Yes. I was so pissed off with that company that I refused to pay "on principle", but they were pretty dubious principles actually — I really did owe the money,

Yes. I was so pissed off with that company that I refused to pay "on principle", but they were pretty dubious principles actually — I really did owe the money, and nonpayment was probably not in my own best interests. My failure to pay stayed as a negative event ("serious delinquency") on my credit report with each of the major credit bureaus, for roughly 7 years, just like it is supposed to. Then it disappeared.