Getting sued for $3200

[gw2000]

Hi, I'm looking for some advice on what to do when I'm getting sued. Some specifics:

I lost my wallet about 3 years ago which stupidly had my SSN, birth certificate and other valuable info. I had'nt heard of credit fraud at the time.

I just got a call this morning from a collections agency, saying that they can settle a court claim for $3200 that I had supposedly charged on my credit card and save me a $1000. I called up the credit card agency and asked them for my balance. They said it was zero. I then asked them about the call from the collections agency for the $3200.

The operator asked for my SSN, then did a search, and came up with a $3200 account under my name!! I tried to ask for more information but she referred me to a internal agency which is closed for the weekend.

I went to Equifax and signed up for a credit report. I'm still waiting. Any advice on what I can do?

 

[I AM ALWAYS LIABLE]

Hi, I'm looking for some advice on what to do when I'm getting sued. Some specifics:

I lost my wallet about 3 years ago which stupidly had my SSN, birth certificate and other valuable info. I had'nt heard of credit fraud at the time.

I just got a call this morning from a collections agency, saying that they can settle a court claim for $3200 that I had supposedly charged on my credit card and save me a $1000. I called up the credit card agency and asked them for my balance. They said it was zero. I then asked them about the call from the collections agency for the $3200.

The operator asked for my SSN, then did a search, and came up with a $3200 account under my name!! I tried to ask for more information but she referred me to a internal agency which is closed for the weekend.

I went to Equifax and signed up for a credit report. I'm still waiting. Any advice on what I can do?

My response:

Advice about what? You've got about 3 or 4 different subjects. So, instead of asking a generic question like, "what can I do?", please ask a specific question.

IAAL

 

[gw2000]

If I have to go to court and present my side of the story, which is credit card fraud, what is the best way to go about doing it?

 

[BL]

Lost CC 3 yrs ago !!!

Really ? So in 3 yrs. knowing your CC was lost or whatever , you NEVER contacted your CC provider ?

Why are you just getting around to check your balance ?

You want to 3 yrs. later , tell the court you had no activity or attempted activity on your CC for 3 yrs.

All I got to say is I hope you have the power to hypnotize everyone .

 

[gw2000]

BL, I WISH I could hypnotize my creditor! I cancelled all my cards on that night when I realised I lost my organizer. With a SSN and a birth certificate, you can start an account anywhere.

 

[gw2000]

Well, so much for free advice. I guess I'll try another site.

 

[BL]

Ok , How long after you lost them did you contact the CC Co. ?

3 yrs. ? If you keep up with your CC bank statements ( each mo. ) you should have realized some charges or your statements were amiss, or you should have realized your wallet was "lost",
with everything in them.

Immediately the CC Co. ( upon your quickly notifying them ), should have taken steps to prevent them from being used.

Some CC Co. will only make you pay $50.00 of any Fraudulent charges .

In either case It was important that you notify them Immediately .

If you waited too long , why would they believe you ?

 

[Ladynred]

Blonde - the OP already stated that the cc companies were contacted that night about the stolen/lost cards. If the damned CC companies then allowed one of those accounts to be used, its not the Poster's fault. If a new account was opened with the use of the SSN, and it happens daily, then how could he/she have known about it if the address for the account was not the poster's address ??? Its not unusual for people to find out years later that there are accounts attributed to them that they never knew about.

Sounds to me like you need to notify the creditor of the identity fraud and file a police report to that affect. Then you call the credit bureaus and do the same, they'll want a copy of a police report.

You also need to respond to the collection agency (CA) in the same manner - identity theft - make them validate the debt - PROVE that its yours. You can find lots of info on how to do that over at www.creditinfocenter.com. You CAN send validation prior to going to court and the police report for the ID theft WILL be useful in court.

 

[JETX]

All these posts and everyone missing the obvious.... such a waste of time and bandwidth.

The 'internal agency' that they referred you to is very likely their 'loss or security department'. They are the ones who handle claims of identity theft and credit fraud.

When they contact you after the holiday (or you contact them), they will want to you complete an affidavit under oath detailing the circumstances and get it notarized. When you return it to them, they will investigate. After their investigation, they will let you know whether they accept the charges and clear the account or not.

This is all relatively common procedures in a situation like this..... but it will NOT happen overnight as you seem to expect.

 

[HomeGuru]

And at times it does not happen in 30, 60 or even 90 days.