Information on expiration of statute of limitations - The Bills.com Blog
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Information on expiration of statute of limitations
Question: I had listen to a section on KWCH wich is our main Kansas TV channels and they had said something about in Kansas if a bill is over 5 years (I think) and you have not made any payments or have made any arrangements on it then it is no longer any good. Is this true?
Answer: If you have defaulted on the repayment of a debt, and the creditorwishes to take legal action against you to attempt to collect the debt, the creditor is required to file suit within a certain time period, referred to as the Statute of Limitations. Basically, a statute of limitations (SOL) is the time period during which a creditor can take legal action (i.e., sue you) to enforce a debt. Each state has defined its own statutes of limitations, and they vary significantly from state to state. For example, in California, creditors have four years to sue you to enforce a debt, while in Rhode Island they have 10 years. To learn more about statutes of limitations for the collection of debts, I encourage you to visit http://www.bcsalliance.com/y_debt_sol.html. From the information available on several websites, it appears that the SOL in Kansas for the collection of many debts, such as personal loans, is five years, while the SOL for the collection of credit card debts is three years. While it is likely that this information is accurate, I encourage you to consult with an attorney licensed to practice in Kansas to discuss the specifics of your situation to help you determine if the SOL for your creditor to sue you has expired.
If you determine that your state?s SOL for the collection of debts has expired, it is relatively unlikely that the creditor will attempt to sue you to enforce the debt. While the passing of the SOL does not mean that a creditor cannot sue you, if a lawsuit is filed you should have an absolute
defense against the lawsuit. If you respond to the suit stating that the SOL has passed, the judge should dismiss the case. In addition, if the court believes that the creditor filed suit despite knowing that the SOL had expired, the court may sanction the creditor for its actions. Keep in mind that in most states, the SOL begins running from the date you last made a payment on the account. This means that if you paid just a few dollars to a collector a couple of years ago, the running SOL for that debt could have been reset. Also, keep in mind that the passage of the SOL does not prevent a creditor from calling you to collect on the debt; it simply provides you an absolute defense in court if the creditor files suit. You can generally stop collection calls by sending a cease and desist letter to the creditor?for more information about sending cease and desist letters, you can visit www.ihatedebt.com .
Your state?s SOL has little to do with how long accounts can appear on your credit report. The length of time credit accounts can appear on your credit report is governed by federal law, specifically the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Generally speaking, negative listings will appear your credit report for seven years, while bankruptcies will appear for ten. So if your state?s SOL is five years, an account can appear on your credit report for two years after your state?s SOL has
passed. A new company purchasing your account cannot lengthen the time that the account can appear on your credit report. Be careful, though, because many debt purchasers try to change the date of last activity on old accounts so they appear on your credit report for a longer time. You need to pull your credit report and carefully review the accounts in question to make sure that no unauthorized changes have been made. If you find any suspicious information on your credit report, you should dispute the listings with the credit bureaus. The Federal Trade Commission offers a helpful guide to disputing credit listings, available at www.ftc.gov . To find out more about credit, credit scoring, and credit reports, I encourage you to visit the Bills.com Credit Resources page at http://www.bills.com/credit/.
For further information regarding options available to consumers struggling with debt, I invite you to visit the Bills.com Debt Help page at http://www.bills.com/debt-help/. You may not need assistance with your debt if the statute of limitations has expired, though it is helpful to know what options are available to you.
I wish you the best of luck in resolving your debts, and hope the information I have provided will help you Find. Learn. Save.
Best,
Bill
www.bills.com
Also, make sure to get a free financial health check-up with Bills IQ!
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1. Posted by Clint Miller on Wednesday 20th February 2008 15:51
What is the statute of limitations for construction defects in Kansas. Does Kansas have a right to cure law?