Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Wisconsin
Collection attempt after 3 years
I recently was contacted by a collection agency for non-payment of a balance that I supposedly owe a previous provider of services that I did business with. I cancelled my account with the provider in July of 2004 and have not received any communications about billing since. In May of this year, I recieved a request from a collection agency stating that they were looking for a sum of money from me. The company states that I cancelled my account before the end of the contracted time period. This might or might not be true, I need to check, but if it is true why would it take them 3 years to get around to billing me for it? If I did sign a contract as they claim am I still on the hook for the money even after 3 years? Part of the sum they are asking for is interest over the 3 years. Am I liable for this as well? Thank you for your insight.
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Collection attempt after 3 years
For the most part there is a 6 year statute of limitations on contracts in Wis. So the creditor can probably sue if it has a legitimate claim. There is a defense called "laches" but for it to apply you would have to prove that you were somehow unfairly prejudiced because the creditor waited so long to pursue its claim.
The collection agency must follow certain procedures in collecting this debt under the FDCPA. The requirements of FDCPA are: (i) the debt collector may not use any false, deceptive, or misleading representation in connection with the collection of any debt and (ii) the debt collector must inform the debtor within five days after the initial "communication" of the amount of the debt, that the debtor's failure to dispute the debt within thirty days will cause the debt to be assumed to be valid ("validation notice") and (iii) the debt collector must disclose that in attempting to collect the debt, any information obtained will be used for that purpose.
You should demand validation of the debt and might consider having an attorney who handles FDCPA claims examine the collector's practices to see if they comply with the statute.
If the claim is valid the creditor can collect the rate of interest that you contractually agreed to (if any) and in lieu thereof can usually be awarded interest at the legal rate of 5% per annum.
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
