Credit Repair Consultants Warn About Statute of Limitations Issues

Credit repair is the consumer’s answer to a blemished credit record. Years of neglect can easily turn a credit report into a liability that forces the consumer to pay higher interest rates or even be denied credit altogether. There are a number of reasons why this happens. Missed payments, unpaid debts that have been turned over to collection agencies, and also public records reflecting liens, bankruptcies, foreclosures, or repossessions adversely affect a credit rating to such an extent that any form of credit – if available – will cost the consumer dearly.

Within the confines of credit repair, it is possible to have items removed from a credit report. Mind you, valid notations cannot be removed, yet it is the adverse notation that is kept on beyond its permitted seven years, or the bankruptcy filing information that still continues to be reported even after 10 years that may be removed. In addition to the foregoing, there is a good chance that some accounts – even after they are paid off – may not be reported as such by the creditor or the collection agency. All of these mistakes cost a consumer a better credit rating.

Yet in recent months credit repair agencies have been warning that the statute of limitations may actually hurt consumers when it comes to cleaning up their credit profiles. Such a statute of limitations is designed to actually protect debtors from collectors. While it varies from state to state, the statute of limitations ensures that after a preset number of years where there is no payment made on an account, the creditor or his collectors may no longer pursue legal action against the debtor. Sure, the debt is still valid and owed, and the creditor may still occasionally demand payment from the debtor, but as long as the debtor does not actually make a payment, the matter cannot be brought to court.

Unfortunately, some consumers have come in the crosshairs of financial institutions who are in desperate need for cash and thus are now looking to dormant accounts for renewed revenues. While in the past these accounts might have continued to remain dormant, they are now turned over to collection agencies. Consumers who are intent on cleaning up their credit profiles may begin making payments on debts that might have already fallen under the auspices of the statute of limitations, thereby renewing them and thus labeling them for inclusion on the credit profile.

In some ways this actually penalizes the consumer who is now responsible and has learned from past mistakes by capitalizing on their willingness to make things right. Rather than completely climbing out of their financial hole and making a fresh start without a bankruptcy, the newly added negative notations now set back these consumers for years, making credit difficult to obtain and might actually make it harder – in the long run – to repay some of these debts. Before long, those consumers who were on precarious shaky financial ground to begin with, will once again fail to make their payments. Not surprisingly, if you are working with a credit repair company, it is crucial to get advice before making any payments on dormant accounts.

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