Consumer complaint received 2017-02-14
Product: Debt collection — Credit card
Issue: Taking/threatening an illegal action — Threatened to sue on too old debt
Company: HSBC NORTH AMERICA HOLDINGS INC. (CA)

I received a voice message from an unidentified caller from an unknown phone number regarding potential legal action. I was going to ignore the message until my father notified me that he too was called on his mobile phone regarding this potential action. 

I called the phone number left in the voicemail and identified myself by the case number given along with verifying my name and address. 

I was informed that this was an attempt to collect a debt for an XXXXOrchard Bank Mastercard ending in XXXX. Not immediately being familiar with the account, I asked to be provided with a statement or additional documentation. The representative claimed that I was sent a notice 45 days ago and asked why I did n't respond .... I never received any correspondence regarding this alleged debt. When I again pressed for written documentation, I was told that I could only receive it during a court proceeding, so would I like to be served? I said sure and she said " see you in court '' before hanging up. 

After the call I found information on the account - a welcome email from Orchard Bank and a Closed Satisfactory Account on my XXXX credit report. 

Not only was this account properly closed, but it was in XXXX. Orchard Bank ceased to exist in XX/XX/XXXX when Capital One purchased their accounts. 

Under the California XXXX XXXX Title XXXX - Fair Debt Buying Practices, this debt would be time-barred since it is well past the four ( 4 ) years of statute of limitations : XXXX ( d ) ( XXXX ) A debt buyer shall include with its first written communication with the debtor in no smaller than XXXX type, a separate prominent notice that provides : " You may request records showing the following : ( XXXX ) that [ insert name of debt buyer ] has the right to seek collection of the debt ; ( XXXX ) the debt balance, including an explanation of any interest charges and additional fees ; XXXX XXXX ) the date of default or the date of the last payment ; XXXX XXXX ) the name of the charge-off creditor and the account number associated with the debt ; XXXX XXXX ) the name and last known address of the debtor as it appeared in the charge-off creditor 's or debt buyer 's records prior to the sale of the debt, as appropriate ; and XXXX XXXX ) the names of all persons or entities that have purchased the debt. You may also request from us a copy of the contract or other document evidencing your agreement to the debt. 
" A request for these records may be addressed to : [ insert debt buyer 's active mailing address and email address, if applicable ]. '' ( XXXX ) When collecting on a time-barred debt where the debt is not past the date for obsolescence provided for in XXXX XXXX XXXX a ) of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act ( 15 U.S.C. Sec. XXXX ) : " The law limits how long you can be sued on a debt. Because of the age of your debt, we will not sue you for it. If you do not pay the debt, [ insert name of debt buyer ] may [ continue to ] report it to the credit reporting agencies as unpaid for as long as the law permits this reporting. '' ( XXXX ) When collecting on a time-barred debt where the debt is past the date for obsolescence provided for in XXXX XXXX XXXX a ) of the federal Fair Credit Reporting Act ( 15 U.S.C. Sec. 1681c ) : " The law limits how long you can be sued on a debt. Because of the age of your debt, we will not sue you for it, and we will not report it to any credit reporting agency. ''