I wrote a check in 2000 for $11.48 that bounced. Now I am getting letters saying they are prosecuting me.?

Question

I hadn't even heard anything about this check. I had moved and closed the account. I never recieved anything from the bank or the store that check was written to. At that time I still received mail at my parents house, so the address never changed. I got a letter today stating that they were going to prosecute my for check fraud. The check was written for $11.48, but says that I owe them $136. Why did they take so long to notify me of such action? Can they do that?

This is the only check that I have ever bounced. As I said before the orignal amount for the check is $11.48. The debt collector is saying that I have to pay $136 or they will prosecute my for felony check fraud. This is the first I have heard of this. I called and asked for more information back in Feburary and got nothing. Yesterday I recieved a letter stating that they were prosecuting me. I found an article on the internet that said this same company is not allowed to practice in Maine. So now I am wondering if maybe they are frauds....

Answer 1

Contact the company that you wrote the check to and ask them how much you owe them.

Collection agencies get paid 50% of what they can collect from you and have a horrible track record of low morals, making threats they can't do, and horribly harassing their victims illegally.

If you contact the original company you only have to say. "I never knew this check bounced and I am sorry. I want to clear it up so what do I do. Deal directly with the company and ignore the debt collection company. You will probably be charged a additional fee up to $50, but paying over $75 for a bad check of less than $12 sounds stupid. The collection company is trying to stampade you into paying off the debt and so paying them a huge amount. They won't deal fairly with you so don't deal with them.

A debt that is 7 years old may be one that can be written off, but unless you pay off the company the collection agency will keep harrassing you. It is better to pay something to the original company to get the collection agency off your back.

Answer 2

Yes they can do this.

Your best defense is to pay off the debt, get a receipt from them in writing, with a signature (not some e-mail or voice message), that the debt has been paid.

They can claim that they tried to collect from you and failed to reach you & over time added interest charges and penalty fees. Depending on how you told the postal service, and phone company of your new location, and depending on how they processed that info, the place you owed the money may not have been able to find you.

Many years ago, I shared an apartment near a college campus with several other guys, then the time came for us to split up ... we did not all leave at same time.

I arranged with phone company to leave old phone working in the place until last guy left, then after that have the forwarding message to my phone, since all along I had the phone in my name paid local bill, they reimbursed me for any long distance. Well the phone company contact SAID they understood what I wanted, read back my instructions, but when the time came, the phone company did NOT do what I had asked for ... people called the phone (which was working) and got a "disconnected" message.

I went to the post office & filled in a change of address for me. Two days later, the guy still there calls me & let's me know mail is still coming. So I take that to the post office and ask what the problem ... turns out that they forwarded only if my name was correctly spelled in agreement with the form as filled out. So how do I fix that? They showed me ... fill out whole family with my surname has moved. Ok I did that.

Now mail to some OTHER surname bounced back by post office "moved, not forwardable" even though that surname was still living there, and no form on that surname had been filled out at post office.

So a bank loan statement to the guy still there, was bounced by the post office, then bank called the apartment & got the wrong message because phone company also messed up, then called the guy at work to call in the loan ... well he was really mad & he blamed me.

I tell you this story, because when you move, you cannot expect post office, phone company. your relatives at that address, to behave in a logical and sensible manner.

Answer 3

Were you contacted by the company itself or by a debt collection agency? Selling old/defunct debts to debt collection agencies who try to collect has become big business lately.

Look into the statute of limitations on debts in your state. They would have a hard time proving check fraud after all this time, but you might look at the statute of limitations on it as well.

Answer 4

It is probably a collection agency and the statute of limitations is probably past. Ignore the letter and if they call, tell them it is past, and don't listen to the lies. Tell them not to call you or harass you any further and that the call is being recorded. That is standard procedure for collection agencies. Whatever you don't don't agree to pay part or the statute no longer applies. Laws vary by state though.

Answer 5

I suspect the Statute of Limitations has run on this. Additionally, some collection agency must be desperate to go after this amount.

Answer 6

First things first - have you a history of bouncing checks? If not - for one incident they would have a hard time establishing any grounds for intent - especially if you still have a checking account and are in "good" standing.

