Overview
Under the Limitation Act 1980, unsecured credit debts, such as credit cards or personal loans, become statute barred after six years. The rules on when you start counting the six years depend on the type of debt being collected. There are also some things that can stop or restart the clock. For different types of debt, the creditor may have less or more time to start a claim.
A payment or acknowledgment of a debt might restart the time limit. You can acknowledge a debt by contacting your creditor in writing, but it will depend on what you say and how you have contacted them. The rules for payment and acknowledgment are not the same for all debts
But if you have stopped making payments on a debt, the law will usually only give your creditor (the person, company or organisation you owe money to) a set amount of time to take court action to recover the debt. If the creditor has run out of time, your debt is a statute barred debt.
Simple Contract Debts
Almost all typical consumer and commercial agreements fall into this category, e.g.
- Unpaid utility bills (water, electricity, or gas).
- Credit cards, overdrafts, and personal bank loans.
- Mobile phone contracts and broadband bills.
- Unpaid invoices for freelance services or goods bought on credit.
- Unpaid rent on a standard tenancy agreement
The limitation period starts running for simple contract debts when your agreement says the creditor is able to take court action against you. With some agreements, this will be after a default notice has been sent to you and then expired.
The Limitation Act 1980 sets out the rules on how long a creditor has to take certain action against you to recover a debt in England or Wales. The time limits do not apply to all types of recovery action.
Once the limitation period is running, a simple contract debt will normally be statute-barred if:
- the creditor has not already started a county court claim for the debt; and
- you or anyone else owing the money (if your debt is in joint names) have not made a payment towards the debt during the last six years; and
- you have not written to the creditor admitting you owe the debt during the last six years.
Other types of debt (that are not simple contract debt)
Council tax
If you miss payments on your council tax, the council can ask your local magistrates’ court to make a liability order against you. A liability order allows the council to take further action to collect the debt, such as deducting money from your wages or asking a bailiff (enforcement agent) to visit your home.
A council should not go to the magistrates’ court and ask for a liability order for council tax more than six years after the council tax became due. This is under Regulation 34(3) of the Council Tax (Administration and Enforcement) Regulations 1992.
The limitation period starts running for council tax when the council first sent a bill to you. Unreasonable delays in sending bills could be grounds for making a complaint to the council and, if unresolved, to the Local Government and Social Care Ombudsman.
If the council has obtained a liability order, there is no time limit for enforcing it. There may be limits on how the council can enforce old liability orders. Contact us for advice about this.
Mortgage shortfalls
A mortgage shortfall can happen if your home is repossessed, and not enough money was raised by the sale to pay the balance owing on the mortgage and any secured loans. Your lender may then chase you for the remaining amount.
The Limitation Act says that the limitation period for mortgage shortfalls is twelve years for capital (the money you borrowed) owed, and six years for the interest (money the bank charges on top of the amount you borrowed over time) part of the shortfall.
The limitation period starts running for mortgage shortfalls when the lender is entitled to be repaid in full. Under the terms of most mortgages, this will usually be after two or three missed payments.
Mortgage shortfalls can be complicated, if you have one of these, contact us for advice.
Income tax
There is no time limit for recovery of tax, duty, or any related interest. However, National Insurance is not classed as a tax and is therefore subject to a six-year limitation period.
Welfare benefit overpayments
The Limitation Act says that the limitation period for benefit overpayments and social fund loans is six years. So, DWP debts can be statute barred.
The limitation period starts running for benefit overpayments when a final decision is made on the overpayment. This is most likely to be a final decision by a council, the Department for Work and Pensions (DWP) or a tribunal.
For social fund loans, the cause of action is when the loan becomes due for repayment.
If the council or DWP tries to issue a county court claim against you for an overpayment of benefit, and you think it is statute-barred, you can put in a defence. Contact us for advice about how to find the right legal advice for you.
But if you are getting ongoing benefits or are employed, the DWP or council may be able to take money directly from your benefit or wages to repay overpayments.
To recover overpaid benefits, the DWP and local authorities can use the normal county court route. There is also a fast-track process for registering the debt in the County Court, as if it were payable under a county court order. If this happens, contact us for advice.
Student loans
There are ‘old-style’ and ‘new-style’ student loans. Old-style student loans are for students who started their university course before 1 September 1998. New-style student loans apply to students starting their course from 1 September 1998 onwards.
The Limitation Act says that the limitation period for student loans is six years.
Old-style loans usually become due for repayment in the April following the conclusion of your course, unless you defer. Deferment stops the loan from becoming due for payment for 12 months. You may be able to defer more than once. If you are not able to defer, you will be asked to make payments.
If you miss payments, the limitation period starts running when a default notice has been sent to you and then expired. If a default notice wasn’t issued soon after you missed payments, or if there is no longer any record of whether a default notice was ever issued, contact us for advice.
For new-style student loans, the limitation period may start running if you miss a payment after your earnings reach the set level at which deductions from your wages can begin. But because the Student Loan Company can take money directly from your wages, it might be more difficult to use the Limitation Act. If you think your loan may be statute barred, contact us for advice.
Child Support Agency (CSA) and the Child Maintenance Service (CMS)
From 12 July 2006, there is no time limit within which the CSA or the CMS must apply for a liability order. Once they have a liability order, a six-year limitation period applies for them to use certain types of enforcement, such as bailiffs. There is no time limit for them to use enforcement such as disqualification from driving or imprisonment.
There are some ways the CSA or the CMS can try to make you pay that do not require them to have a liability order at all. These include taking money from your wages, benefits or bank account. Contact us for advice.
You might be able to complain if you think there has been an unreasonable delay in action being taken. Contact us for advice.
County court judgments
Once a creditor has a county court judgment (CCJ) for a debt, the Limitation Act does not put any time limits on how long they have to enforce that judgment.
If your CCJ is more than six years old, and the creditor wants to use bailiffs (enforcement agents), they must first get permission of the court. Special rules apply if your creditor asks for a third-party debt order or if you already have a charging order against your property.
If you think the creditor has been to court and got a CCJ against you after the six-year limitation period has passed, you can ask the court to ‘set aside’ the CCJ so you can put in a Limitation Act defence. For more information, see our setting aside a CCJ guide.
Joint debts
If you have a debt that is in joint names with another person, this means your creditor can chase either or both of you for the full amount. You do not only owe 50% each.
- If you think your joint debt might be statute-barred, you need to check if the other person has made any payments. If they have made a payment within the limitation period, this means the time limit restarts again for both of you.
- If the other person has not made any payments, but has admitted in writing to the creditor that they owe the debt, the time limit will only restart for them and not for you.
If you are having problems finding out if the other person has made any payments, contact us for advice.
Last Updated on June 10, 2026 by Ashford Advice