what is a charge off?

Answer 1

The original creditor has written your account off as bad credit to clear the "active" books, and for tax purposes, BUT you STILL owe them, and various collection agencies WILL attempt to contact you. If you do NOT acknowledge them , they can not PROVE they have your correct contact info, and the account will get moved back to creditor, then re-sold to another collector later on. Knowing this can help you "put off" paying until you can afford to, I know! :)

Also, BE AWARE, others might tell you to just let the 7 or 10 years go by, and you will be "free and clear", WRONG!

The minute you acknowledge your existence to any collector, or if they verify you by some other means, the clock starts all over again, and collection WILL be pursued.

The only thing you can do is answer that phone and say YES I am "Betty Boop" and YES that is MY bill, when you are ready to actually pay! :)

I have NEVER received a subpoena to court from a collection agency or a creditor, and have still managed to pay off a lot of old debt within the last 5 years by picking who I want to talk to and making arrangements with them to pay what I can, most are good about that, and will work with you, but I only take on one debt at a time, unless they are small fish, then maybe two at a time.

Bottom line, you will not avoid the debt, but you can "dance the dance" your way :)

Answer 2

The company turned it in on their taxes as a loss since they believe you will never pay.