BUT; you need to NEGOTIATE with them right away - don't let the time limitations that they most likely have stated in the letter to you to elapse or you will certainly be found liable and this is how the IRS and Debt Collectors always get the courts to side with them - IF YOU REMAIN SILENT - YOU AGREE ...

An Old Maxim of law is; He who leaves the battlefield first, loses by default ...

You need to send them an Affidavit that is signed and sealed by a Notary Public - telling them that you swear under oath that you are not aware of any such debt and until the letter coming to you on whatever date - you were not notified to the best of your knowledge.

Then you need to tell them that you want to pay them the debt owed - but; you need some things first ... like proof of their claim.

you want them to provide past notifications as to the check that allegedly bounced - as your bank never sent you any notifications whatsoever as to your overdrafting, and since you were not notified by the bank - you need to have their claim verified so you can pay them their $11.48, and the $25.00 that is normally what is charged by a retailer for a bounced check.

You also want to know what the other fees are, or the interest rate and the proof that you agreed to pay them interest for 7 years - when the time limitation for Fraud in most states is only 4 years from the time of the discovery of the fraud - and you have reason to believe that if they received a check that did not have sufficient funds - that they would have been notified by the bank - certainly within the month ... so -

Considering that this was from 2000, they must have been notified of insufficient funds in the year 2000, who can deny that?

Therefore, when the retailer had every opportunity in the world to send you notification of a check they had that was allegedly found with insufficient funds back in 2000, and you would have certainly paid the amount owing and the normal $25.00 fee for such unintentional mistake - how can they now claim that Fraud was involved and that they can claim you owe and are now a criminal after time limitations have lapsed.

Tell them you would be glad to give them their $11.48 ... if they can show they notified you prior to this - and that all they need to do to collect on your $11.48 owed - is to give proof of evidence that you signed for the certified letter that must have been mailed to you explaining the consequences of not paying for the bounced check WITHIN THE TIME LIMITATIONS SET FORTH BY LAW ... and you will be joyous to pay.

MAKE THEM ANSWER YOU IN AFFIDAVIT FORM AS WELL - THAT WAY YOU GET A NAME THAT CAN BE SUED FOR HARASSMENT AND DECEPTIVE BUSINESS PRACTICES AND/OR ETC. ... if you desire to go that route-

BUT; make sure you tell them that if there is they desire payment and YOU REALLY WANT TO NEGOTIATE AND KEEP THE LINES OF COMMUNICATIONS AND HELP THEM IN EVERY WAY YOU CAN ... that they MUST answer you in Affidavit form.

Let them know that you cannot accept any communication from them if not sworn to under oath as you only do business in the open and by truth ... and that way full disclosure may be established.

See - they cannot take you to court as long as you are in negotiations ... a judge has no jurisdiction to hear a matter as long as the parties are trying to work things out - and they will look so stupid if they drag you to a court and you present the judge the Affidavits stating you want to deal with them but you know nothing about what they are talking about and THAT YOU REALLY WANT TO PAY THEM - IF THEY CAN PROVE THEIR CLAIM ...

Hope this helped, and hey - if you don't know how to write up an Affidavit - contact me and I will send you a couple examples as to the styling - in fact - below will be an affidavit I made to a judge - a contractual agreement he fell short on ... as I am still breathing and living - meaning the judge was corrupt and it is prima facie evidence that the Plaintiffs against me NEVER DID PROVE THEIR CLAIM - but the judge was simply a co-conspirator with these frauds - using the District Court as a criminal instrument against me ... and I billed him and his little court too for over a billion bucks each before he fled from his court room ...
Peace;

Aintmyfault

Answer 7

there are charges associated with writing a bad check...the bank and the place you wrote the check to are probably charging you fees and because you closed the account is probably why it took so long to contact you...you have to really be careful and balance your check book..maybe you can call the bank you originally had the account with and see if they can go back in their records...bottom line...dont write bad checks seems to me you knew you didnt have it in the first place..investigate your situation but to avoid prosecution you will probably have to cough up 136..they really stick it to ya when you write bad checks..be sure sure to check and double check ya funds b4 u start spending..it WILL catch up with you!!!!!

Answer 8

I am going through the same thing... I am interested to see what answers you get.