AMEX and baddies from 14 years ago

[Anonymous]

Hey guys just wanted your thoughts on AMEX and ones prior relationship with AMEX.

14 years ago I defaulted on 2 cards with AMEX.

These charge off's no longer appear on my credit reports.

I went on their pre-approval offers website and they had no offers for me.

Went a step further and called the recon line and was told that I could not have any AMEX cards bc of those defaults.

When I asked about paying those defaults would that open the possibilty of obtaining a new AMEX card the rep said it would certainly work.

I asked if I could receive a bill with a total of the amounts which were $1800 and I would pay them. Its been 6 weeks and I have not received anything.

"?'s I have for you guys"

Do I call back? Would speaking to another rep be of advantage to me like in other situations?

Has this happened to anyone?

Am I banned from AMEX for life?

Should I bother to pay that debt?

Looking forward to you guys sharing your AMEX experiences and advice.

[longtimelurker]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Should I bother to pay that debt?

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Just answering this bit.    There are two situations where the answer is "Yes"

1) If you feel a moral obligation to pay your debts.   Only you can know this!

2) If the chance of getting an Amex is worth the $1,800 to you.  Again, that's for you to value.

Roughly, if you don't pay, it's unlikely that you will be approved.    If you do pay, most people do eventually get back in (obviously assuming no other problems, such as new bad baddies on the report)

[Anonymous]

Longtimelurker,

Thx for opening my eyes! I got in trouble before and now that I am able to reconcile I should.

I went ahead and gave AMEX a call. After speaking to the recon department they transferred me to the defaulted accounts department.

Speaking with this rep was very interesting. First the they must read a disclosure that states that due to the statue of limitations these accounts cannot be reported to the bureaus nor can Amex reopen the accounts nor can they come after me legally.

The older account is no longer with Amex. This account was sold to a debt collector company. The rep was nice to give me the number to the debt collector and will send me a copy of the bill owed. The slightly newer account is still with Amex. This account I was able to negotiate and will pay 65% of what was owed. I have 30 days to pay this amount owed and Amex will consider the debt resoloved. Once payment is received and processed I will need to wait an additional 35 days before applying for a card. The rep said that not many people try to reconcile their accounts after this many years, but that it was great that I was in a position to repay the defaulted accounts. The rep also said that it is not a guarantee that I will be approved for a card in the future thru the system but each case is looked at individually thru the recon department. 

Again i am so glad that I am a part of this forum. Members on here want the best for all members and the advice and suggestions shared are invaluable!!!

[sjt]

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@Anonymous wrote:

Longtimelurker,

Thx for opening my eyes! I got in trouble before and now that I am able to reconcile I should.

I went ahead and gave AMEX a call. After speaking to the recon department they transferred me to the defaulted accounts department.

Speaking with this rep was very interesting. First the they must read a disclosure that states that due to the statue of limitations these accounts cannot be reported to the bureaus nor can Amex reopen the accounts nor can they come after me legally.

The older account is no longer with Amex. This account was sold to a debt collector company. The rep was nice to give me the number to the debt collector and will send me a copy of the bill owed. The slightly newer account is still with Amex. This account I was able to negotiate and will pay 65% of what was owed. I have 30 days to pay this amount owed and Amex will consider the debt resoloved. Once payment is received and processed I will need to wait an additional 35 days before applying for a card. The rep said that not many people try to reconcile their accounts after this many years, but that it was great that I was in a position to repay the defaulted accounts. The rep also said that it is not a guarantee that I will be approved for a card in the future thru the system but each case is looked at individually thru the recon department. 

Again i am so glad that I am a part of this forum. Members on here want the best for all members and the advice and suggestions shared are invaluable!!!

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I think you are making the right decision.

As an FYI- Amex did not sell the debt to the collection agency, they just assigned it for collection. Amex never sells their debts.