Petition · past parliament
Make consumer debt statute barred after 4 not 6 years.
Closed
35 signatures
What the petition asks
Currently, creditors can sue for repayment of debts for up to 6 yrs after default or payment. The Courts are overwhelmed. In 2014, there were 1.5 million claims issued and 410,000 judgments with 54 weeks from claim to hearing. By reducing the statute bar to 4 years, this would reduce the claims.
Of £470 bn of consumer debt, £50 billion is now owned by debt purchase companies, who buy bank and credit card balances for 2-10% of their value and then use the Courts to get 100% repayment, making super profits in the process. One company owns £17bn of consumer debt and reported a profit of £196 million last year.By reducing the statute bar to four years, the number of claims would be reduced, the Courts could cope better, and original lenders would be OK. Consumers would be the winners
Timeline
| 3 May 2016 | Petition opened for signatures |
| 3 Nov 2016 | Closed to new signatures |
Key facts
Signatures
35
Status
Closed
Opened
3 May 2016
Closed
3 Nov 2016
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Source: the official petition page. Last checked 15 Jul 2026.