Sort Of Legal Advice

Ok, I've looked online and I'm just not too clever with this kind of stuff, so I thought maybe someone here could give me an idea.

First I will say, I'm not actually looking for legal advice, just if someone could clarify the issue somewhat.

Ok so my g/f bought a set of tables with her ex in 1998, paid on the weekly and was down to just over $100 owing, she then had time off work for health reasons so missed a few dates, interest built and she paid it down again to around $100. Then the last payment she gave to her ex and he "Paid it"..... he didn't. She does not recall any letters or anything to say it had not been paid. Since I've been here (6 years ish) there is often a phone call with the message "Name... We wish to speak with you reguarding an urgent matter ,Please call us at your earliest convenience and quote this number (add number)"

this is a recorded message and never once said who was calling or what it was remotely about, so I ignored it thinking itès junk calls, since the number was often different and the message machine accent changed I figured it was just crap.
So we get a letter a month or 2 back from a collection agency which aparently these calls have been from, her $100 is now at a cool $2800 after 13 years of interest. But if I pay it now I only have to pay $1100.

So my question is, Im pretty sure Ive heard somewhere about there being a limit over time as to how much interest you can lump on, the phrase statute of limitations rings bells.

Anyone got any ideas, this would be Ontario law by the way

BTW, Ièm typing my apostrophies as french eès again. Thats annoying.

 

Have an attorney general there? If so, I'd be calling him.

 

I am not sure about different countries but here in Belgium there is no statute of limitations on debt, assuming the laws are similar all they can do is apply to make you bankrupt if you do not pay unless there is an element of government debt (taxes, customs duty) then they can take your liberty.

Best advice i can give is consult a lawyer.

 

Oh I'm going to seek some advice, I was just curious if anyone knew, it seems outrageous that we should pay over $1400 more than original price when it's already been paid for, especially after so many years without proper contact.

 

Usually they go to small claims court,refuse payment and let them take your to court or file suit against them.

AFAIK its up to the judge to decide if your telling the truth and whether or not the company is fleecing you,I haven't seen a limit of debt or interest payments its up to a judge to use common sense.

Legally I doubt you have a leg to stand on,the devil is in the details though.

The first thing I would do would be to request a copy of the agreement your signed from the company by letter 'recorded delivery' you then need to to go through it with a specialist consumer lawyer,sometimes the agreement itself is illegal and if not you need a clear definition of your obligations.

Bummer anyway mate,sounds like a bit of a nightmare...

 

I would make the case to the judge that you were never told of the issue. Make the other party prove they tried to contact you every other year etc. If not, the you could argue they intentionally with held the unpaid bill specifically to accumulate late charges and interest. It sounds like they might have been sending the letters to the ex only, but I would still make them prove they sent the bill to him as well.


FYI, many lawyers will hear your case and tell you what they think is you walk into many different lawyer's offices. We did this when filing for bankruptcy. Got lots of feed back and paid nothing. Eventually we chose a lawyer, but only after we knew what we were in store for with other lawyers.

 

Don't know if you are in the states but in the states there ARE statutes of limitations on debt collection. After a certain number of years (it varies by state and the type of debt owed) they can no longer take you to court to try to get paid. They can still try to collect but can not sue you.

http://www.creditinfocenter.com/rebuild/statuteLimitations.shtml

As for finance charges, I am not certain but there *may* be a limit on those too. This might help.

http://www.fdic.gov/regulations/laws/rules/6500-1400.html#fdic6500226.4

 

Nother thing to add. If you get a letter here in the states. Unless it's a certified and you have to sign for it. How would they know you got it?

 

Civil law is not my forte, but I second what Dyamond said.

However, they can still damage her credit rating by posting the debt with agencies that list such. Like others here have said, I'd seek the advice of a professional in this area. Seems like usury at its worst to me . . . might cost you a bit for advice, but probably worth it in the long run.

I hope this gets resolved to your satisfaction

 

I found this Ned. It may be what you are looking for.

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Limitations Acts - Statute of Limitations[/FONT]

NOTE: Please check with a lawyer if the debt in question is significant. The law can change at any time, especially the law affecting the CRA. CRA has the habit of rewriting the law whenever a court decision goes against them.
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]The Federal Government and the Provinces have Limitation Acts which provide a limit on the time an unsecured debt survives. If an unsecured debt is not collected or payments are not made on the unsecured debt then after a certain time no legal action can be taken to collect the debt. [/FONT]
[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]A March 4, 2003 decision of the Supreme Court of Canada, Markevich v. The Queen decided that limitations applied to CCRA as well as other Crown proceedings. Section 32 of the Crown Liability and Proceedings Act and Section 3 (5) of the BC Limitation Act barred collection of the Federal and Provincial portions of the debt since the debt was more than 6 years old.[/FONT] This decision was "overruled" when parliament amended section 222 of the Income Tax Act to provide for a 10 year limitation period.
Collins v. Canada, 2005 FCA 1431 CanLII.​

[FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Examples from various provinces and the Federal Government:[/FONT]​

• [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]British Columbia - Section 3 (5) of the BC Limitation Act sets 6 years as the limit for debt.[/FONT]
• [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Alberta - The Alberta Limitations Act sets 2 years as the term which is extended to 10 years if there is a judgement.[/FONT]
• [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Ontario - The Ontario Limitation Act 2002, came into force on January 1, 2004. It sets two years as the term (Section 4). This limitation will be reinstated where the debtor acknowledges the debt or makes a partial payment towards repayment of his debt. If the default occurred prior to January 1, 2004, the creditor will continue to have 6 years to pursue the claim. However, if the default occurred after January 1, 2004 then the 2-year rule applies. [/FONT]
• [FONT=Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif]Federal - Section 32 of the Crown Liability and Proceedings Act sets 6 years as the limit for debt.[/FONT] "

This can be found here: http://www.canadianlawsite.ca/debt-collection.htm#u