Statements etc

[Batfink]

Hi all,

I just wondered if anyone has any advice on how long to keep old credit card statements for please?

We have a couple of accounts which were unenforceable and we stopped paying in 2012. They have now dropped off our credit report and are statute barred. Can we shred all the old statements and just keep the newest one that they send every 6/12 months, along with the default letter and any important correspondence we received after we stopped paying or should we keep absolutely everything?

Thanks for any replies.

[nightwatch]

hold on to them for a while yet, don't tempt fate xxx

[Warwick65]

Do you have a scanner? I personally scan all letters received and keep them stored along with the originals. As and when you do decide to dump the old stuff you would still have backup copies that take no room.

[Batfink]

Thanks for your replies.

I don't have a scanner but there are far too many statements to scan even if I did. I kept them right from when we first took out the cards so I have quite a few years' worth. I think one of them stretches back to 1992 and I have all the original statements.

I thought it might be ok to shred the very old ones from when we were using and paying back on the cards but keep anything from when it all changed (i.e. we stopped paying and got defaulted). They're taking up quite a bit of room and I couldn't think of any reason why I would need the ones where the account was running smoothly, especially as they are now off the credit report and statute barred, but if you think I should hang on to them a while longer then I will find somewhere to stash them.

How long would you say is about right to keep things like this?

Thanks again for reading and for any comments.

[Never-In-Doubt]

As you’re talking statements, specifically; you don’t need a copy of those.

Your cca agreememt / default / termination etc is handy to keep but statements are easily replaced by sending for SAR - if you’re doing a reclaim etc in the future.

But to answer you no, no need to retain old statements. Funny enough I’m just burning all my crap now (in a burner bin thingy) in my garden lol

[Joanna Connolly Solicitors]

We have a couple of accounts which were unenforceable and we stopped paying in 2012. They have now dropped off our credit report and are statute barred. Can we shred all the old statements and just keep the newest one that they send every 6/12 months

How certain are you that these accounts are 100% Statute Barred?

When (what month) did you stop paying in 2012? And were those last payments made by you direct or via a third party like a DMP which could mean they were forwarded a little bit later?

You say you've been getting statements every 6/12 months from the current owners (have they been assigned to a debt purchaser by the original creditor?) so the file isn't closed and they could pounce one day.

So my advice would be to keep the first three statements and the last three statements.

The first three would help if a credit agreement is ever produced so you can compare the %APRs and other details (especially if the credit agreement is a reconstituted one), and the last three might prove your last payment in the event you need to prove the debt is Statute Barred.

Maybe keep them a few more months on a 'just in case' basis.

Di