Old, old, old debt...being sued???

[Anonymous]

I just received a phone call from someone who claimed to be an attorney saying they are going to garnish my wages for a credit card with HSBC from 2004! I don't think I even had one through them. It's not on my credit report. HELP!! 

[Anonymous]

Where you an AU on someone else's card maybe? was it your spouse's (if you were married)?  what else did they say? did they give you an account # as reference?

[Anonymous]

They gave a reference number and they said we had been served with papers.. we did not. Isn't it out of the statute of limitations??

[Anonymous]

That doesn't seem right! "Served" means serving someone in person with physical papers.

IF they're trying to collect a debt and they make contact "per your example" then the debt will start at day 0 from that moment (a least from what I've read)...this is a totally different story, and not your scenario.

Perharps others will chime in, but IMO, very strange and bogus. Did you google the number they called from? if it wasn't a private number.

[Anonymous]

I had something similar happen to me - my ex got a call that I was being sued and they needed to speak with me.  I called the number and they couldn't give me ANY DETAILS - I asked what's it for, whats the amount, what company is this - and they couldn't give me any info.  When I googled the number it was some weird weird company in California but had no formal website - total scammers, because I never heard a peep about it after - this was about 8 months ago.  Nothing on my credit report, never got a letter.  Nothing.  I would just ignore it.

[RobertEG]

FDCPA 807 includes various false representtions that are violations of that statute.

Included is the representation that they will or can take any legal action that they have no right to take, explicitly including the garnishment of pay, and any represetnation that legal action has been taken if it has not.  Case law has interpreted the representation of legal action on a debt that is clearly outside of SOL to be a violation of FDCPA 807.

Additionally, you should peruse all provisions of section 807 for any other violation that is listed. 

You can file civil action against a debt collector for any violation of the FDCPA and receive statutory damages of $1,000 per action.

You can also file a formal complaint with the CFPB for any violation.

You can also send them a request for debt validation, which will impose an automatic cease collection bar on them until they have first sent validation of the debt.

That will prevent any further calls or other collection activities until they first have validated the asserted debt.  If they validate a debt without reasonable basis or with knowledge that it is not yours, that becomes an additional violation.

[Anonymous]

I think it's a scam....nevermind. I googled statute of limitations, old debt, wage garnishment and all kinds of scams pop up. I don't think I even had a card with HSBC.

Thank you for answering! I'm cleaning up my credit so this kind of stopped my heart...

[Anonymous]

It is scary how good they are at these scams! I found it typically happens around tax time for me. They know people have extra money. I'm in the same boat as you, rebuilding. So I understand how you felt!

[Anonymous]

I know sometimes these places will purchase a very old debt that is considered Time Barred (outside of the SOL) and if you make a payment no matter how small or sometimes even acknowledge the debt it will start the SOL clock over again making it a valid debt again.  Im assuming it also depends on what state youre in as well.  

[Anonymous]

Sounds like a scam to me. If by any chance this was an old debt you forgot about and it got to the stage of a garnishment, you would have heard from a collection agency by now. Not an "attorney" right off the bat.