I received a summons today. Question about statute of limitations.

[TheMarg]

I received a summons today from Calvary collection agency regarding an account they bought from Citi Bank. It was for a Citi Diamond Preferred card wity around a $5000 balance. The summons included copies of three past statements from 2015 that showed I made a payment on June 18, 2015. In looking at my credit report, the account was past due in March of 2015 and never brought current again. I live in South Carolina, and the statute of limitations is three years. Since I was past due as of March of 2015 and never current again, am I past the statute of limitations, or since I made a payment in June of 2018, even though I was still past due, was I still in the statute of limitations? Thanks for any help and advice.

[jgdev]

So statue of limitations I believe starts from either the date you were first delinquent, or the date you last made a payment or "acknowledged" the debt. Since you made a payment on June 2015 that means the statue of limitations would have run out in about 2 weeks. So legally they are within their right to sue for collection of a delinquent debt.

[Anonymous]

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@TheMarg wrote:

I received a summons today from Calvary collection agency regarding an account they bought from Citi Bank. It was for a Citi Diamond Preferred card wity around a $5000 balance. The summons included copies of three past statements from 2015 that showed I made a payment on June 18, 2015. In looking at my credit report, the account was past due in March of 2015 and never brought current again. I live in South Carolina, and the statute of limitations is three years. Since I was past due as of March of 2015 and never current again, am I past the statute of limitations, or since I made a payment in June of 2018, even though I was still past due, was I still in the statute of limitations? Thanks for any help and advice.

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There are two different Statutes of Limitations (SOLs) and you are confusing them.

The first is the SOL for suit. This starts with the last payment and the SOL term is determined by your State law. In SC it is 3 years amd re-sets with each payment. From Fairdebtcollection.com :

South Carolina Debt Collection Statutes of Limitation

Breach of Contract: 3 years, (SCCLA 15-3-530).

NOTE: A partial payment or acknowledgment in writing tolls the SoL, (SCCLA 15-3-30).

Foreign or Domestic Judgments: 10 years, (SCCLA 15-3-600).

The second SOL is for credit bureau reporting, and that is 7.5 years from the date of first delinquency. Bringing the account current re-sets this SOL. This SOL is made by Federal Law, the Fair Credit Reporting Act.

[Anonymous]

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@TheMarg wrote:

I received a summons today from Calvary collection agency regarding an account they bought from Citi Bank. It was for a Citi Diamond Preferred card wity around a $5000 balance. The summons included copies of three past statements from 2015 that showed I made a payment on June 18, 2015. In looking at my credit report, the account was past due in March of 2015 and never brought current again. I live in South Carolina, and the statute of limitations is three years. Since I was past due as of March of 2015 and never current again, am I past the statute of limitations, or since I made a payment in June of 2018, even though I was still past due, was I still in the statute of limitations? Thanks for any help and advice.

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Since you made a payment in Jun 2018, that starts your SOL all over agin. Sorry

[Kree]

The SOL exist because paperwork gets lost, and memories get fuzzy. The older debt gets, the harder it is to prove if it is owed.  Ever make a payment and just can't find the receipt when you go to return the item? Imagine looking for a receipt from 3-10 years ago.

However, by making a payment, you've aknowledged the debt, and the implications is that the debt as stated at the time of payment is correct.

So the SOL gets moved back.

[sarge12]

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@TheMarg wrote:

I received a summons today from Calvary collection agency regarding an account they bought from Citi Bank. It was for a Citi Diamond Preferred card wity around a $5000 balance. The summons included copies of three past statements from 2015 that showed I made a payment on June 18, 2015. In looking at my credit report, the account was past due in March of 2015 and never brought current again. I live in South Carolina, and the statute of limitations is three years. Since I was past due as of March of 2015 and never current again, am I past the statute of limitations, or since I made a payment in June of 2018, even though I was still past due, was I still in the statute of limitations? Thanks for any help and advice.

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Wow....at the time you made that payment the debt was indeed beyond the SOL...and if the creditor had sued and you used the SOL as a defense.

Although the statute of limitations expires after three years, you are still obliged to repay the debt. Creditors can still contact you regarding the debts and may even initiate a lawsuit against you. If you are sued after the statute of limitations runs out, the court can still enter a judgment against you unless you appear in court and use the expiration in what’s known as an "affirmative defense."

