Arizona Debt Statute of Limitations: Credit Cards & More

Each state limits the amount of time a party has to sue another, and Arizona is no exception. This is legally known as the statute of limitations period. In Arizona, the statutes range from 1 to 10 years, depending on the type of debt.

Credit Cards

In Arizona, the statute of limitations on credit card debt is six years. This means a card issuer only has six years from the date a cardholder misses a payment to sue him in court for the unpaid balance. The issuer can still attempt to collect after that period elapses, but can no longer use the court system to do so.

Auto Loans

In Arizona, as in other states, a lender can repossess a borrower's car if he fails to make payments as agreed. If the repossessed vehicle doesn't cover all of what's due, the lender also has the option of suing the borrower for the deficit. However, the lender has only four years from the date of default to do so under state law.

Medical Bills

Healthcare providers have six years to sue a patient for medical debt, whether it resulted from a visit to the emergency room, routine doctor visit or surgical procedure, if those services are covered by a written contract signed by the patient. However, if no contract exists, a provider only has three years to sue the patient. This is because the statute of limitations for an oral contract, also known as a verbal agreement, is three years.

Bad Checks

In Arizona, someone who passes a bad check can be criminally charged by the local prosecutor. In addition, he can be sued by the person or business who received the check. Arizona law allows the receiver to sue for twice the amount of the check, attorney's fees and court costs. However, the lawsuit must be brought within one year to comply with the statute of limitations for bad checks.

Judgments

Once a creditor obtains a judgment against a debtor, it has five years to collect on that judgment. With the judgment, a creditor can collect by garnishing the debtor's wages or seizing the funds in his bank accounts. When the end of the five year period draws near, the creditor can go back to court and renew the judgment for an additional five year period.