I have an old utility bill that my ex-husband did not pay. This dates back to July 19, 2002. It is through Qwest and pertains to phone service in the state of Colorado.
Now I reside in Arizona. On August 6, 2008, I received a letter from a collection agent regarding this account, with the typical vague and unspecific information that makes it impossible to figure out what the heck their talking about.
I replied with a letter asking for them to verify the debt pursuant to the Fair Debt Collection Act. This letter was mailed August 7, 2008.
Today (Sept. 24) I received their reply, with a copy of the bill. The bill relates to the July 19, 2002 bill on the account. Their reply to me is postmarked September 19, 2008, well beyond the 30 day response period within which they were obliged to reply pursuant to the law.
Now, here's my dilemma. The SOL on this account is, if I understand the rules correctly, 6 years. We are 6 years and two months past the billing date, so I believe we are beyond the SOL for the bill itself.
BUT, the 30 response deadline was also missed by the CA. The date of the postmark is about two weeks past the statutorily allotted response time.
So, my question is, what's the best way to handle this? Do I tell them the debt is outside the SOL and no longer valid, or do I tell them that they have failed to reply in a timely fashion to my request. Does their doing so invalidate their claim and/or the debt? OR, should I tell them that they are out by time on two counts: a) the SOL and b) their failure to respond within 30 days under the FDCA?
Insight would be appreciated.
