How can you close a credit card, when you have no income?

Question

My mother-in-law is 94, we've just moved her into a senior's residence.
She has signed over her government pension directly to them.
At her old bank, she had a credit card with $4,000 balance.
She only has $400 left in her account, & owns nothing else.
How can we/she get this settled? Who is responsible?

Answer 1

This debt is your mother-in-law's debt and therefore her responsibility. Her living situation and signing over her government pension to the residence has no affect on her debt obligations.

If your mother-in-law can not make the payments and no other family member is willing to pay it, then you need to contact the credit card company to see if they will forgive the $4,000. (This is highly unlikely.) However, the card will not be canceled until the debt is paid. The card can be frozen so that no other charges can be incurred.

I am a little bit baffled as to why your mother-in-law would sign over her government pension if it is her only source of income to the residence? Is the residence going to provide for all her needs - housing, food, clothing. medical, toiletries, etc.

You may have to look at declaring bankruptcy.

Answer 2

Get hold of the branch bank manager and get an explanation where the money went. Most is probably taken out by the bank for fees which are known to be incredibly high. If not, then there can have been theft. If the credit card is from a large bank and the branch is overseas or in another state, dial either the international number or the toll free number at the back of the card and ask the agent of the credit card to put you through to a rep of this particular bank in state so and so. However, before you call ! Make sure you know what questions you want to ask (write them down so you can read them off the list) and have ALL your gran´s details ready. Also find her password because you can be asked for it.

Answer 3

Your mother-in-law is responsible for the debt. The credit card company can't go after anyone else besides her to pay the debt unless they are a joint card holder on the account.

I personally wouldn't pay the credit card company anything. She's 94 years old and in a nursing home - I doubt having bad credit for 7 years is going to affect her lifestyle at all!

Filing bankruptcy is not the answer here. You're going to spend hundreds and hundreds of dollars on lawyer fees and she will still have to pay a percentage of that $4000, unless she qualifies for Chapter 7. Filing bankruptcy is only warranted if she owes tens of thousands of dollars and she is being sued and/or having her wages garnished.

It is highly unlikely the credit card company is going to do much to try to recover the debt, especially considering her age and living situation. However, if you REALLY want to spend your hard earned money to get this "settled", call the credit card company and explain the situation to them. Offer them a small percentage of the $4000 in exchange for having the debt "paid in full". They will probably be very receptive as they are at a high risk of getting nothing if they don't accept.

Answer 4

She is responsible for the debt as the card is in her name. I suppose she could declare bankruptcy, but the bank may attempt to garnish her pension. You may need to contact an attorney to determine whether the bank can do that or not, but I imagine he'll tell you to just pay off her debt. It's worth the consult fee if it does help you avoid the payment.

Answer 5

have the 400$ account closed, moved to new bank.
u get power of attorney so u can talk with banks about any outstanding debts.
she sounds like she is lien proof.
so if they want any money they better be willing to work with PofA person.

Answer 6

Make sure its all paid up and then cut in half, and tell the bank you lost it.