The statute of limitations also can restart in some situations. The first way to reset the clock is to acknowledge that you owe the debt; this can be as simple as answering “yes” when a bill collector asks if you are aware of the debt. The second is if you make a payment, offer to make a payment or agree to a settlement. Any of these actions gives creditors an additional three years to file a lawsuit.

The text in bold is copied from here....https://pocketsense.com/statute-limitations-debts-south-carolina-6766062.html   Due to TOS here, I can not include copy of entire article. You have in fact by making that payment reset the SOL, which likely directly resulted in the summons. No good deed goes unpunished. So sorry you learned this too late.

[RobertEG]

South Carolina Code of Laws, Annotated

Title 15 - Civil Remedies and Procedures, CHAPTER 3, Limitation of Civil Actions

SECTION 15-3-20. General rule as to time for commencement.

(A) Civil actions may only be commenced within the periods prescribed in this title after the cause of action has accrued, except when, in special cases, a different limitation is prescribed by statute.

(B) A civil action is commenced when the summons and complaint are filed with the clerk of court if actual service is accomplished within one hundred twenty days after filing.

HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 10-102; 1952 Code Section 10-102; 1942 Code Section 356; 1932 Code Section 356; Civ. P. '22 Section 313; Civ. P. '12 Section 119; Civ. P. '02 Section 94; 1870 (14) 444 Section 97; 2002 Act No. 281, Section 1.

SECTION 15-3-120. Effect of new promises in writing or part payments.

No acknowledgment or promise shall be sufficient evidence of a new or continuing contract whereby to take the case out of the operation of this chapter unless it be contained in some writing signed by the party to be charged thereby. But payment of any part of principal or interest is equivalent to a promise in writing.

HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 10-112; 1952 Code Section 10-112; 1942 Code Section 368; 1932 Code Section 368; Civ. P. '22 Section 351; Civ. P. '12 Section 157; Civ. P. '02 Section 131; 1870 (14) 450 Section 133.

SECTION 15-3-130. Suits on causes saved from bar of statute by part payment or written acknowledgment.

All actions upon causes of action which would be barred by the statute of limitations but for part payment or a written acknowledgment shall be brought on the original cause of action and the part payment or written acknowledgment shall be evidence to prevent the bar of the statute of limitations.

HISTORY: 1962 Code Section 10-114; 1952 Code Section 10-114; 1942 Code Section 370; 1932 Code Section 370; Civ. P. '22 Section 353; Civ. P. '12 Section 159; Civ. P. '02 Section 131b; 1900 (23) 345.

[Anonymous]

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@sarge12 wrote:

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The statute of limitations also can restart in some situations. The first way to reset the clock is to acknowledge that you owe the debt; this can be as simple as answering “yes” when a bill collector asks if you are aware of the debt. The second is if you make a payment, offer to make a payment or agree to a settlement. Any of these actions gives creditors an additional three years to file a lawsuit.

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This is by no means universal, and simply answering in the manner you describe is NOT going to reset anything. In one case a judge ruled that an "acknowledgement" of the debt must include a clear intent to repay the debt, not a simple "yes I know about that", in order for the statute to be reset.

This is subject to individual state laws and varies WIDELY. In some states for example, its a violation of state law to even contact you regarding an SOL barred debt. At least 12 states require a written and signed repayment agreement before the SOL is reset.

[sarge12]

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@Anonymous wrote:

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@sarge12 wrote:

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The statute of limitations also can restart in some situations. The first way to reset the clock is to acknowledge that you owe the debt; this can be as simple as answering “yes” when a bill collector asks if you are aware of the debt. The second is if you make a payment, offer to make a payment or agree to a settlement. Any of these actions gives creditors an additional three years to file a lawsuit.

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This is by no means universal, and simply answering in the manner you describe is NOT going to reset anything. In one case a judge ruled that an "acknowledgement" of the debt must include a clear intent to repay the debt, not a simple "yes I know about that", in order for the statute to be reset.

This is subject to individual state laws and varies WIDELY. In some states for example, its a violation of state law to even contact you regarding an SOL barred debt. At least 12 states require a written and signed repayment agreement before the SOL is reset.

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You may be right...but the sarge12 wrote part is wrong for sure. Re-read my post!!! I clearly stated that the bold type was cut and paste and gave the source. All that in bold I re-posted...not wrote.

[Jnbmom]

Did you make a payment in June 2015 or June 2018? You have 2 different dates? If you just made payment that resets the SOL I believe , but if you paid in 2015, it depends what date but that's so close?