Ex-GF, Joint Credit Card, Third-party? *UPDATED* Please chime in

[Krueger81]

Hello,

I dated this girl 5 years ago and we got a CC together to take advantage of the 0% on Balance Transfers. She is primary and I'm authorized user. everything on the card belongs to me though Fast forward to today.

In the past 5 years I have only been able to pay off a fifth of the balance I know I am a dumbass but finances haven't allowed anything else. She recently married and now they are trying to buy a house.. ... ...

Anyway she calls me wanting to know where her $$$ is for the CC. threatening to get a third-party involved and so on..

Is there anything she can legally do to me or my already broken finances if I haven't missed one payment and always have kept up with minimums if not more?

Thanks
Phil

**Nov 5, 07** She got a lawyer involved. haven't heard anything from him but I am sure it's coming. what is he recourse against me?

 

[Beev]

I'm no credit guru by any means, but I would think that if you're making your payments then there isn't anything she can do.

 

[SoulAssassin]

Legally the balance is at least partially hers. If you want to be a nice guy, call the cc company (you possibly will need her on the phone) to have her name legally removed and the account fully in your name. You will need to qualify for a credit line at least equal to the balance and it's possible they will deny the request if your credit is bad.

 

[Krueger81]

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
Legally the balance is at least partially hers. If you want to be a nice guy, call the cc company (you possibly will need her on the phone) to have her name legally removed and the account fully in your name. You will need to qualify for a credit line at least equal to the balance and it's possible they will deny the request if your credit is bad.

I was going to go that route if it weren't for the awesome credit I have

 

[compuwiz1]

If you have fulfilled the terms of service with the CC company, I don't see what she can really do. Unless there is a contract between you two, saying she can demand repayment in full, it's her problem. She could cancel you as an authorized user so you couldn't continue to charge anything, but as long as you are at least making the minimum required payment on time, I think you can tell her to go pound sand.

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: Sraaz
I'm no credit guru by any means, but I would think that if you're making your payments then there isn't anything she can do.

Other than send her fiance with a bat to the op's house, there isn't anything she can do. Shame on her for even putting herself in that situation. My g/f has a little bit of cc debt and until recently couldn't qualify for 0% offers. Even though we'll probably end up together and it would have saved her some $$ I wouldn't even dream of getting a co-ap card with her.

 

[imported_nerve]

eh just dispute the credit line with the 3 reporting agencies saying "not mine"

take yourself off the card

and she can repay

as an AU i dont think you had to sign anything to use the card, besides the card itself.

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: Krueger81

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
Legally the balance is at least partially hers. If you want to be a nice guy, call the cc company (you possibly will need her on the phone) to have her name legally removed and the account fully in your name. You will need to qualify for a credit line at least equal to the balance and it's possible they will deny the request if your credit is bad.

I was going to go that route if it weren't for the awesome credit I have

How much money are we talking about here? If your credit is that good then just transfer it to another 0% card. If it's only a few thousand it won't kill your FICO that much.

If you really are just an authorized user and want to be a dick, you can have yourself removed from the account without her permission so only her name is on it.

 

[Krueger81]

Originally posted by: compuwiz1
If you have fulfilled the terms of service with the CC company, I don't see what she can really do. Unless there is a contract between you two, saying she can demand repayment in full, it's her problem. She could cancel you as an authorized user so you couldn't continue to charge anything, but as long as you are at least making the minimum required payment on time, I think you can tell her to go pound sand.

that made me giggle tell her to go pound sand LOL

no agreement was ever made other then the CC Statements. I haven't used the card in quite some time (5 yrs)

 

[Krueger81]

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin

Originally posted by: Krueger81

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
Legally the balance is at least partially hers. If you want to be a nice guy, call the cc company (you possibly will need her on the phone) to have her name legally removed and the account fully in your name. You will need to qualify for a credit line at least equal to the balance and it's possible they will deny the request if your credit is bad.

I was going to go that route if it weren't for the awesome credit I have

How much money are we talking about here? If your credit is that good then just transfer it to another 0% card. If it's only a few thousand it won't kill your FICO that much.

If you really are just an authorized user and want to be a dick, you can have yourself removed from the account without her permission so only her name is on it.

How would one go about doing that? Just call up the CC and have them take me off.

At that point could she sue me or pursue anything?

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: Krueger81

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin

Originally posted by: Krueger81

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin
Legally the balance is at least partially hers. If you want to be a nice guy, call the cc company (you possibly will need her on the phone) to have her name legally removed and the account fully in your name. You will need to qualify for a credit line at least equal to the balance and it's possible they will deny the request if your credit is bad.

I was going to go that route if it weren't for the awesome credit I have

How much money are we talking about here? If your credit is that good then just transfer it to another 0% card. If it's only a few thousand it won't kill your FICO that much.

If you really are just an authorized user and want to be a dick, you can have yourself removed from the account without her permission so only her name is on it.

