Most rights available to Illinois consumers come from federal legislation, including the right to dispute a debt and thus freeze collection activities until the debt is proven. Specific Illinois rules include a five-year statute of limitations period on open-ended credit debts, and added protection in relation to identify theft.
Federal Law
Illinois residents are covered by the federal Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, or FDCPA, which covers consumer debt.
Under the act, debt collectors must give a written notice to the alleged debtor within five days of first contacting the debtor. This notice must include the amount of the debt, the name of the creditor and a contact for disputing the claim. If the alleged debtor writes to the debt collection agency within 30 days to dispute the debt, the debt collector cannot contact the debtor again until the debt collector provides evidence of the debt, such as a bill.
Debt collectors are not allowed to use harassing behavior or make false statements.
Statute of Limitations
Illinois case law has established a five-year period of limitations on open-ended credit agreements, such as a credit card. After this period expires, an existing debt is legally classed as time-barred.
Collection of "Expired" Debts
Even if a debt has become time-barred, a debt collector can still attempt to collect the debt, subject to the restrictions of the FDCPA. The statute of limitations simply means that the debt cannot be enforced in court. The debtor can therefore simply refuse to pay the debt.
Identity Theft
A state law, the Illinois Collection Agency Act, offers protection to victims of identity theft. If an alleged debtor tells a debt collector that the debt came about through identity theft, the debt collector must suspend attempt to collect the debt and investigate the issue. If the investigation shows identity theft did take place, the debt collection must cease permanently, and the collector must tell credit bureaus to delete any information about the debt from the innocent party's credit record.
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