It sure seems like it. There are many examples of hard-wired human instincts that help keep us alive. Perhaps the most obvious case is the fight-or-flight response, coined by Harvard University physiologist Walter Cannon in 1915.
There is no time limit on that debt. A collection agency can legally pursue you until the debt is paid in full.   However, there is a time limit on the negative consequences of not paying the debt. In most circumstances that limit is seven years. Seven years from the time you became delinquent with your original creditor.
The credit reporting time limit for debt collections is based on your delinquency with the original creditor, not when the debt collector started collecting on the debt. Some versions of your credit report may include phrasing that indicates when the collection will fall off your credit report, e.g. ââ¦scheduled to report until 06/2017.â