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View Full Version : Florida Garnishment/collection abuse


jasche3
May 23, 2008, 07:34 AM
I live in Florida, we have been enrolled in Debtshield for over a year. My husband has an account in his name only with HFC. They recently got a default judgement and I have a man calling the house who told my 10 year old niece that her uncle better return his call because he was going to take that paycheck from him that he works so hard for. I know there has to be privacy issues but I have no way to prove he said it other than her and the
Fact that I was sitting in the room with her when she happened to pick up the phone.

#2 I am disabled and collect SSI monthly, we have a 14 yr old son. I am worried that he
Will do what he says taking my husbands wages and what about the bank accounts? Does it matter that the bank accounts are in joint names? I would like to stop this before it happens. I would also like to find a way to report the man that told my niece my personal business. She told him "I dont know what your talking about, I'm only a kid" he said if she was old enough to answer the phone she was old enough to give him the message.

JudyKayTee
May 23, 2008, 07:52 AM
I live in Florida, we have been enrolled in Debtshield for over a year. My husband has an account in his name only with HFC. They recently got a default judgement and I have a man calling the house who told my 10 year old neice that her uncle better return his call because he was going to take that paycheck from him that he works so hard for. I know there has to be privacy issues but I have no way to prove he said it other than her and the
fact that I was sitting in the room with her when she happened to pick up the phone.

#2 I am disabled and collect SSI monthly, we have a 14 yr old son. I am worried that he
will do what he says taking my husbands wages and what about the bank accounts? Does it matter that the bank accounts are in joint names? I would like to stop this before it happens. I would also like to find a way to report the man that told my neice my personal business. She told him "I dont know what your talking about, I'm only a kid" he said if she was old enough to answer the phone she was old enough to give him the message.



If you look at the Florida website, the State Attorney/Attorney General has a site for reporting illegal collection practices - which, of course, this is.

Any account in your husband's name - including JOINT ACCOUNTS can be seized. If you want to avoid that you MUST close the joint account and put the account in your individual name. Your SS benefits CANNOT be seized BUT once they are deposited in a joint account they ARE subject to seizure as joint funds. Again - close the joint account(s) NOW.

Florida has a law concerning head of household - your husband paycheck CANNOT be attached if he is the head of the household and provides more than 50% of their support to his dependents. Of course, you have to prove that by income.

I have posted this before (I'm quoting myself here) but the procedure is: ""When the creditor serves a writ of garnishment on the employer the debtor/employee gets a notification on which he can assert an exemption. If the debtor believes he is head of household he states the exemption on the form and sends copies to the court and the creditor. The debtor is entitled to an expedited hearing to dissolve the garnishment at which he has to prove to the judge that he qualifies as head of household.

If a debtor is certain that he is head of a household and anticipates a judgment against him, the debtor or his attorney could write a letter to creditor asserting wage garnishment exemption and providing proof of head of household status. The advance letter could in some cases convince the creditor not to pursue wage garnishment. "

Does this answer your questions? If not, post what it is unclear and either I or someone else will come along and answer you.