Posted on April 4, 2009 at 1:28 pm When being contacted by debt collectors for credit card debts that are more than 3 years old, always check the Statute of Limitations in your state. It's usually between 3-7 years depending on the state. If the statute of limitations has been reached for these old debts (federal student loans excluded), you're not legally obligated to pay the debt, and can use this reason as a defense in court, if necessary.It's important to have your credit report accurately reflect the last time you made a payment to the credit card or the date of last activity. That's when the clock begins. If this information is incorrect, then you must send a certified letter to all three credit reporting agencies requesting they  make the necessary corrections. Any copies of old credit card statements showing payments made to your credit card (last time you paid them),  should be included with your letter. The credit bureaus by law, have 30 days to respond back to you,  having corrected the mistakes or requesting additional information. Once you have the credit reports  from all three agencies (Experian, Equifax, and Transunion), with the correct dates and information, you can now prove the Statute of Limitations has passed, in court.

Posted on April 4, 2009 at 3:28 pm You are very right but you need to express this fact as well. The creditor has the right to continue to try and collect the debt but I had no idea about asking the credit bureua to change when you got the credit and so forth. I need to get my credit reports and read them over very carefully and see if there is a way to change some of the things on there and what they say. Thanks for bringing this up and sharing this information with us here. Take care :)

Posted on April 4, 2009 at 5:48 pm I would not try to wait out the statute of limitations, many places will take legal action prior to the deadline.  Also, the statute of limitations will start from the last payment made.  So, if I have a debt that I hadn't paid on in 5 years and then I make a $5 payment, the time is from the $5 payment.

Posted on April 5, 2009 at 7:29 am There is a statue of limitations on all debt.  The majority of debt collector's will delve into your credit history before filing legal action.  If you truly don't have the money, they won't bother with a lawsuit, especially if they find out that your truly do not have the means to pay them. With all that being said.  If you pay on an old debt, that is still on your credit report your credit score will go down, especially if that particular debt was going to fall of your credit report.  Eventually though, your score will eventually go back up.  If it is still on your credit report and you owe the money, you should make every effort to pay the debt off.  

Posted on April 5, 2009 at 8:17 am Yes, i will check the statue of limitations for old credit card debts before anything else...