My husband moved to the US from England 2.5 years ago. He had credit
card debt and one loan that have become impossible to repay according
to terms given the worsening exchange rate and because he gets paid a
lot less over here.  We recently contacted Consumer Credit Counselling
Services in England and he is in the process of entering their Debt
Management Program, but the creditors have not yet signed off on the
proposed repayment agreement. One of his creditors, MBNA, has a US
presence and they have threatened to turn him over to their US
Collections department.  Is there anything they can do, legally, to
his credit report in the US? Is there any prohibitions to this in the
US Fair Debt Collection Act?  This is of great concern to us.  He
started with zero credit over here and has built an excellent credit
rating.  We didn't want to stiff his UK creditors and CCCS seemed like
the best way to solve the problem, but we hate the fact that his
credit rating might be in jeopardy in two countries.  I appreciate any
help that can be provided.

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Request for Question Clarification by endo-ga on 08 Mar 2005 08:40 PST

Hi,

There must be a way to negotiate with the creditors if you tell them
you cannot afford to pay back with the current terms. In the end they
want money, it is not in their best interest for you not being able to
pay. So I wonder if you can work out some terms that make it possible
to repay the creditors.

Thanks.
endo

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Clarification of Question by okiedeadbeat-ga on 08 Mar 2005 09:22 PST

Endo,

Thanks for your question. By going through CCCS, we are attempting to
work out terms that the creditors will accept. But that is not the
nature of my question. Whether we reach a settlement or not, I am
wondering what impact UK debt or collection activities will have on a
US credit report. I don't think it is legally possible (or even
logistically feasible considering the UK doesn't use US social
security numbers) to attempt to collect or report UK debt in the US. 
That is what I'm trying to find out. For instance, can MBNA UK tell
MBNA US to call and bug us for money, or can MBNA UK tell MBNA US to
put something negative on a US credit report?

I hope that helps.