Legal Status

by Sue
(Eugene, Or, United States)

What can you do when you call the collection agency and they say it's to late the account has gone legal? Will it help to send in a payment? Will it stop me from being served papers? Will it help to send a letter with payment?

Thank you for all your help :)

Comments for Legal Status

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Apr 25, 2011
 Debt Turned Over For Legal Action
by: DebtCollectionAnswers.com

Sue,

First of all, don't panic. We aren't saying this isn't a serious matter, but at this point you don't know for sure what the status of the debt is. It may have simply been turned over to a collection law firm, and they may try to collect before suing you. Or it may be that this collector/creditor gave up on collecting the debt and it will be sold to another collection agency.

If you are sued, you must be notified and you will have time to respond to the lawsuit.

Ask the creditor for the name and contact information of the agency that now has the debt. If you believe you can afford to pay it, then go ahead and contact them. If not, you may put yourself at risk of imminent legal action by reaching out to them.

(Unfortunately, if they do want to sue you, making a token payment won't stop the process. In fact, we strongly recommend you think twice before making payments if you can't afford to resolve the debt. Doing so can start the statute of limitations all over again.)

We'd recommend you read our information about being sued so you have a better understanding of what might happen. In addition, please at least read the first chapter of Debt Collection Answers online for free so you have an overview of your rights when dealing with this debt collector.

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