The state protects consumers from old debts known as "time-barred" debts by applying a statute of limitations typically between 3 and 10 years, depending on the state. Federal law protects consumers from being sued by creditors after the statute of limitations expires under the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA). While these debt collectors can still attempt to collect what you owe, they cannot threaten to sue you because the lawsuit would be immediately dismissed as "time-barred" debt. You can stop debt collectors from contacting you at all about time-barred debt by simply sending them a letter telling them to stop contacting you. Once they receive this letter, they are not allowed to contact you again except to say there will be no more further contact or to let you know they intend to take some specific action.

Often times these time-barred debts are purchased by scavenger debt collectors who buy uncollectible, written-off, time-barred debt hoping to pressure you into paying it back even though it could be years expired. They usually call themselves litigation firms to scare people and use very aggressive collection techniques that often violate the provisions of the FDCPA. It is important to remember that you can take two simple steps to prevent these problems: (1) determine if your debt is time-barred, and if so, (2) write them a letter telling them not to contact you anymore. Any other word from them afterwards is now illegal.