To give you a little background:
(Background)
Back in 2001 I opened a credit card under Fusion Card (Fleet Card Services). I added my girlfriend as an authorized user on the account and gave her the card as an emergency use card. To the best of both of our knowledge she never used the card or made a single purchase using the card.in 2004 my income was terrible as the business I was involved with started to perform poorly. I called fleet to have them remove her name from the card and they acknowledged it was done over the phone. I defaulted on the card within a few months following that phone call.
(After Default)
Next I was hounded by collection agents and made a few payments on the account after it was closed. When I lost my job I could not continue with payments and the collection agency started trying to ETF debit my account at least twice a day. I had to serve them with a cease and desist letter which at least stopped them for the time. There were 2 other agency's which attempted to contact me but there calls at work were raising too many questions and I had to cease and desist letter them too.
(The Lawsuit)
In 2007 I was served with a civil summons from Bank of America / Old Dominion Law Associates T. Camille French out of Virginia and was shocked to see the Authorized User was also named on the summons (this was NOT a joint account). We of course filed a response stating the fact the Authorized User was not responsible and never used the card. Our letters and phone calls went on def ears as both Bank of America along with Dominion Law Associates actively denied the fact she was an authorized user even after I submitted my credit report showing this to be true. They took both of us to court for a summary judgment motion and they won against me but were denied summary judgment against her. I am perfectly fine with them winning against me as in fact it was my debt. I filed for bankruptcy roughly 5 months after just trying for a fresh start. Shortly after I filed for bankruptcy I was summoned again (along with my girlfriend) to court for a calendar meeting for all cases that were left open longer than one year. Bank of America nor Dominion Law Associates bothered to show up for case yet the judge would not dismiss the case as he had done with the 20 prior cases brought before ours. The case was left open.
(Back to court)
So now that I filed for bankruptcy and Bank of America can no longer press suit against me they have now decided they will continue to go after the Authorized User only. She was mailed a letter stating a summary judgment motion must be heard next month (alerted only 14 days after the motion was filed).in the first motion for summary judgment against her the judge asked to see prove of being properly served and proof a contract existed which the lawyer quoted, "I simply don't have them here.". We were not shocked by this considering he does not have them period.
(Personal thoughts).
This has now been going on for 2 years and the Bank of America has simply been disgusting to deal with. I want to warn all parents that they may not want to give there son or daughter or even boyfriend or girlfriend an authorized user card as you could inadvertently end up dragging them into a lawsuit which should only involve you. I have received comments from others stating this could fall into the category for a counter suit based on the fact their intent was to sue an Authorized User knowing they had no contract with in an attempt to solely harass the person into a paying a debt which could be construed as frivolous. I for one am against most law suits but after two years and the constant thought of what can they try next I am left wondering if this is the only way to stand up for Authorized Users rights? I am the only who made her an Authorized User, called to have her name removed while the account was still in good standings, so why should she be held responsible. If you too are experiencing this situation I feel your stress ad burden from it. There should be some way, legally, to make business act ethically or be fined.
Thanks for reading
Ryan
Belews Creek, North Carolina
U.S.A.
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