OMG!!!I paid off a bill in 1998 and now they calling saying I owe them money

[hmsram]

Someone please tell my how this can happen. In 1998 I paid off a bill before moving back to Louisiana. Now almost 7 years later they called me and said I owe them 450 bucks..........I was like what the H**L ...I paid you guys off years ago and the lady said well we have the account in our office for collections. She said if I can not come up with proof I paid it then I have to pay the amount of 450 ...I can tell you right now I paid bills with money order then and do not by no means have that receipt still. I asked her if she would pay a bill again she already paid and she said NO...WEll guess what I am not either...

I said how come for 7years I heard from no one now today yall are calling....I have been at this address for along time and you guys could not find me for 7 years. I have bought a car and other things in that time and never showed up on my credit report. I do not know who they think I am but I told her I was not paying it....I flat out refuse to start repaying bills I know I paid yearssss ago...
If that was the case then shoot I am going to start resending bills to all my husbands customers and tell them oh no proof ya paid pay again LOL

What would yall do in my case... I am really mad about this,....I am having chest pains I am so mad ....My dh is gona flip his wig (if he had one) LOL

This is absolutly nuts I swear ...........

[mayfly]

WOW hmsram!!!!!!! Thats terrible! That could happen to me also! I never save receipts for 7 years. Come to think of it, I never get a receipt for medical bills paid, or any bills paid. They just don't send another one! I can't believe it. I don't know what I would do, probably not pay it. WOW!

[bestmidwest]

Sounds fishy...if it's not on your credit report then I wouldn't worry a bit about it. I would watch your credit report for a while and fight it if they try to put it on there.

[hmsram]

Oh this lady also said they were dealing also with a lady who filed bankruptcy 20 yrs ago with her account also...But then she said well she has her paper work... Dh said well she not supposed to speak of others accounts LOL I was like ok and like what is that gona help me LOL

This is gona drive me nuts...Oh also when she said she would have to call me again if I dont pay it I said well I will be here for atleast another 5-6 yrs before I can even think of moving so I'll be here .....It is not like I have been in hiding or something...I am probally the easiest person in the world to contact. But they did not even try till now

[verwon]

Well you are in luck, I recently got slammed with a bill from 1998 as well.

Wouldn't have been a company called Sherman and Sherman was it? They are notorious for pulling this stuff to get money.

Anyway, I was reading up on debt collection laws so I can help with this, send them a letter in writing insisting that they validate the debt, now this means they have to send you orignal paperwork from that bill with proof that they are authorized to collect it. If they do not then they are the ones who are screwed, you don't have to pay them a cent. This will also let you see why you still owe when you thought you had paid it in full.

It has been 7 years so they can't legally put it on your credit rating again and you can check your states collection statutes of limitations at this site:

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An open account would be medical bill, credit card, utility or etc. If it is past the statute you can tell them to go eat worms and they can't collect it or get a judgment against you.

[hmsram]

Verwon sending you pm message...

[verwon]

Answered your pm and included another informative link for you.

[mrbowler]

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[joanneparker]

Hey its the way the world has gone, greedy and money hungry.... used to be if you cancelled your car insurance they sent you a check for the amount of money for the difference between when your insurance ended and the time that your renewal came up...not anymore, now they send you a bill because you didn't give them 30 days notice that you were leaving them...what do they think they are landlords?.... that company probably needs money and someone said lets drag up a few old customer accounts and tell them they still owe us they will never have receipts from that far back, but I do think theres like a 7 year limit between when they last got in touch with you about oweing them anything, and if they have gone that long they can't get anything its considered expired but getting a lawyer is expensive... you can protest any bill that goes into the credit bureau and tell the reason you don't owe it and it will be taken into account hey I hope you find an answer

[sunlover5]

Originally Posted by joanneparker

........I hope you find an answer

You responded to a thread that is 2+ years old.
Anyway, welcome to DOD, joanneparker

[hmsram]

Originally Posted by sunlover5

You responded to a thread that is 2+ years old.
Anyway, welcome to DOD, joanneparker

Ironically enough they just called again about a week ago LOL I was like oh my god are you kidding me hahahhahaha anyways since this ordeal began who ever the so called collection company is calls about once every 4-6 mths...I still will not give my social security number or nothing...Heck I would think they had the darn number already ...oh well they been paid looooooonnnnggg ago and i still tell them they aint getting a penny out of me...they cant even send me documentation showing that I do still owe them so no way would I ever send money to anyone like that....

[KSkeie]

That happened to me too except it was from almost 15 years ago. I believe I had paid it but I couldn't prove it so I had to repay it again. I was over $300.00. I just couldn't prove that I had paid it in the past so I had to pay to keep it off my credit records. It was for an Ohio Bell phone bill and Verizon Wireless or someone took it over and went through past accounts. I couldn't believe it! 15 years!! Now I am afraid to get rid of any receipt or Proof of Payment.

[freefinder]

This happened to me as well.Junk-debt collectors buy old debts for pennies sometimes in bulk to the point that they overlook that some are paid off.They go after timed-out debt.Learn your rights before you tell them anything.Always have them mail you the details of the debt so you can see if it is yours and has not been padded with false fees.This allows you the time to learn if the debt has timed-out and the info of what you did pay.
Now, mine was years of late fees and interest on a debt from ID theft that had been removed from my cc by the cc company.I was lucky I had kept the records and so had my cc company.I have looking up alsorts of things on debt this week as a friend of mine is in a real bind because of an ID theif that has messed up not just her cc's but her medical files.

[FUNdamental]

If I understand the question correctly, what you have as called "phantom debt." This is the term used to describe old debt that was written off years ago coming back to haunt you.

Do not worry about you credit except for this advice: DO NOTHING, SAY NOTHING! The law says negative items from your credit report are removed after 7 years from last activity (10 years for bankruptcy in most states). If a bill collector calls and you acknowledge the debt is yours by agreeing to installments or even saying "yes that is mine" the clock starts at zero again and it will take another 7 years for it to fall off your credit report and gives the company another 7 years to collect what you acknowledged was a legitimate debt.

As far as collections go, all states and possessions and territories have a statute of limitations on debt. You can google this to find out exactly. Once this statute of limitations runs out, they can not take you court. UNLESS YOU ACKNOWLEDGE THE DEBT (am I making myself clear?). I know that this is a gray area, acknowledging the debt, BUT DO NOT DO IT!!!!

So my advice. DO NOTHING SAY NOTHING. If the debt is six years the statute of limitations has run out so they cant take you court and by acknowledging the debt - say by paying 25 cents on the dollar, you start the seven year clock over.

Also, if the debt is $1000 and you agree to pay half, say $500, you will stand a good chance of getting a form 1099 next year in the mail for the balance of the debt. Forgiven debt is considered income and is taxable.

Go to [Only registered and activated users can see links. Either login above or Register Now] and type in "Old Debt." The very first website listed as a result of you search will be an excellent article from Bankrate.com

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Next, from the same [Only registered and activated users can see links. Either login above or Register Now], type in "Statute of Limitations" "Debt."
You will see

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Warning - do not believe everything you see on the "internets" though. The public library is also a good place to verify the validity of any information you feel needs verification or explanation.