Doctor's bill (7 years old)

[OrionTwo]

Hi, I live in Indiana, and my wife just received a collections letter a few days ago. It was a $40 bill and had no idea what the charge was for. We pay off all of our bills on time and have never had any problems with collections. When she called to inquire about the charge, she discovered that the charge was from a doctor's bill from Nov of 1998 (7 years ago to this day) which was also in Indiana. She thought she had all the bills paid off to her knowledge, and this was the first bill she's seen in years.
Do we legally have to pay this, and if not, then what do we do to stop the collections agency from contacting us again? I'm not sure what the statute of limitations is in Indiana for this type of bill.

Thanks

[zippysgoddess]

The SOL for this type of bill in Indiana is 6 years, so they are obviously past that.

If you want them to cease contact with your regarding it, since you no longer have to worry about a lawsuit over this, send them a cease and desist letter, telling them the debt is time barred, and you will no longer accept any communication regarding it, either by phone or mail. Make sure to send it Certified Mail Return Receipt Requested so you have proof that they received the notice.

[debtcollector`]

Originally Posted by zippysgoddess

The SOL for this type of bill in Indiana is 6 years, so they are obviously past that.

If you want them to cease contact with your regarding it, since you no longer have to worry about a lawsuit over this, send them a cease and desist letter, telling them the debt is time barred, and you will no longer accept any communication regarding it, either by phone or mail.

Not necessarily.

SOL tolls when you leave the state. It may still be in SOL -- we would need more info.

If it is in SOL and you CD them, you could face a lawsuit depending on how agressive their collections are.

DC

[zippysgoddess]

debtcollector, they said they live in Indiana, and the bill was also from a doctor in Indiana, so they have not left the state, therefore the SOL couldn't have tolled. So the SOL is up, and they can do a C&D letter.

[debtcollector`]

Originally Posted by zippysgoddess

debtcollector, they said they live in Indiana, and the bill was also from a doctor in Indiana, so they have not left the state, therefore the SOL couldn't have tolled. So the SOL is up, and they can do a C&D letter.

doh... For some reason I was thinking they were in another state. Given that, zippysgoddess is right. ---long days make for some stupid errors sorry.

DC

[zippysgoddess]

LOL DC! I have done the same thing, or sometimes forget which post I just read and am replying for, once, I was reading the archives, forgot how old they were, and read a really old post from 1999 and replied to it. OOps!