Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in California
sent to collections - 3 years later
After an auto accident in CA in '04 I agreed with the person that hit me to allow his friend's auto body shop to make the repairs. The owner of the shop stated that he would work out payment with his friend. Three years later, I just received a collections letter re: this incident. The shop owner claims to not remember the conversation. After three years and a move to FL, I can't find the info of the man who hit me. The charge is $1200. Do I have any ground to stand on, or should I pay this to avoid this affecting my credit.
Other points:
1. We were allowed to take the car without any secured payment.(Not the normal policy of this shop)
2. We were given a rental car free of charge.(Not normal)
3. This was never billed.
4. My wife worked for an insurance company at the time, so had we been responsible for the charges we would have turned this over to insurance.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: sent to collections - 3 years later
If you don't have a written agreement with the body shop, the statute of limitation for an oral contract is 2 years. If you did have a written agreement, the statute is 4 years. Your first 3 items are good evidence that you had an agreement for another person to pay.