Charged off is an accounting term that means an account is no longer active.  It is an account that the debtor quit paying.  Usually after six months a non-performing account is charged off and either transferred to a collection agency or it is sold to a debt buyer.  Many debtors mistakenly believe a charged off debt is no longer owed or no longer being collected.  That is incorrect.   Debt collectors may try to collect a charged off debt years after the original creditor transferred the account.   If you are contacted regarding a charged off account, the first thing to examine is whether the state statute of limitations prevents suing on a time barred debt.