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Disputed charges In these financially troubling days, the last thing you need is to find out that someone else has been using one of your accounts to make purchases for themselves. We have heard a lot of advertisement lately about identity theft. Although you can't stop it from happening, you can dispute the charges after the fact. If you have an account, and don't check your bill when it arrives, you need to change the way you handle your finances. Disputing charges gets harder to do as time goes on. The quicker you can identify a problem, the more credibility there will be to your claim. According to the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you have the right to dispute a debt. It is in your best interest to do this in writing. Once the creditor has received your dispute, they are require to cease calling you until they can verify the debt. If the charges are really yours, at least you will have delayed the incessant calling by the creditor or collection agency. Reduce finance charge percentage or payoff balance Talk with the creditor. It never hurts to explain your situation and see if you can convince the creditor that it is in their best interest to work with you. Viable arguments might include the amount of money they will collect if you are forced to file bankruptcy. On an unsecured loan (such as a credit card account), the creditor will be more inclined to work with you than they will with a secured loan. If you are seriously considering a bill consolidation loan, your bills will be paid so the interest rate of the original accounts may not be as important as determining the minimum amount your creditor will accept to satisfy the account. Try to arrange a payoff for 50¢ or less on the dollar. If you have a savings account, never discuss your savings with a creditor. Always let them thing you will be either refinancing, bill consolidation, bankruptcy, or another path other than using money you already have. You want to appear poorer than dirt. If you can come to an agreement, make sure you get the particulars in writing before you make any payments base on the agreement. If it is not in writing, and signed by both parties, you could end up losing ground and getting deeper in debt. Federal Income Taxes If you are behind on your taxes, contact a lawyer, accountant, or other professional that can help you with the IRS. The IRS offers a program referred to as an "Offer in Compromise". You may or may not qualify for this, but check into it to see if you do qualify. If you qualify, you may be able to settle for pennies on the dollar. Statute of Limitations The statute of limitations (SOL) for a delinquent debt is the time limit for the creditor to file a lawsuit. This period starts when the debtor becomes delinquent. The fact that the SOL has "run" (expired) on a particular debt will not necessarily prevent a lawsuit from being filed (via a Summons And Complaint), but the defendant can have the suit dismissed on this basis. The Statute Of Limitations only covers lawsuits, and SOL expiration does not affect other types of collection action or reporting of the account to credit bureaus. The creditor or collection agency may theoretically continue with letters and telephone calls forever (although third-party collectors are subject to the "cease and desist" provision of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act.) However, they will generally put much less effort into collecting "Out-Of-Statute" debts, and may give up easily. Out-Of-Statute debts can still be reported to credit bureaus for the time limits specified in the Fair Credit Reporting Act. Credit cards are generally considered Open Accounts. Auto loans and other installment agreements are Written Contracts. If there has already been a lawsuit resulting in a judgment, that judgment has a separate Statute Of Limitations. The numbers on the below chart indicates years. State | Oral Agreements | Written Contracts | Promissory Notes | Open Accounts | Alabama | 6 | 6 | 6 | 3 | Alaska | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Arizona | 3 | 6 | 5 | 3 | Arkansas | 3 | 5 | 6 | 3 | California | 2 | 4 | 4 | 4 | Colorado | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Connecticut | 3 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Delaware | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | D.C. | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Florida | 4 | 5 | 5 | 4 | Georgia | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | Hawaii | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Idaho | 4 | 5 | 10 | 4 | Illinois | 5 | 10 | 6 | 5 | Indiana | 6 | 10 | 10 | 6 | Iowa | 5 | 10 | 5 | 5 | Kansas | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | Kentucky | 5 | 15 | 15 | 5 | Louisiana | 10 | 10 | 10 | 3 | Maine | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Maryland | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | Massachusetts | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Michigan | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Minnesota | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Mississippi | 3 | 3 | 3 | 3 | Missouri | 5 | 10 | 10 | 5 | Montana | 5 | 8 | 8 | 5 | Nebraska | 4 | 5 | 6 | 4 | Nevada | 4 | 6 | 3 | 4 | New Hampshire | 3 | 3 | 6 | 3 | New Jersey | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | New Mexico | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | New York | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | North Carolina | 3 | 3 | 5 | 3 | North Dakota | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Ohio | 6 | 15 | 15 | - | Oklahoma | 3 | 5 | 5 | 3 | Oregon | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Pennsylvania | 4 | 6 | 4 | 6 | Rhode Island | 15 | 15 | 10 | 10 | South Carolina | 10 | 10 | 3 | 3 | South Dakota | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Tennessee | 6 | 6 | 6 | 6 | Texas | 4 | 4 | 4 | 4 | Utah | 4 | 6 | 6 | 4 | Vermont | 6 | 6 | 5 | 6 | Virginia | 3 | 5 | 6 | 3 | Washington | 3 | 6 | 6 | 3 | West Virginia | 5 | 10 | 6 | 5 | Wisconsin | 6 | 6 | 10 | 6 | Wyoming | 8 | 10 | 10 | 8 |
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