Hi

I recently received a letter(from a collection agency) abut a 10 year old credit card debt From my researc (in Illiniois) its past the Staue of Limitations..and I havent heard about this debt in YEARS..anyone know if this past the SOL and if so, what should I do?? Thanks

Im finding sem contracticary info--the SOL is based on MY residence(when opening) correct, and its based on the last payment??? I think?? what governing agency can I get some solid answers from?/ Thanks!!

hiya--

in your state, the SOL for open accounts is five years. That is what a credit card debt is--an open account.

The SOL does not go from the date the last payment was made---it goes from when the account first became delinquent. A lot of people look on their credit reports and look for the date when the account was charged off--in this case, if you have not made a payment or a promise to pay in more than five years then it is definitely outside the SOL.

Did you live in IL when you opened this account, but move to another state since? If so, let me know what the state is that you live in now and I will make sure that you are still past the SOL. You most definitely should be.

In either event, the first thing you should always do when you get this kind of letter is to send them a debt validation request, by certified mail, return receipt requested. By federal law they must provide it to you, if they cannot, then they cannot even attempt to continue collecting the debt.

They can continue to collect on the debt until it is paid.

true, FYI, but nonly if you let them. think about it...if the SOL is past, they cannot legally sue you unless you let them. And then, their only other method is to contact you and try to get you to pay, in which case you send them a C&D letter, that means they cant legally contact you anymore. They have no legal options left, and if they choose to break the law, I would sue them over it.

I find it amusing at how quickly people are ready to sue everyone now days. It tells me a lot. I read a lot of post here and don't reply mostly because Certain people immediatly assumes the worst case scenario and scares the person asking the question and it doesn't really help at all.

They can legally continue to collect on a debt until it is paid. A C&D letter is only going to continue to get it sold to another agency. It likely won't happen immediatly but it will happen.

guest, you really need to take a better look at the law. They can only attempt to collect as long as the consumer allows them the chance to, in that case. A C&D letter may well send it to another collection agency, but hey, whose fault is it that the creditor didnt push their rights in time, in accordance with the law? It is not right for people to not pay their debts, but it is also not right for a creditor to sit on a debt, not do anything for a period of time, and then expect that they can act illegally at their discretion. Sure, in this case it is just a letter, but we see people on here nearly every day talking about how they just got served over a debt that turns out to be outside the SOL. You collectors and your attorneys are violating the law every time you file a lawsuit that is outside the SOL, and the real sorry thing about it is that you held onto it for so long and did nothing.

Believe me, if someone owes me money, I sure as hell aint gonna wait for over ten years before I try to do something about collecting it. It isnt my problem that you people choose to do this either. People should pay their debts, I agree, but one wrong doesnt give you the right to throw the law in the crapper.

I am going to attempt to find paperwork with dates pertaining to this--but I know I havent paid in at least 5/6 years--i had forgotten about this debt--I received a similar letter 2 0r 3 years ago and NOTHING since. I recently moved,(same state) so Im thinking maybe?? I came up on some skip-tracing iwth new address?

How can I find the date it became deliquent?/ I dont think have any old credit reports--

Thanks so much

The first thing I would do is send them a validation request by certified mail, return receipt requested. By law, if you request validation, they must stop all collection activity until they gather the necessary documentation and provide it to you. In order to satisfy the law, they must prove:

1--that the debt is truly yours.
2--that they have the legal right to collect on it
3--that they amount they claim you owe is correct and not inflated with illegal charges.

If they do not meet this standard then they did not properly validate the debt. This would be the first step, to send them this request. They are not required to even respond, but if they do not, they cannot ever try to collect on the debt from you again.

Right--but of its TOO OLD for them to pursue--why even "bother" to send the validaion request?? what are they validating?? If tehy are only sendign one letter every 3 years then they are not really pursuing this..

If its past the SOl then what will that accomplish?/
Thanks

it makes a difference because they are required to provide you with information about this account. The information that they must provide can often help you prove exactly when this account firs became delinquent, in oter words, when the SOL began. That way, you will be able to show them ironclad proof that this is outside the SOL and there isnt a thing they can do about it. The goal is to find out exactly what they are claiming the "age" of the debt is as it pertains to the SOL. Also, a lot of these companies have tried to illegally reage a debt with false information, and you are better off finding this out now than in a courtroom, so you can get your own proof and catch them, if that is what they are trying to pull.

am meeting with someone from a NonProft Credit Coiunseling Service. Its Free and they can point me in the right direction.

thanks All

Skydivr7673...I'm not so sure that what you stated about an SOL is true. I ended up in court with a CA and my attorney told me the SOL is based on the date of CHARGE OFF, not the date of last payment or date when the account went into default. Also, the plaintiff (collection attorney) argued that my debt (a credit card) was NOT always an open account. Maybe it depends on the state and how SOL's are dtermined in each state. What I learned was that judges are very fluid on interpreting SOL's...at least in Florida. Florida SOL's say a credit card (open account) is 4 years and a written agreement is 5 years. I lost. The CA attorney argued that even though it was a credit card, the agreement constituted a written agreement. In the final analysis, I learned to be cautious about SOL's. Each state is interpreting them the way they want, regardless of what the statute may say. It is a real problem and I blame the judges. In my case, my court date was "continued" twice. Why? Because we later found out that the CA attorney did not want the judge assigned to the case. He wanted another judge that favored the collectors. Politics in the courtroom.

Eddie there are two sols on any debt.The first is reporting sol for a credit report and it is 7 years from date of first delinquency.Nothing can change that date.Next is civil action sol which will vary state to state and should be checked against state statute.

__________________
Cajunbulldog
Keeping an eye out for consumers.
http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpa/fdcpact.htm#809
http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcrajump.shtm
http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com.../about216.html
Use this letter to protect your rights under the FDCPA
myfairdebt.com & myfaircredit.com-Good source of case law in forums.

Thanks Cajun. I understand that. I was addressing the civil action SOL which is the one that got me in trouble. I thought, for sure, that the debt was out of SOL. It wasn't, or so the CA attorney proved. It is the civil action SOL's that I question as far as interpretation.

Eddie Florida's sol is being influenced by caselaw.There are cases on both sides right now and without a lawyer it is almost a coin toss which way a judge will rule.Credit cards are normally four years there but some ca lawyers have won arguments because the other side lacked a convincing argument with caselaw.

__________________
Cajunbulldog
Keeping an eye out for consumers.
http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fdcpa/fdcpact.htm#809
http://www.ftc.gov/os/statutes/fcrajump.shtm
http://www.debtconsolidationcare.com.../about216.html
Use this letter to protect your rights under the FDCPA
myfairdebt.com & myfaircredit.com-Good source of case law in forums.