 2010 by Webdox

[Massive]

You don't owe Cap One anything on that old card. SOL em to death.

[debtorshusband]

If Capital One indeed sold the debt to NCO, Capital One no longer has the right to demand payment; they have sold their rights to another.

If Capital One still owns the debt, Yes they can try to collect. They can require you to make good on the old debt before extending you a new credit card. They might even be able to change their minds about the new account, raise the interest rate, or close it entirely. What they can't do is use the courts to enforce repayment. In other words, they can't sue if the SOL has expired. (Technically, they can sue, but when you assert the expired SOL as an Affirmative Defense, you should win.)

However, I do have one concern. Sometime these entities send credit card applications to debtors, saying "balance transfer your old debt to this new credit card and past sins are forgiven, the balance will be current, and resume payments." Check the fine print on the application they sent you very carefully to see if they have pulled a fast one.

Regards,

DH

[mdk003]

However, I do have one concern. Sometime these entities send credit card applications to debtors, saying "balance transfer your old debt to this new credit card and past sins are forgiven, the balance will be current, and resume payments." Check the fine print on the application they sent you very carefully to see if they have pulled a fast one.

I came here to post exactly this.

I have received a dozen offers like this. They appear like ordinary credit card offers, except they are really offering you a new credit card on the condition that your old debt is transferred to it (restarting the SOL, and confirming the debt at the amount THEY claim...what a deal!)

They are sometimes VERY sneaky about this. Cavalry offered me four or five of these before I read it more carefully and realized what they were doing. All of the other offers went in the shredder like most of my unsolicited offers.

If you didn't sign any agreement to transfer the balance, then the two accounts are unrelated. I have at least two credit cards from companies who I previously had cards from that I defaulted on, and they have never, ever said a word about the old, sold-off, and dead debts.

[FL4answer58]

DH and mdk003 are correct...these are called debt transfer scams and may be illigal according to FTC.

"Debt-transfer program. According to the complaint, [Credit Card companys] market credit card to consumers with charged-off debt. [They] represented that the consumers’ old debt balance would be immediately transferred to the card and reported to consumer reporting agencies as paid in full. Consumers who accepted the offer, however, were immediately enrolled in a debt repayment plan and did not receive a card until they paid 25 percent to 50 percent of their charged-off debt."

File a complaint with the FTC and ask a local NACA lawyer to review. IMO you have a strong case.

Quote from a recent study in NY.

Debt Buyer Collection Methods

“Debt buyers employ a range of collection tactics, from sending collection letters to filing lawsuits.47 Reporting debts to the credit bureaus is also a powerful, but low-cost option for debt buyers, as consumers who are trying to secure a loan will often check their credit reports and repay any past due debts that are being reported, whether or not they actually owe the debts, in order to improve their credit scores. If consumers are willing but not able to pay the alleged debts, some debt buyers even offer to refinance them on sub-prime credit cards that have deceptive terms and high fees. Debt buyers claim that these high-cost cards give consumers a chance to rebuild their credit while paying off their debt in installments, but this scheme can ensnare consumers into using a predatory product to repay debts they might not even owe or be obligated to pay.”

Read:

Press Release, Federal Trade Commission, FTC Sues Subprime Credit Card Marketing Company for Deceptive Credit Card Marketing (June 10, 2008), available at http://www.ftc.gov/opa/2008/06/compucredit.shtm.

Edited September 7, 2010 by FL4answer58

[MathewBracken12]

That's good help of life. I came here to post exactly this.I have received a dozen offers like this. Thanks