Cell phone bill to debt collectors

[gcdwyer]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

When my ex girlfriend and I broke up, I went to cell phone company (with her) and did a "Transfer of Liability" from the contract that she had to sign as well. I was informed this would take me completely off the contract and it would go in her name.

A year later, I receive a phone call from a debt collector saying I owe $497. After more research, I found she stopped paying the cell phone company (for her monthly bill and the payoff for her phone.) After the cell phone company tried calling her twice a week for 3 months as well as sending many letter though the postal mail (to her address), they sent the file to the debt collector.

Somehow the file sent to the debt collector had my social security number on it and that's why they are coming after me and not her. I've contacted the cell phone company multiple times though many tiers of management and they all say the same thing, "We don't have any information for you because we gave your file to the debt collectors." I have completely paid off the debt in fears it would hurt my credit even more. My ex is now threatening to use blackmail against me if I take this any further.

My questions are:
1) Am I accountable to pay this debt since the cell phone company did not call or send a letter of notice to me (they all went to her phone and her address)?
2) Shouldn't a Transfer of Liability prove that I am no longer responsible for the phone?
3) Since I paid off her debt, should her cell phone belong to me?
4) If I take this to a small claims court, do I have a fair shot at winning?

Thanks!

 

[Zigner]

My ex is now threatening to use blackmail against me if I take this any further.

What do you mean by this?

My questions are:
1) Am I accountable to pay this debt since the cell phone company did not call or send a letter of notice to me (they all went to her phone and her address)?
2) Shouldn't a Transfer of Liability prove that I am no longer responsible for the phone?
3) Since I paid off her debt, should her cell phone belong to me?
4) If I take this to a small claims court, do I have a fair shot at winning?

Thanks!

1: It's moot - you already paid it.
2: Same as #1
3: No, it's her cell phone. She should repay you for what you've spent, though.
4: If you've got all your paperwork in order, then yes, I'd say you have a shot at winning in small claims court.

 

[justalayman]

1) Am I accountable to pay this debt since the cell phone company did not call or send a letter of notice to me (they all went to her phone and her address)?

that makes no difference. Either you are contractually liable for the debt or you are not. Sending you or not sending you notice of a delinquency changes nothing.

2) Shouldn't a Transfer of Liability prove that I am no longer responsible for the phone?

I haven't read it so I cannot say for certain but taking it at face value with a title such as it is, I would presume so. You would have to read the document to determine if it was essentially a novation (where another takes your place in a contract) or something else where you may have continued to have liability such as being a guarantor of the debt.

3) Since I paid off her debt, should her cell phone belong to me?

no.

4) If I take this to a small claims court, do I have a fair shot at winning?

I would think so especially if the transfer of liability was a true and complete transfer of liability.

 

[quincy]

What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Florida

When my ex girlfriend and I broke up, I went to cell phone company (with her) and did a "Transfer of Liability" from the contract that she had to sign as well. I was informed this would take me completely off the contract and it would go in her name.

A year later, I receive a phone call from a debt collector saying I owe $497. After more research, I found she stopped paying the cell phone company (for her monthly bill and the payoff for her phone.) After the cell phone company tried calling her twice a week for 3 months as well as sending many letter though the postal mail (to her address), they sent the file to the debt collector.

Somehow the file sent to the debt collector had my social security number on it and that's why they are coming after me and not her. I've contacted the cell phone company multiple times though many tiers of management and they all say the same thing, "We don't have any information for you because we gave your file to the debt collectors." I have completely paid off the debt in fears it would hurt my credit even more. My ex is now threatening to use blackmail against me if I take this any further.

My questions are:
1) Am I accountable to pay this debt since the cell phone company did not call or send a letter of notice to me (they all went to her phone and her address)?
2) Shouldn't a Transfer of Liability prove that I am no longer responsible for the phone?
3) Since I paid off her debt, should her cell phone belong to me?
4) If I take this to a small claims court, do I have a fair shot at winning?

Thanks!

What did your contract with the cell phone company and the subsequent "transfer of liability" form that you both signed say? You might want to read them both carefully to see if the answers to your questions are there.

If you paid off the remaining balance on the account, you could potentially sue your ex-girlfriend for that amount.

 

[gcdwyer]

What do you mean by this?

I attempt to contact her a couple times a month to resolve this issue and she said if I continue to contact her or take this any further she is going use something she has against me and share it with the world.

 

[gcdwyer]

What did your contract with the cell phone company and the subsequent "transfer of liability" form that you both signed say? You might want to read them both carefully to see if the answers to your questions are there.

I signed the transfer of liability about 2 years ago so I can't remember. I am searching for it in my filing cabinet but cannot find it. I am hoping the cell phone company has a hard/soft copy.

 

[quincy]

I attempt to contact her a couple times a month to resolve this issue and she said if I continue to contact her or take this any further she is going use something she has against me and share it with the world.

From the brief review I did of cell phone transfer of liability forms, you should have received confirmation of the transfer within a few days of applying for the transfer. If you didn't receive confirmation, it is possible you were still on the account with your ex-girlfriend and still responsible for any charges.

The account with the cell phone company needs to be current before the transfer of liability (which means you might have had to pay for the phone in full prior to transfer) and some companies require that you set up your own separate account with them before a transfer of liability is possible and a transfer of liability is generally dependent on a satisfactory credit check for the person who will be held liable for the charges. Your ex-girlfriend might not have qualified on her own.

You will have to decide if whatever it is your ex-girlfriend knows that she is threatening to share is something you are willing to risk having exposed to others. There is no guarantee, by the way, that she will not share this information at some point in time anyway, whether you sue her now over the balance on the cell phone account or not.

 

[gcdwyer]

If you paid off the remaining balance on the account, you could potentially sue your ex-girlfriend for that amount.

Do you know know if I would be able to sue for blackmail as well? She said "I'm going to send them all the photos I have and tell them everything you did to me" if i do not comply with her. She is referring to my friends and family.

 

[eerelations]

Blackmail is a criminal offense. While you could certainly talk about it in small claims court, the way to get redress for it would be via calling the police. You would not get any money though, if that's what you're looking for.

 

[quincy]

Do you know know if I would be able to sue for blackmail as well? She said "I'm going to send them all the photos I have and tell them everything you did to me" if i do not comply with her. She is referring to my friends and family.

I agree with eerelations. Blackmail (or extortion)* is a crime.

Whether it is a crime that the police will take interest in really depends on what exactly your ex-girlfriend has on you that she is threatening to expose and what sort of demands she is making of you to keep her from disclosing it.

Here is a link to the law: http://www.flsenate.gov/Laws/Statutes/2011/836.05

Two cases you might want to search the internet for are McKee v. State, 715 So. 2d 1010, Fla 5th DCA, 1998; and Cooper v. Austin, 750 So. 2d 711, 5th DCA, 2000.



*blackmail and extortion, although different, are often used interchangeably and in some states are covered under the same statute