Cash Flow Back, Reputation Untouched
Colorado’s debt collection rules aren’t a single simple set of numbers, and the two places generic content most often gets it wrong are exactly the two a creditor needs right before deciding whether to place an account at all: how long you actually have to sue, and how much of a judgment you can actually collect through wage garnishment. Get either one wrong and you’re either pursuing a claim that’s already dead or underestimating what a judgment is actually worth.
Quick answer: Denver collections require Colorado-specific compliance, a split statute of limitations (6 years for written contracts, 3 years for oral agreements and credit card debt), and a wage garnishment framework more protective than a flat percentage suggests, the first $1,628 per month in disposable earnings is fully exempt, on top of the standard cap. Nexa recovers Denver accounts starting at a $15 fixed fee per account, with contingency options for older balances, built around this specific legal framework and the city’s aerospace, energy, healthcare, and tech-driven economy.
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The Two Numbers Most Content Gets Wrong
Colorado’s statute of limitations splits by contract type, and the difference matters.
Written contracts, including most B2B agreements, invoices governed by a signed agreement, and promissory notes, generally get 6 years under C.R.S. § 13-80-103.5. Oral agreements and credit card debt specifically fall under the shorter 3-year period in § 13-80-101. A business that assumes every account gets the longer window risks pursuing a claim that’s already time-barred if the underlying obligation was actually oral or credit-card-based; a business that assumes the shorter window across the board risks writing off accounts that are still genuinely collectable.
Garnishment has a dollar floor most summaries leave out.
Colorado generally caps wage garnishment using a percentage-based formula similar to the federal standard, but it separately exempts the first $1,628 per month in disposable earnings entirely, adjusted annually under C.R.S. § 13-54-104. For a debtor earning close to that threshold, this floor, not the percentage cap, is what actually determines whether garnishment produces meaningful recovery. Running the real numbers before assuming a judgment translates into collectable wages avoids overestimating what enforcement will actually deliver.
Colorado’s own debt collection act reaches your own billing team, not just outside agencies.
The Colorado Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (C.R.S. § 5-16-101 et seq.) applies to original creditors collecting their own debts, not only third-party collectors, the same pattern already confirmed in several other states. A practice or business handling collections in-house is bound by these standards whether or not it’s ever hired an outside agency.
The Colorado Legal Landscape
| Statute of Limitations (written contracts) | 6 years — C.R.S. § 13-80-103.5 |
| Statute of Limitations (oral / credit card debt) | 3 years — C.R.S. § 13-80-101 |
| Wage Garnishment | Percentage cap plus $1,628/month fully exempt (adjusted annually) — C.R.S. § 13-54-104 |
| Governing Consumer Law | Colorado Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, reaches original creditors — C.R.S. § 5-16-101 et seq. |
| Medical Debt Credit Reporting | Generally barred, with a narrow exception for credit transactions above the conforming loan limit |
| Validation Notice | 30-day dispute window required before continued collection |
What This Costs
Step 1 & 2: Fixed-Fee Recovery (~$15/account). Five professional demand touches for accounts under roughly 60 days. Payments go directly to you. See the full pricing breakdown.
Step 3: Contingency Collection (~40%). For older or unresponsive accounts, no recovery, no fee.
Step 4: Legal Referral (client-approved, ~50%). Only where the balance and circumstances justify it, filing fees reimbursed from the first recovery.
Who We Collect For Across Denver & the Front Range
- Medical & Dental: HIPAA-compliant patient balance recovery for practices across Cherry Creek, Highlands, and the wider UCHealth and Denver Health network.
- Aerospace, Energy, Businesses & Professional Services: B2B and commercial receivables for the defense, energy, and consulting firms concentrated around the Denver Tech Center and downtown.
- Fitness & Membership Businesses: Recurring billing recovery for studios and gyms around RiNo and LoDo.
- Schools & Education: Tuition and program fee recovery for the region’s private schools and training programs.
- Senior Living: Recovery for the metro area’s assisted living and skilled nursing communities.
- Utilities: Utility account recovery across the Front Range service territory.
Recent Denver Results
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Multi-specialty medical, Cherry Creek: 150 accounts → 41% in 45 days on Step 2; +15% via Step 3 plans.
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Dental group, Highlands ↔ Wheat Ridge: 185 mixed-age → 27% on Step 1; +17% settled on Step 3.
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Fitness/memberships, RiNo/LoDo: 90 finals → $16.8k in ~60 days; zero complaints.
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B2B services, DTC/Inverness: 64 balances → 29% same-month after Step 2; a few high-balance files screened for legal.
Frequently Asked Questions
Does every contract in Colorado get the same statute of limitations?
No, and this is a common point of confusion. Written contracts, including most B2B agreements and promissory notes, generally get 6 years under C.R.S. § 13-80-103.5. Oral agreements and credit card debt fall under a shorter 3-year period under § 13-80-101. Knowing which category an account falls into matters before assuming it’s still actionable, or writing it off as time-barred when it isn’t.
Is Colorado’s wage garnishment cap really just a flat percentage?
Not entirely. Alongside a percentage-based cap similar to the federal standard, Colorado separately exempts the first $1,628 per month in disposable earnings entirely, adjusted annually under C.R.S. § 13-54-104. For debtors earning near that threshold, this dollar floor often matters more than the percentage figure in determining what garnishment can actually recover.
Does Colorado’s debt collection law apply to our own in-house billing staff, or only outside agencies?
Both. The Colorado Fair Debt Collection Practices Act applies to original creditors collecting their own debts, not just third-party agencies. A business or practice handling collections internally is bound by the same conduct standards as an outside agency, regardless of whether it’s ever placed an account externally.
Can medical debt still appear on a Colorado resident’s credit report?
Generally no, Colorado bars credit bureaus from reporting or factoring in medical debt for most purposes. There’s a specific, narrow exception: it can be reported where directly connected to a credit transaction involving a principal amount above the national conforming loan limit, in practice, a jumbo mortgage scenario, not a general exception for ordinary consumer credit decisions.
How long does a Denver business have to place an account before it’s not worth pursuing?
There’s no fixed rule, but recovery odds decline well before the legal statute of limitations arrives, regardless of whether the applicable period is 3 or 6 years. Placing an account within the first 60 to 90 days of delinquency generally produces meaningfully better outcomes than waiting until it’s aged significantly, even where the legal window technically remains open.
Does Denver’s aerospace and energy-heavy economy change how commercial collections should be handled?
It shapes the account mix more than the collection strategy itself. A market anchored by large, stable employers like Lockheed Martin and major energy and healthcare systems tends to produce a different commercial receivables profile than a startup-heavy metro, generally fewer accounts tied to sudden company dissolution, and more tied to slower-moving corporate payment cycles or disputed invoices that benefit from documented, patient follow-up rather than urgent asset tracing.