a questionable collections attorney threatened to garnish my wages and said that i would lose my job
2007-12-24 03:55:12 · 7 answers · asked by Anonymous in Business & Finance ➔ Credit
First, they have to get a judgment against you. Then they have to file for garnishment. The fact that this was said to you is illegal. It is a threat and threats are not allowed under the Fair Debt Collection Practices act. You need to tell them to cease and desist in a written form. Then if they contact you again it is also illegal. Of course you can file suit right now against them for the threat and probably get money. But none of this gets the debt to go away unless it is beyond the statute of limitations for the state that you live in. What you need to do is send them a letter or a fax telling them to stop contacting you. Take notes on everything that you are told by phone and mail. Note the date and the time.
2007-12-24 04:08:00 · answer #1 · answered by eyecue_two 7 · 0⤊ 0⤋
First off, there ARE certain kinds of jobs that I would imagine would be in jeapordy if you were found to be in collections...one such job would be one that requires some sort of clearance (top secret for example)...the reasoning being that you might be more prone to taking bribes....if you have a strong financial motivation for doing so
(hey I didnt make the rules)
so if you work in one of those types of positions maybe that was what he was trying to allude to.
I can't speak for all 50 states but here in Indiana, if the debt is a credit card debt YOUR WAGES CAN BE GARNISHED...as far as playing the 'dont tell em where you work game' , I would advise against it....
that is a waste of time....the garnishment (at least in this state) requires a court order....if you dont show up for court you will be in contempt of court which will likely get you arrested via the bench warrant that will be issued for you.....if you do show up and lie under oath perjury might be another charge that you have to contend with in addition to a new criminal record instead of just the civil stuff.
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A quick way to find out if the 'attorney' is legit is to ask for his name. Every state in the union has some sort of state bar association. The attorneys' names are on there if they are in good standing and this site can usually be found by a 3 minute internet search...if you find the name that you are given, CALL them back yourself and make sure that the person you talked to was actually the attorney (some are the clerks calling on behalf of the attorney, if this is the case explain how poorly they are representing his good name by making threats that you dont think that the bar association would like to know about)
YOu get the idea
2007-12-25 02:35:08 · answer #2 · answered by lisa s 6 · 0⤊ 0⤋
No, I'm pretty sure the only type of collections that will effect your pay is Child Support which can be garnished, or if you have a outstanding Tax Lien or something of that nature.
Regular collections from your credit card agency or something like that has not effect at all on your job, They have no authority to contact your place of employemnt.
Your credit is personal and has nothing to do with your job. Also, how would they expect you to pay them the money if they are threatening that you will loose your job?! That makes no sense.
2007-12-24 12:06:52 · answer #3 · answered by Dana S 2 · 0⤊ 1⤋
This sounds suspicious. You need to confirm that this is "really" an attorney or if it's a collection agent who is pretending to be one in order to scare you into paying.
Anytime you are contacted by a 3rd-party collection agency that has purchased your debt from the original creditor, it's important to know that you have important rights under a federal law called the Fair Debt Collection Act. Under this act, it is illegal for collection agents to pretend to be attorneys, to imply that they work for one when this is not the case....or to imply any impending legal action when this is not the case.
Request to know the full name of this alleged "attorney" and request to know his/her license # in the state bar association. You can contact the local bar association to confirm. If this is a legitimate legal threat they will provide this information to you. If they refuse or they are evasive about giving out this info, you should consider these threats as bogus.
Collection agencies cannot garnish wages automatically...They would have to take you to court and win a judgment before this can be done and this takes time. They CANNOT get you fired over a debt. This threat leads me to believe that you're just dealing with a sleazy collection agent.
2007-12-24 14:20:21 · answer #4 · answered by CatDad 7 · 1⤊ 1⤋
This is in violation of the following:15 U.S.C. § 1692e. False or misleading representations.
Check out this "lawyers" reputation at either of these 2 links.
http://www.budhibbs.com/drowning_in_debt.htm
http://www.ripoffreport.com/default.asp
They can only garnish your wages if they win a judgment in court. Your employer cannot fire one because of a garnishment.
2007-12-24 12:48:02 · answer #5 · answered by Sgt Big Red 7 · 1⤊ 0⤋
What eyecue said is correct. The only thing I can add is don't tell them where you work. (Unless its too late for that) if you have ever written them a check then they have stored your bank account information. If so, close it down and open an account at a different bank and never give a collector your banking account information. If you pay them, then pay by money orders only and tell them you don't have a bank account. If they get a judgement against you and they know where you bank they will levy your bank account and take all of your money. Watch your back and stay ahead of them.. Merry Christmas and good luck to u
2007-12-24 12:35:24 · answer #6 · answered by Lea 4 · 0⤊ 1⤋
no you won't lose your job.. BUT the next job you get may look at your credit report
2007-12-24 12:14:27 · answer #7 · answered by Shop-o-holic 2 · 0⤊ 0⤋