Can I ignore my debts?

In the mid-1990s, after college, I went abroad and left my debts behind - a £3,000 credit card bill. Now I'm back, I don't think they can trace me, but my girlfriend says I'll be in trouble in future if I don't pay them off. I think she's worrying about nothing. Can I get away with it, or should I own up and pay the bill?

Your girlfriend is right
You will be in trouble if you don't pay them off, and sooner than you might think. Contact the credit card company immediately. Go in person, if possible, and throw yourself on its mercy. Paying up will bring you peace of mind in the years ahead and possibly some honest hardship. We have all been young and foolish.
Frank Murphy, Sheffield

Wise up
Behaviour like yours pushes up interest rates for everyone else. Wise up, grow up, and pay the bill.
Pam Lunn, Kenilworth

Check Experian
You're probably in the clear, but to make sure, pay £2 each to Experian and Equifax for a copy of your current credit details. That's how lenders check if you're "credit-worthy". I believe after six or seven years, your creditor could have recouped the loss through their insurance. Certainly, it would have been put down as a taxable loss. We're not talking morality here, needless to say.
Gilda Holzman, Edgware

Simple solution
This is not a problem. It's simply a matter of whether you want to be honest or dishonest.
Liz Davis, Brighton

Own up
I think you should own up and pay the bill so you've got nobody looking for you. These things are easy to trace: if one of the firms you owe money to checks their records you could get huge charges or have to go to court. Think about it, wouldn't you rather own up and not have to cope with all the hassle?
Ehsan Abedi, London

It's theft
You are asking for advice on whether you should try and "get away with" theft or not. I presume you are normally a fairly honest person or you wouldn't even be bothering to ask for advice on a criminal activity. Perhaps you think your actions acceptable because the crime is not against an individual, but against a credit card company that you think can easily afford it. That doesn't make it right. It would be interesting to see how you react if you sign up for a credit card and someone fraudulently gains funds from the card, presumably you will expect the credit card company to cover your loss.
Deb Lee, Isle of Man

Not morally speaking ...
Moral obligations aside, it would be unfair for your creditor to pursue you for the debt since section 5 of the Limitations Act 1980 provides for a six-year expiration period. Request a copy of your credit file to see where you stand, if it contains no defaults then forget about the debt.
Bailey Bosch, Northumberland

In the clear
As long as legal action to recover this debt was never started, it is now too late for the credit card company to take any. Also, credit reference agencies usually only keep records of events which occurred in the last six years. However, some lenders give credit reference agencies details of customers whose credit accounts are not up-to-date and who have moved away without giving a forwarding address. Therefore, it would be advisable for you to pay the £2 required to obtain a copy of the information held about you by each of the main credit reference agencies.
Marion Clucas, Kingston

Your girlfriend should dump you
Would you be so happy to have announced that you stole £3,000 before you left the country, and are hoping to get away with it? Whether or not you ran up the debts in good faith, to avoid paying those debts now is tantamount to theft. My advice to you is to pay up, and my advice to your girlfriend is to trade you in for a more honest partner.
Sarah Williamson, Sheffield

Pay up
Well, yes, you possibly can "get away with it", but that's hardly the point. You freely entered an arrangement to borrow money, and now you see an opportunity to go back on that arrangement, to your direct advantage, and another party's loss. If you are willing to do this, presumably you have no objection to other people evading tax by concealing details of their income; or making false claims on their household or travel insurance; or seeking to avoid paying their fare on the train; or being generally dishonest. Grow up and pay up. Listen to your girlfriend: she's probably thinking that if you do as you suggest, what other things are you prepared to do if you can "get away with it". Cheat on her, for instance?
John Haigh, Brighton

Dream on
Of course "they" will eventually catch up with you as soon as you apply for more credit, a mortgage or other financial product. And I am sorry to say that your £3,000 debt, with the interest clock ticking, will now be considerably more. Do you really want the nightmare of threatening letters and nasty phone calls from debt collection agencies? Pay off as much as possible as soon as you can. If you are in financial difficulty get in touch with organisations such as the Consumer Credit Counselling Service or the National Debtline who will be sympathetic and non-judgmental and help you work out a debt repayment strategy.
Stephen Mattinson, West Sussex

Sort it out
The very fact that you have asked the question suggests that, somewhere along the way, you have developed a conscience and a sense of responsibility. For the sake of your own self-respect (not to mention your girlfriend's peace of mind), now is the time to finally grow up, to face up to your responsibilities and to approach your creditors with a realistic offer of settlement. Any initiative you show in taking constructive action to address the issue will go at least some way towards repairing any damage you may have done and restoring your credibility in the eyes of lenders.
Glyn Haggett, Milton Keynes

You're not clever enough to get away with it
In short yes. But if you don't have the sense to figure it out for yourself then you probably shouldn't. If you don't do it properly then it might come back to bite you.
Aldous Voice, London

Dishonesty is unattractive
Whether you can successfully escape your debts is one matter, whether you should is another. Maybe your girlfriend wants you to do the right thing and pay your dues. Nothing is less desirable in a partner than a willingness to deceive. Why don't you show her the measure of the man you are by owning up, paying your debts and starting new life together unclouded by murky lies and dishonesty?
Rachel Thomas, Bath

I'm disappointed
My first reaction was to tell you to "do the right thing" and pay off your debts, and I do find it disappointing that your girlfriend and you are motivated by whether you'll be found out rather than by a sense of right and wrong. The cost of non-payment falls on other, more honest credit card users, so other people have already made good your debt via their own late payment and interest charges. But why make you pay it off when many others "get away with it" by going bankrupt? I suggest you make a donation to a charity that helps people to tackle their debt problems instead, such as the Citizen's Advice Bureau.
Alison Elsom, Honiton

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