My son found a 13 yr old unpaid bill on a credit report. Why is it still there & is it affecting his score?

Question

BTW, he thinks the bill is an error and plans to ask the agency to remove it.

Answer 1

Negatives fall off your credit report in 7 years and 180 days from the date of last activity (DOLA) which is usually the 30 day past due or charge off date. Collection agencies who buy bad debt cannot re-age the debt. They can attempt to collect the debt right up to the grave.

Statue of Limitations (SOL) varies from state to state. It is an affirmative defense if you are taken to court for the debt. Making a payment, or in some cases just promising payment, restarts the clock on SOL. The SOL does not prevent collector from trying to collect the debt. They just lose in court -- and if you don't show up in court, they could still get a default judgment.

Many people confuse the 7 year reporting period and the SOL.

Answer 2

Derogatory trade lines drops off your credit reports after 7 years. It does not matter who owns the debt now or how many times the debt has been sold and resold. Also there is something called the Statute of Limitation (SOL). It could be as little as 3 years on some states. After the SOL has run out, you no longer have a legal obligation to pay. The bill is probably there in error. Otherwise, the bill collector and the credit reporting agency is in violation of federal law (the Fair Credit Reporting Act (FRCA)). It should easily be removed.

Answer 3

It probably was reported again, or sold to another agency, within the last 7 years and that's why it's still there.

Is the debt legitimate?
If not, he can write to the credit reporting agency and ask them to remove it.
If it's legitimate, he needs to pay the debt.

Answer 4

Unpaid bills remain forever. Paid negative records (like this one after it's paid) are removed after 7 years.