The New York numbers, and where they come from
The controlling law is N.Y. CPLR 213, 214-i; CCFA (2022). The periods that matter:
- Written contracts: 6 years (general contracts, CPLR 213).
- Oral and implied contracts: 6 years.
- Credit cards and similar accounts: 3 YEARS — consumer credit transactions got their own short clock in 2022 (CPLR 214-i).
The clock generally runs from default — usually your last payment or first missed one — which is why the dated account history matters more than anything a collector says on the phone. A validation demand under 15 U.S.C. § 1692g makes them produce it: a written dispute within 30 days of the validation notice requires the collector to cease collection until verification is mailed.
Expired means dead — no revival — New York's revival rules
New York's rule is the strongest in the country: once CPLR 214-i's 3 years run on a consumer credit debt, NOTHING revives it — “no payment toward, written or oral affirmation of or other activity” restarts the clock. The dead stay dead.
This is why the safest contact with a collector on an old debt is a written dispute that concedes nothing: it engages every federal protection while handing the collector none of the acts that restart a limitations period.
The New York catch worth knowing
Three more layers: the borrowing statute (CPLR 202) imports Delaware's 3-year period against the big Delaware-chartered issuers; the CCFA forces plaintiffs to file chain-of-title documentation; and default judgments require an SOL affidavit (CPLR 3215). New York made suing on stale consumer debt procedurally miserable on purpose.
The letter asserts 214-i and the no-revival rule on the record — in the one state where even a panicked payment can't hurt you, the only mistake left is not saying so in writing.
If they sue anyway
A time-barred lawsuit doesn’t dismiss itself: the limitations defense must be raised, which means answering the complaint instead of defaulting. Your dated demand letter becomes evidence twice over — it fixes the dispute date, and it shows the court the collector proceeded after formal notice of the limitations problem. Bring the letter, the proof of mailing, and every account record they did (or didn’t) produce.
For the validation mechanics themselves — what collectors must send, and the documentation a debt buyer should be made to produce — see our debt validation letter guide and the assignment-documentation playbook.
Is a specific collector on the account?
Who is collecting changes how you respond. We keep company-by-company guides — verified dispute addresses, what each company collects, and the validation letter for each — for Midland Credit Management, LVNV Funding, Portfolio Recovery Associates, and 34 more in the collection agency index. Whoever it is, the sequence is the same: written validation demand first, before any payment or acknowledgment.
Run your deadline, see the letter
The preview locks here. The complete letter runs your dates against New York’s limitations rules, sequences the § 1692g demands correctly, and asserts the time-bar notice without a single word that restarts the clock — in 60 seconds.
Generate My New York Debt Letter — $9Need more? Bundle of 3 — $19 · Family Pack — $39
This page is general information, not legal advice; statutes and regulations are paraphrased; verify current law for your situation. For significant or contested debts, consult a licensed consumer attorney in your state.