You have to be careful with debt collectors because dealing with them can affect your finances in some unexpected ways. For instance, agreeing to repay a debt can restart your debt’s “statute of limitations”. This is often confused with the time frame on your credit report, though, so let’s clear up the confusion.
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Your debt’s “statute of limitations” gives creditors the right to sue you for a limited amount of time when the debt is past due. The time frame varies by state, but once it expires, those unpaid debts are considered “statute-barred“, and a collector can no longer sue. Talking to a debt collector can restart the statute of limitations on time-barred debts.
We’ve told you how this works in detail, but many people believe this is a myth. It’s not, but the confusion lies in your credit report. Typically, negative items like unpaid debts remain on your credit report for seven years. Settling a debt will not restart that clock — it’s totally separate from the debt’s statute of limitations. In short, if you settle on a debt, the statute of limitations may be restarted on it, but it will still drop off of your credit report in seven years from the time it was delinquent.
CreditCards.com explains the mix-up in a bit more detail, so check out their post on debt myths below.
9 Debt Myths Debunked [CreditCards.com]
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2 responses to “The Difference Between A Debt’s ‘Statute Of Limitations’ And Your Credit History”
Can we not give financial advice for a foreign country?
Well, the essence is the same in Australia. The statute of limitations is 6 years (3 in the NT, and between 12 to 15 for court judgements) and it’s based upon when a debtor last acknowledged ownership of a debt. Usually this is taken to mean when they last made a payment.
If a default is listed on your credit report, it is listed there for 5 years from the date of listing regardless of whether it’s paid or settled, the only way to remove is if it was in error. So, it is possible to have a default listed on a debt that is statute barred. Which is what I gather the article is talking about.