Question

Collection issue that is 15 years old

Asked 24 September 2012 · 2 answers

The question

This is a complicated question so I apologize upfront. My husband and I were attempting to refinance our home. In the process we were informed by our bank that there has been a lien filed against our home from a debt from a vehicle that was repossessed in 1997. I bought a vehicle in 1996 that was a lemon. I tried to get out of the contract due to how many repairs I had to make but the car dealership went out of business. After multiple repairs, two blown engines and a blown transmission, I could no longer afford to keep the vehicle and I called the finance company to come and get it. The vehicle was sold at auction and at that time I was laid off from my job, I unfortunately defaulted on the remainder of my loan and this was reflected on my credit as a charge off from 1997 to 2004. In the meantime, I have just found out that a lien was put on my home for this debt. I do not have an issue with paying what I agreed to pay what I have an issue about is the following. The court actions that have been taken were filed in a county where I do not reside. I was never served on any of this and I had no way of representing myself and all the circumstances that resulted in this matter. Additionally, the finance company that I tried to communicate with when I could repay what I owed went out of business, my account was sold to now four different collection agencies with now the last collection agency not having any record of this. My escrow company has provided me information on the attorney they have on record with this lien however both the escrow company and I are not getting a return call from this gentleman. And lastly, the amount of money indicated on the superior court documents indicates that I have been charged a 20% interest rate on the amount owed from the date the vehicle was collected. I would like to take care of this issue however it is hard to do when you do not even know who to contact or receive a return call from someone on record. Do I have any rights under the statute of limitations, under jurisdiction or under the fact that I was never informed of the legal actions taken? Additionally, the Superior court indicates that there is a time frame in which a person can appeal a decision, that time frame has long passed. I am unsure of what to do at this point. Thank you for any assistance you can provide in this matter!

From the LawyerCentral forum archive. Originally posted 24 September 2012 on a legal forum that has closed. Names and contact details were removed. See the original (Internet Archive).

2 answers

Visitor answer 1 March 2013

That is an interesting question. I am licensed in Indiana, so if you are in IN then this advice is better spent. If not, then you would have to ask a local attorney who knows the laws in your jurisdiction, but I think the general idea is the same. Basically you would need to file a motion to set aside the judgment. In Indiana the length of time for doing so is one year, but it can be extended is the situation warrants it, like lack of notice, and improper venue. You may also want to file a motion to change venues to your county of residence. Once something is on file with the court, and the attorney for the creditor has notice of it, then he can't really ignore it any longer.

Best of luck! And if you are in Indiana, I'd like to help you with this case.

Visitor answer 28 May 2013

Something similar happened to my cousin. So what he did was asked the latest collector for proof of the original debt and for something to back it up. He kept a record of all correspondence and also contacted the credit bureaus. When they could not provide anything (plus this was from 15 years ago) it was all removed. You need to keep a record of every letter (register them) or every Fax or time and dates of calls. There is a 7 year limit on keeping this on your credit and the credit bureaus are lazy. There was stuff on my cousin's from 10-15 years ago and most of it was taken off and in the end he got it all taken off but YOU are going to have to be proactive. Contact the credit bureaus, if this guy won't respond to you, keep perfect records.

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