Yes but those 4 years are going to suck. If you answer the phone for a collections agency and confirm who you are and that you have the debt the clock starts over. If you are working on the clock with an actual paycheck they will levy your paycheck. You basically don't answer calls from numbers you don't know and work under the table cash jobs for 4 years while having all your mail go to someone else's house (parents address works if you don't live at home) and then it can't hit your credit score and they can't take anything or any money from you after the 4 years is up. Collections agencies will call you every now and then but you just hang up on them. After 7 years it's off your credit report and after that 4 years your credit score will start to climb again.