When debt becomes seriously delinquent it is important to consider the time limitations for how long the debt is allowed to be reported on your credit reports. The FCRA has been around since the 1970s but the provisions were amended in September 1997. Therefore it is important to take into consideration if your debt was charged off before 1996 or after. Prior to 1997, any account activity could extend the reporting period so creditors and collectors took advantage of this loophole to keep negative items on a consumer’s report for many years. Remember however that each state has its own statute so those statutes do apply to the actual reporting time.