I was being sued by a collections company after many hours of reserch to find out who the company was since the company was going by a AKA.I finially reached them by phone I wanted to make payments with them.I told her I could make $50.00 a month and sometimes more when I had extra money. She said that they can collect 25% of my income they demanded at first $ 525.00 a month I told her I could not afford that then she wanted $150.00 a month I told her all I could afford is $50.00 a month she stated they would need $100.00 a month.I can not find anything on the Fair Debt if its true that they can demand 25% of my income.
2007-02-22 08:19:24 · 10 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Credit
It is in California..and there was a summons but we did not go to court because I called her.
2007-02-22 08:34:18 · update #1
How old is your debt? Per FCRA (which you've researched), you know you should DV (or demand debt validation) from the CA (collection agency).
100% of your credit file must be 100% accurate, or the inaccurate listing must be deleted. Period.
The older your debt, the easier it is to get deletions. Creditors and collection agencies typically do not have accurate records for many reasons.
It doesn't matter what the reason is...what matters is that the CA has the burden of proof regarding the alleged debt.
DV the collection agency and quickly turn around and Dispute the CRA (credit reporting agency or agencies) reporting the derog account. This is a powerful 1-2 punch.
By the way, when you dispute, the CRA _must_ by law mark the listing "in dispute."
It is important for you within the dispute period to pull your credits to confirm the listing is clearly stated it's in dispute. Send your letter registered mail or certified mail (return receipt requested).
Now, to garnish or levy your bank account, the Creditor or Collection Agency must get a summary judgment against you. In other words, they must sue you.
By no means should you ever provide your banking information and certainly do not leave a trail to your employer by conveniently and dangerously setting up automatic deductions from your checking account.
With an order of attachment from the court, the CA can provide that order to the sheriff, who then serves notice of levy upon the bank (you have told them about.)
Any money you have in that bank at the time of levy could be taken from you to pay the debt collector.
Before obtaining a court judgment, a bill collector generally has only one way of getting paid: they demand payment using "scare" tactics -- some will actually break the law, banking on your credit ignorance.
They'll call you and send you threatening letters. If you refuse, the collector can't do much else short of suing you.
If the collector (or creditor) does sue and gets a judgment, now the heat turns up with garnishment and levying your bank account.
If you have a job, the collector will try to garnish up to 25% of your net wages.
The debt collector can also record a lien on your property (if you own property).
Some collection agencies will agree to settle with you for far less than you owe and then turn around and hire another collection agency to collect the difference.
However, in many states this is illegal. Once a creditor deposits or cashes a full payment check, regardless of crossing out you writing, "payment in full," or it they write "I don't agree" on the check.
Click the following link for your state's collection laws: www.fixmyuglycredit.com/State-Collection-Laws-Chart.html
2007-02-22 10:55:52 · answer #1 · answered by paynemdp 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They can't demand anything without going to court.
The court is the one that decides. Yes they can have your wages garnished and probably 15%-20% but that's a costly way to go depending on the amount owed.
Declaring personal bankruptcy would not be in there interest (nor yours).
Send them post dated checks of $50 or $75 and if they cash it at least you have a recourse. If it gets to court you can always say they cashed it and therefor you thought they had accepted the terms of payback.
They already went from $525/month to $100 which is good but I'm sure they don't want $10/mth and have it collected 100 yrs from now.
The money owed is still being charged interest so you might want to clear it up also. They can make life difficult on your ability to get more credit if needed in the future.
2007-02-22 16:33:26 · answer #2 · answered by Johnny 5 · 0⤊ 0⤋
How much they DEMAND doesn't matter. How much they will SETTLE for matters. Until they sue you and win, they can't take ANYTHING you don't give them. Even then, they can only take what the court allows them to take. Unless the KNOW you are hiding money, they won't bother suing you. Ignore them while you save up the amount ORIGINALLY owed. Then Contact them and offer a settlement. Make it clear that if they don't take it, you will pay off someone else and more them to the bottom of your list. Most of the time, the will accept as quickly as possible without sounding as thrilled as the actually are.
2007-02-22 18:49:29 · answer #3 · answered by STEVEN F 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They are full of it.. send them a cheque for what you can afford..they cannot refuse a payment.. that will then set a precedent..in order for them to garnishee your income they need to take you to court, that is an expensive proposition for them, as they have to pay a lawyer.. if you end up having a hearing state that they refused your offer of 50 per month payments... but send a cheque for 50.00 that way you are seen to be attempting to pay. You must also tell them that you have spoken to a lawyer and that he/she has advised you to advise them that they may not call you anymore, any further communication must be in writing only or you will have your lawyer contact them. Be strong on the phone and hang up when you have said your piece.
2007-02-22 16:31:44 · answer #4 · answered by oneblondepilgrim 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
They work on commission so they are going to try and get as much as they can. They can demand what they want but it doesnt mean they will get it. Start sending in your 50.00 payments and keep records of all that you make. If you are taken to court, bring all your check stubs and show the judge. He will probably keep you on that arrangement.
2007-02-22 16:25:02 · answer #5 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
You can simply say, "I will send you ten dollars a month toward settling this debt. Take it or leave it."
They can ask for more, but the bottom line is, you're making a genuine effort to settle the debt, and they'll accept your offer. Tell the phone lady to get off your back. You made her an offer - is she going to take it, or are you going to ignore them for the several years it'll take to go to court and arrive at the same $50 a month settlement?
She'll take it.
2007-02-22 16:25:20 · answer #6 · answered by Stuart 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
In California if someone gets a court order they can get 25% of your disposable earnings. That is earnings after taxes.
2007-02-22 16:25:57 · answer #7 · answered by Barkley Hound 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
If they've been willing to negotiate from $525 per month down to $100 per month, then you've got nothing to worry about.
Just continue to stick to your guns of $50 per month. As long as you're paying something they can't do anything to you.
2007-02-22 16:25:40 · answer #8 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋
They can't. Pay them as much as you can afford to. As long as you are making regular monthly payments they can't sue or garnish your wages or anything.
If they are harassing you with phone calls then tell them to stop calling. They have to comply.
2007-02-22 16:28:18 · answer #9 · answered by eliz_esc 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
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2007-02-22 16:22:53 · answer #10 · answered by Anonymous · 0⤊ 0⤋