Québec Prescription on Credit Errors: Art. 2925 C.c.Q.
In Québec, you have three years to act — but the clock starts at *discovery*, not at the date of the underlying error. This single legal fact defeats most creditor "stale claim" defences.
The three-year rule and its trigger
Article 2925 C.c.Q. imposes a three-year prescription on personal actions not otherwise specified. For credit-data actions, the trigger is knowledge of the fault (art. 2880 C.c.Q. in conjunction), not the fault itself.
Every time a bureau re-confirms or reinserts a disputed entry, a fresh prescription may run from that new confirmation date. Prescription is not the friend the creditors think it is.
C.c.Q. art. 2925 · art. 2880 · art. 2926
Interruption and renewal events
- A written acknowledgment of the debt by the creditor restarts the count (art. 2898).
- A dispute response re-confirming the same erroneous data is itself a fresh tortious act triggering fresh prescription.
- A legal proceeding suspends prescription (art. 2895).
- Negotiation in good faith can suspend prescription under certain jurisprudence (cf. Gareau Auto).
Strategic implications for consumers
If you discovered an error last month, you have three years. If the bureau then re-confirms the same error, you potentially have three years from that re-confirmation. Stack multiple confirmations and you stack multiple causes of action.
Credit Truth's time-stamped audits lock in each discovery moment cryptographically, turning prescription from a defence tool into an offensive mapping tool.