Limitation period (forældelsesfrist)
Also known as limitation period, limitation, time-barred claim, the 3-year rule, forældelsesfrist, forældelse, forældet krav, 3-års reglen
The limitation period is the time you have to pursue the claim — as a general rule 3 years, after which the claim is lost.
In practice
A time-barred claim is lost. Not weakened, not harder to collect — lost. The debtor can refuse to pay, and there is nothing to be done about it, however well documented the claim is.
The general rule is three years, counted from the earliest point at which you could have demanded payment — in other words, typically the due date of the invoice. If, on the other hand, you hold a promissory note, a judgment or a court settlement, the period is ten years.
The period can be interrupted. That happens if the debtor acknowledges the debt, or if you take legal steps — filing a payment order, for example. When the period is interrupted, a new period starts running from scratch.
Where it commonly goes wrong
- People believe a reminder interrupts the limitation period. It does not. You can send reminders for three years and still lose the claim. It takes the debtor’s acknowledgement or a legal step.
- The period is counted from the invoice date. It is counted from the due date — the two are not the same.
- Old cases are left to sit. If you have a portfolio of unpaid claims at 2½ years, time is short. That is where a review pays for itself in an afternoon.