I won a judgement against someone who was supposed to fix my pool heater. Instead cashed the check and made empty promises. I now have the judgement. How can I fix this to his bank account without having to pay for an attorney or collection agency? Also, how do I report his to credit? I am a small company and really don't want to waist more money.? Please advise.. thanks

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Originally Posted by pattiegirl

I won a judgement against someone who was supposed to fix my pool heater. instead cashed the check and made empty promises. I now have the judgement. How can I fix this to his bank account without having to pay for an attorney or collection agency? Also, how do I report his to credit? I am a small company and really dont want to waist more money.?? please advise.. thanks

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The judgment is the easy part; collecting is the hard part. You have to locate his assets and then move against them - and sometimes that is not easy.

I don't know what you mean about "fixing this to his bank account." I also don't know that this is something that the credit agencies care about - it's a civil matter, nothing to do with his credit history. I have seen some unpaid Small Claims Court judgments on credit reports; on other occasions, I have not.

Ask the Court if the Judgment is automatically recorded/reported.

Thanks for that information. As what I meant to "fix to his account". Was to place a lien on the bank account for the sum of money won in judgement.

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Originally Posted by JudyKayTee

The judgment is the easy part; collecting is the hard part. You have to locate his assets and then move against them - and sometimes that is not easy.

I don't know what you mean about "fixing this to his bank account." I also don't know that this is something that the credit agencies care about - it's a civil matter, nothing to do with his credit history. I have seen some unpaid Small Claims Court judgments on credit reports; on other occasions, I have not.

Ask the Court if the Judgment is automatically recorded/reported.

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She is correct, most courts report judgments to the credit bureau, but not all so you need to check into that.

Is the judgment against a company or an individual? That will make a big difference.

If it is against a company, with an office and cash register, you can request through the court that the sheriff levy the business. They show up and take the money right out of the company cash drawer, up to the amount of the judgment, or all of what is there if it is not enough. If you don't get it all, you just wait a while and levy it again until you have all your money.

If it is an individual, you need to see if your court allows Judgment Debtor Exams. If they do, you subpoena the individual for the Debtors Exam. They will be sworn in, and, under oath must answer any questions you have about assets, bank account numbers, property they own, basically anything that could help you get your judgment collected. If they refuse to answer, or lie, they can be held in contempt of court and arrested for such.

These are your options that can be done without much more expense. If none of this works, and depending on the amount of this judgment, I might hire a private detective to locate the information you need.

Good Luck!