Nextcard Bank Of Omaha Closed account in July 2002, but t now am getting calls that I still owe, plus fees!!! con artist fake ripoff deceptive company Norcross Georgia

I also had a Nextcard Visa for about two years. In July of 2002, I tried to use my card and it was declined. I made a call to Nextcard to see what was going on, and was given the following explanation.

The woman I spoke with said that I should have received a letter (which I never did) stating that the company was being bought out, and only 20% of their accounts would remain open (my cousin also had her account closed). This rep for the company told me my balance and said as soon as it was paid off, the account would be closed. End of story.

So, being the good citizen (with good credit) I am, I paid off the amount she told me, and being that I didn't receive a call or statement, figured it was all taken care of, the account was closed.

The other night I received a call from Bill Robertson, who works for Bank of Omaha. Mr. Robertson told me that I still owed money on my Nextcard account. I was shocked since it had been NINE MONTHS since I had heard the account would be closed! He said that I should have been receiving statements all along, and that because I hadn't paid, the original $156.37 I owed had grown to $371.00!! I was furious! How was I supposed to know I owed if they didn't contact me? And why did it take them NINE months to contact me at all? His explanation is that they wait until an account is 271 days delinquent, then they take action. He said until now, it hasn't affected my credit, but will at the end of April, if I don't pay. Mr. Robertson couldn't tell me where that $156.37 was spent (my records have been shredded...the account was closed, I didn't need them anymore, you know?), but said I could find it on the website (which I couldn't. Just showed my balance, which is now over $400...up from $371 on Thursday..today's Monday), and that as soon as I paid the $156.37, then he would waive the fees...AS HE SHOULD!

Anyway, I have no problem paying this, if it is shown it's money I spent. But the fact that it took them 9 months to contact me, along with the fact that I was given a balance amount to pay off and I DID (and my card was no longer active at this point,so how could I have spent money AFTER she gave me the balance amount?)..well, it just seems a little fishy to me.

I want to do the right thing, but after reading all of these comments about this company, I don't believe that Mr. Robertson would take away those fees once I pay, the way he said he would. I am at a loss of what to do! I am struggling with doing the right thing vs. not being taken advantage of!

The last thing I want to say too, is that my cousin had her account closed as well. Thanksgiving weekend, her home was broken into. In checking her credit report for problems, she noticed that her NextCard account was still shown as an active account...even though they told her it was closed. She has tried to contact them regarding this, to make sure that account is in fact CLOSED, but has run into brick walls at every turn.

I agree with all of you. We SHOULD file a class-action suit against this company. We do not deserve to be taken advantage of! I will try to find out what is necessary to get the ball rolling. I am fortunate that my balance is under $200 (according to them, but whether it's validated, I don't know yet), some of you are so much worse off, and I am sorry to hear that. Seriously, let's stand up for ourselves and make this company own up to the wrongs they have done!!!!

Teri
Virginia Beach, Virginia
U.S.A.