How would one go about doing that? Just call up the CC and have them take me off.

At that point could she sue me or pursue anything?

She could try to take you to court but, as previously mentioned, she has no legal leg to stand on. She would have to get lucky and get some man-hating judge. Like I mentioned, you should probably be more concerned w her new man coming after you than the courts. Call the cc company and ask if you're an authorized user or a co-applicant.

If you do this it probably puts you closer to a window seat on the flight to hell.

 

[Krueger81]

will they release that information to me? I know I have called about the card previously and they wouldn't have one word unless she called

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: Krueger81
will they release that information to me? I know I have called about the card previously and they wouldn't have one word unless she called

It sounds like you're not even an authorized user, if it's not then you have no legal responsibility whatsoever which is even better than having removed yourself. Did you ever get a card with your name on it?

BTW, your former g/f is an idiot. Please post pics ASAP.

 

[Krueger81]

I just called the CC Company and I am an authorized user on the account. I do have a card with my name on it that I hung onto just in case I got into this situation.

I am |..| close to calling back and having me removed I still have all of the information needed to access the account including the password on the account LOL

 

[SoulAssassin]

Originally posted by: Krueger81
I just called the CC Company and I am an authorized user on the account. I do have a card with my name on it that I hung onto just in case I got into this situation.

I am |..| close to calling back and having me removed I still have all of the information needed to access the account including the password on the account LOL

I must have missed the pics link in your last post. Please try it again.


Seriously, it's the dick move of the year if you do it but eff it...why not. She might not get approved for her mortgage or get a higher rate costing her thousands of additional dollars on top of having to pay off your debt but life's a bitch and I'm sure she'll learn a lesson out of it.

 

[Krueger81]

she used to be pretty effin hot.. but she popped out a kid and she looks like freaking cottage cheese now

 

[Kyteland]

Just remember that karma's a bitch. If it's honestly your debt you should make every effort to make good on it instead of saddling her with it.

 

[RaiderJ]

Tell her that you can't afford to pay the balance, but you'll settle with her for xx% of the total. That should royally piss her off. But hey, what's she gonna do? Legally it sounds like her debt.

In reality, she probably could come after you for your purchases, if it could be shown that they were definitely not hers. Whether or not she would win is another story. If it was me, I'd only do the minimum payment from here on out until I was asked in a more polite manner.

 

[Krueger81]

Originally posted by: Kyteland
Just remember that karma's a bitch. If it's honestly your debt you should make every effort to make good on it instead of saddling her with it.

I am not going to stiff her with my debt.. but yes min. payment until they GTFO of my life...

 

[yowolabi]

Am I going to be the only person to tell you to stop being an ass and considering taking yourself off the card? You admitted that all the charges are yours... do the right thing and arrange to have her name taken off the card so that she, her fiance, and her kid can get the house they want without being saddled by your debts.

 

[ddwbi0]

Originally posted by: yowolabi
Am I going to be the only person to tell you to stop being an ass and considering taking yourself off the card? You admitted that all the charges are yours... do the right thing and arrange to have her name taken off the card so that she, her fiance, and her kid can get the house they want without being saddled by your debts.

Agreed. It sounds like she did YOU a favor by getting the 0% card, and I think she has been extremely gracious in letting you pay it off little by little over the past 5 years and not saying anything about it. If your debt is screwing with their mortgage plans, then you should at least make an effort to pay it down as much as you can now.

Look at all that stuff you bought in your heatware within the past 5 years, sell some of that to pay it!

 

[zerocool84]

A chick would do that to you in a hot minute so you do it to her. Take yourself off the card. Life's a biznitch

 

[TruePaige]

Originally posted by: SoulAssassin

Originally posted by: Krueger81
I just called the CC Company and I am an authorized user on the account. I do have a card with my name on it that I hung onto just in case I got into this situation.

I am |..| close to calling back and having me removed I still have all of the information needed to access the account including the password on the account LOL

I must have missed the pics link in your last post. Please try it again.


Seriously, it's the dick move of the year if you do it but eff it...why not. She might not get approved for her mortgage or get a higher rate costing her thousands of additional dollars on top of having to pay off your debt but life's a bitch and I'm sure she'll learn a lesson out of it.

I'd threaten to do that if she doesn't leave you alone.

 

[Bryophyte]

You should have worked this out when you broke up. Get the money from another source and pay that debt off completely so that she can close the account. She shouldn't be saddled with your finances long after she broke up with you. This affects her credit rating.

 

[kranky]

You know, shame on those who say the OP should stick the ex with the bill simply because it's possible. What is wrong with you people? Don't you have any self-respect? And to say it would be OK to sabotage her mortgage and cost her thousands to "teach her a lesson"? And what would that lesson be, if I might ask?

Taking your name off the account would be a lowlife move. You have no right to screw up her finances. Find a way to get the balance off her account then you can pay it off any way you want. YOU owe the money, and to screw with her mortgage is completely and utterly unjustified.