Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Georgia

First of all, NEVER EVER, and I repeat NEVER, call a collection agency. Depending on what you said and if they recordeed it, you may have screwed yourself up in the amount of $2500 by that mistake.

The answer depends on if you owe the money or not, who it is owed to, what you may owe, and whether the statue of limitations applies. Remember that collectors may try to collect debts that are not yours, or are too old to collect, and if you fail to do some things that you can do under federal law to protect yourself, you could end up paying money that is not yours.

Under federal law, if you fail to do certain things within 30 days, you may be deemed to owe the money even if you do not.

Again, stay off the phone!

You need initially to send a proper drop dead letter to the collector. It should be done by a means where you can prove delivery of the letter and you need to save a copy. Priority mail with delivery confirmation, Fed Ex, or certified mail return receipt all work.

Send a letter that says ONLY the following:

" This letter is to tell you that I dispute the alleged debt you wrote me about on _______, 2011. Pursuant to the federal fair debt collections act you may never call me, write me, or contact me about this matter again, except that, within 30 days, if you feel I owe anything, you are required to send me verification of the debt, which shall include signed documents by me about the debt. That is the only document you may ever send me. Please be advised that even if I did owe anything, any statute of limitations has expired. Be advised that should you report this on my credit reports or attempt to sue me, I will retain a lawyer to sue you."

If you do hear back from them at all, see a lawyer.

See my answer to another post:

The sky will not fall because you do not call them back. Don't ever call these jerks back. All communication with them should be in writing.

You state that the debt is 11 years old. What state was it created in? Georgia? If so, its time-barred. And if the age of the debt is over 7 years, it cannot even be on your credit report any longer. However, there is no law that says that they cannot keep trying to collect your debt.

In some states, a lawsuit on a time-barred debt cannot even be filed. However, some states do not have that rule and it is up to you to assert the statute of limitations defense in an answer. I know money may be tight, but this is one area that you do not want to "do it yourself". If and when you are ever sued, you must first be served with what is called a "summons and complaint." If you ever receive these documents, do not ignore them. Take them to a lawyer and have an answer drafted for you - the lawyer can probably do it for a reasonable fee. Only if the creditor gets a judgment against you can your wages be garnished or bank account levied upon - that is why I suggest that you not ignore any lawsuits. Before they can garnish your wages, you will get notice of that.

For a reasonable fee, I can dispute the debt for you properly. Please contact me at [email protected] if interested. Otherwise, please get your own attorney or follow Attorney Ashman's advice. Don't wait until it is too late.