Does the seven years referred to in the fair credit and billing act apply to everyone? I have an aquisition company that is trying to collect on a debt that was chared off 10 years ago. They say they will bring legal action unless I settle the account. Can they collect on a debt that is over 10 yrs old?
simple answer, yes... now turn the tables on them and sue them for violating your rights under the fcba and fcra (if they try to ding your reports)
1*YES: The Act regulates how long an item can be reported to the CRAs.It does not regulate how long a creditor or CA has to sue you to collect on a debt. 2*This is regulated by state laws and varies by state depending on type of debt. It is not covered by the act. I hope you find this info. helpful. Now you can be helpful to others simply by encouraging folks that you know to read this board. Welcome to the board.
Please follow these links previously posted to read about the statute of limitations in your state. http://creditinfocenter.com/rebuild/statuteLimitations.shtml http://www.cardreport.com/laws/statute-of-limitations.html http://www.edebtnetwork.com/content/collection_laws.asp
I checked the state stutes and they say 4 yrs. So no company after that period of time can legally sue for collection? They have threatened a suit and have given a date fior finalanswer as 04/15(right around the corner). If I am understandong correctly I can tell them it is no longer a valid debt for collection and demand a stop to all phone calls and letters, correct? Thanks for the advice, this is a big weight on my mind. :-(
They can sue, but you can motion to have the suit dismissed, based on the expiration of the SOL. "The fact that the SOL has "run" (expired) on a particular debt will not necessarily prevent a lawsuit from being filed (via a Summons And Complaint), but the defendant can have the suit dismissed on this basis" (quoted from one of the links posted)
