Pdl's can be very difficult sometimes . . . . If they still won't work with you, I would just send them the money every month. They aren't not going to accept the payment. Just make sure you document things every step of the way.

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I will do that for sure. Now my question is, if there is not an agreement that can be reached, they will sue eventually and when that does happen, will the court just order for me to make payments on the money owed (plus whatever fees have accrued) or will I go to jail for fraud of some kind or any other criminal charges?

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It depends on your small claims court. The judge usually only decides if you owe the claim or not. If you owe, a judgement is entered against you. In my district, you have until 5pm that day to pay in full, or else the creditor can pursue other means of collecting like garnishment. But some small claims courts also require you to go through mediation first. In mediation you sit down with the creditor and a mediator and try to come to a settlement. You would be able to offer payments at that time. It is legally binding, and if you miss one payment an automatic judgement is entered against you.

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Unless you fraudulantly took out the loans, I would not worry about being criminally prosecuted. It can't happen.

If everyone that defaulted on a loan was charged with a crime, we'd need to build a ton more jails!

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Ok, I feel like i can breath a little easier. I didn't fraudulently take out the loan, I just had to close my account. So, I figured that they might see that as me stealing the money with no intent to pay it back. That was never the case. I still have all the letters and correspondence to and from this woman. I can handle going to court and settling it anyway they need to if it comes to that. I am scared to death of jail.

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I was looking at the law and it says that prosecution is prohibited UNLESS the bank account is closed before the date agreed for repayment. I am probably going to end up in jail for this huh? I didn't know that this was the law when I did this. :shock: Sorry to keep bothering you guys.

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It's not a bother . . . . I wouldn't worry too much about it. If they were going to press charges against you for it they probably would've done it already.

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You guys are awesome. I am so embarrassed about all of this, it's really cool to find other people who are having the same issues, and all get some answers to some very pressing questions. How does the process work for pressing charges? You go to court first and then they decide if it was a criminal act? I have no idea how it all works. I only know that it was a very thorough slap on the wrist I have completely learned my lesson when it comes to PDL's. Thanks you guys!

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I would think that once the storefront got the check returned for a "closed account" they would then go and press charges. If they haven't done it by now and it's been 2 years then I doubt they even would. If you want to get some "for sure" answers, I would call your state's DFI (dept of financial institution). They would be the ones that regulate pdl's, and they would be able to give you some concrete answers about what the pdl's can and can't do.

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You're right...I only stumbled onto the fact that this could be a problem when I started reading the posts. I would like to get it resolved either way. Um...(sorry) one more thing. I know you said that us national is not a real company...but it was also said that it is a scare tactic from a collection agency. The thing that is worrying me is that they say I took out an online Pdl and closed my account before it was paid back....I never did. I tried to get the name of the company they say they represent, but they wouldn't tell me. I think it is an issue of identity theft. How do I get to the bottom of that? I don't know anything about how online plds work, so I am not at all sure about that.

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I think that they haave to validate the debt in some way. Ask them for a validation letter. If they want money from you they need to prove in some way that you do owe this money.Did they flat out refuse to tell you who the pdl was. What are they trying to hide I wonder

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I tried that! They said that they were unable to send me the info for the original creditor and that they were also unauthorized to send copies of the so called "legal documents". They won't send me anything in writing and they won't tell me who the people I "owe" money to are. They also hang up on me when I ask too many questions and ask that I don't call back. Now, realistically, if you were a collection agency and there was a person trying to work with you and settle their debt, would you hang up on them and not answer any of their questions? It makes me so mad, and that is another part of why they worry me so much. I talked with and filed a report with the local sheriff's dept, so if anything does come their way they would know about it. They told me that sometimes when a company hands off the situation to a collection agency, they don't want to be bothered further and that it is in the hands of the collection agency. Here's the thing though. The collection agency doesn't get paid (from what I was told) it the situation turns over to the courts. It would then be in the hands of the courts and attorney's. So why won't they work with me? I need to find out about if it identity theft, and they say that it is out of their hands and my arguing is being taken as a refusal to pay. So they said last night that they are starting the legal process. It is all very confusing.
:x

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Well, any legally operating collection agency would know that they have to send you something in writing after they contact you. They have to validate a debt when requested. This place sound svery fishy . . . . I wouldn't worry too much about it.

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Thanks you guys. For now, I will blow it off to meaningless threats...until the uniformed officer shows up at the door with the summons! lol. It's not funny, I'm sorry. I guess when it comes to us national, there isn't anything else to do! Thanks everybody!

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If it makes you feel better, most all of us have heard the same threats. None of us have ever been arrested. It can't happen. Period. There are no debtor's jails. And you didn't commit fraud.

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