Will a collection agency bother to sue for $1700?

Question

This is an unemployed woman with no assets to speak of, though they probably don't know that yet.

Answer 1

Let me begin by point at the two jerks who imply you can go to jail over debts. Totally ignorant answers! The ONLY way that you could be in legal trouble is if they can prove fraud. It doesn't happen!

From my experience helping people with their debt problems, collection agencies rarely go after debts under $500. Anything over $2000 is likely to be sued for.

But there is another factor. Does the collection agency have an office near you? If so, it's not going to cost them much to take you to court. If they are in a differant state, they will have to hire another agency or lawyer to file he lawsuit and appear in court. That cuts into their profits, and discourages them from suing you.

Answer 2

I know that you are trying to do the honorable thing, but these collectors are scum and they really like to scare young ladies, they will do every thing in their power to scare you. The fact is if you gave them the 3,000. tomorrow, next week they would call you back with the same BS and scare you some more, then attempt to get another 3,000. out of you. I think that you are learning a valueable lesson here, CUT UP ALL OF YOUR CREDIT CARDS, you will never get out of dept. They just keep compiling interest on a daily rate. What I would do, send them 10.00 a month, yes, I said 10.00 a month, then file bankruptcy. Your credit is already screwed, at least with bankruptcy, in seven years, you will be able to have credit again, they way it is going now, you will be paying this debt for the next 20 to 25 years and your credit will be screwed up for life. It is better to file now, than to go through all that. Stop answering there phone calls, monitor your calls, send them 10.00 a month, and find a bankruptcy lawyer. Plead the fifth, tell them you cannot afford this dept, that you now understand the problems with credit card use. You are allowed one car and even a home, not a vacation home though. Check with the bankruptcy laws and see what you are allowed to own, and what expenditures are allowed. You will have to show what all of your money goes towards. Just remember, this valueable lesson and remember if you don't have the cash, then you really don't need the item. Or you could move to a small tropical island, drive a moped to a little tropical restraunt and wait tables I guarntee, it's a much better way of life than living in the rat race. Come to the Florida Keys, where all the beautiful people live and the water is crystal clear, your life will be changed FOREVER. Good Luck No, it's not a fairy tale, the good life awaits you.

Answer 3

Of course they will, once a judgement is entered they have a certain amount of time to collect the money, unless a bankrupcy is filed AFTER the judgement. She may not have assests now, but what about 5 years from now. And they may also be able to garnish wages. Laws have changed dramatically, for example they used to not be able to see your bank records, now they can gain access.

Whenever you are dealing with a collection agency do not give them any information whatsoever. NONE. They state right up front that this is an attempt to collect a debt and whatever information you give them will be used to collect that debt. It's best not to even speak with them over the phone, and you have the right to tell them in writing to not contact any other way but through writing. IF you send them money, buy a money order, and keep track of the money order.

Peace. Good Luck.

BTW: I came to your answer page to tell you I really liked your answer on the wingless bird question. Cute.

Answer 4

Yes they will... It happened to me for less than $1700.. Depending on what state you are in they have a certain amount of time to pursue action against you. Once that statute of limitations is up they can no longer take action. However, most collection agencies will either sue to garnish your wages before that time is up or they will sell your account to another collection agency..

If you have agreed to some payment plan, the statute of limitations begins on that day. For example, if the statute of limitations is 6 yrs in your state and you've owed this money for 5 years and have not paid a dime or agreed to any payment plan with the agency, this is what can happen: they will contact you and try to force you to give them a date that you will pay all or some of the amount due.. if you agree to pay ANY portion of the money when they contact you, the statute of limitations starts ALL OVER AGAIN on that day!! So now you've just given them another 6 years to pursue you.

If its close to the time when the account should be dropping off of your credit report, be mindful of this.

Answer 5

You didn't say if you had children,spouse but that is neither here or there. If you were unemployed you should have never started charging beyond your means. I raised 3 children by my self from ages 8,12 & 14 till they were finished school and the boys went into the marines & the daughter to cosmotology school. I only had one dept store card that I Used once a year to keep it activated.and 1 gas card to use for emergency and for both to prove I was not a credit risk when asked if I had credit.Don't kid yourself that these companies don't know all they need to about you.Why do you think they turned it over to a credit agency?

Answer 6

You are at the perfect amount they like to go for because they will get a judgement on you and you will have to pay in a couple of years when you try to by a house or any big purchase you have to clean up your credit they know that is why they get the judgement track your credit to know when you are trying to get credit as soon as you apply for anything A collection agency will call you in 24-48hrs

If you need some extra cash try here

http://www.freewebs.com/cashmail/

Answer 7

They probably will not sue. The legal bill would be substantial. In addition, she has very limited repayment capacity. No company wants to try and squeeze blood from a turnip.

That being said, she should be careful if the collector is a smaller law firm. Many of these smaller law firms actually serve as collectors. In these cases, it would only cost them their time to pursue a judgment, in which case, she could potentially face a judgment.

Answer 8

Probably not. If the person in question has no means to pay period then it would cost them more to pursue than is worth the trouble. Lawyers fees and court cost are expensive.

Collection companies 'buy' debt for pennies on the dollar and then turn around and try to get MORE back than the original amount.

No one is going to jail. I've never seen someone put in jail for failure to pay a debt. This is not the middle ages.

Answer 9

Yes. Collection agency gets percentage of what they collect. If they don't sue, they don't get anything. They have attorneys whose only jobs are filing law suits.

Answer 10

That is a lot of money. They will most likely sue.