[Leslie820]

I made a payment arrangement with this credit card collection agency and I had set up a payment arrangement with them so they were taking $50 from my account every month. They stopped taking money out of my account so I assumed the debt had been paid off as I haven't heard anything from this agency in months. Today I tried to make a purchase and no funds due to a levy. I called the agency regarding this debt and they said there was nothing they could do that If I noticed they had stopped taking the money out that I should have contacted them. I advised them that I never received anything in the mail or a phone call advising me of an issue with my debt. She advised me that it was my debt, my responsibility and that I should have known that it wasn't paid off. Mind you this whole time they were taking a payment from me I never got a statement. She advised me that they don't have to send statements or notify me that they were going to levy my account. I want to know what my rights are. Help!

[smoothy]

They had a right to take it... they either had a writ of garnishment or your signed permission to take it, its written to not be recendible by you.

Now are you SURE you didn't get anything, because you signed something... with a number. You also got bank statements showing the payments from YOUR bank.

Sorry to say this but you owed that money... and they had the right to take it. They will send a statement when its satisfied. But I don't see how they are required to give monthly accounting on it that only replicates your banks monthly statements. Not for a sum that small. Besides they could legally tack on the fees involved to do that to the total debt amount. Not sure you really want that.

How much have they taken already? How much did you agree to pay? How much have you paid so far. Keep in mind there will be additional fees incured from trying to collect the debt you now owe. Over and abouve the amount of the original debt... including interest starting the date of the default.

Sorrry to say... but spending the entire contents of your account every month isn't an excuse to get around the allowed garnishment limits they are responsible for. Sounds cold... and it is, but you are the one that incurred the debt and you are the one that defaulted on it.

[Leslie820]

I totally understand that this is my debt and I have no problem paying it. How am I supposed to know how much I've paid on the account when apparently they won't contact me regarding my account in the first place. I made a payment arrangement with them I understand this. I also had another debt that I was paying on also and might have gotten the 2 confused as one of them has been paid off. I didn't notice that this "law firm" had stopped taking my payments and also decided not to contact me. I have no idea what I owe. I called the law firm once I found out that they had taken all of my money and they wouldn't give me any information as to when they last sent me anything regarding my account, how much I owed or how much more they would continue to take. I don't mind paying for this but I do not appreciate that I did take the time and set up a payment arrangement with this company and then I don't hear anything from them for months and then all of a sudden get a levy on my bank account.

You may have all the money in the world but I do not. I have 3 kids that I am trying to feed and I am just getting ready to go back to work after a 2 week layoff that I get every year. I had put money back in savings to pay for groceries which I transferred over to my checking acct and when I went to go get my groceries today I couldn't because every last dime I had they took. If they would have called me back in June and advised me of this then I would have had no problem setting up another payment arrangement. When I called the Law Firm earlier today she wouldn't give me any info at all so how am I supposed to rectify this situation when the company treats me like ****! Just because I didn't pay this bill doesn't mean that they can treat you like crap and take all your money.

[DownUnder]

Why did you not try to make payment arragements before it went to court? Did you get calls and letters did you ignore them? I agree with Smoothy. You owe it and now that it is gone this far they have little reason to work with you. If you don't know what you owe why not pull your credit report? Sorry but the time to work out a payment plan was before a judgement was issued against you. I understand how upset you are but we are just giving you the facts.

[ScottGem]

Excuse me, but first, did you get a signed agreement? If not, why not? If yes, then the agreement should have specified what was owed or how many payments needed to be made. Then YOU had a responsibility to monitor this and make sure of the amount taken.

Frankly, while I think the collection agency was being shady, you bear the brunt of the responsibility for managing your finances.

[Fr_Chuck]

To follow up on Scott, was the agreement in writing, if it was not in writing you did not have a real agreement, fake agreements over the phone to get access to your checking account is common, it is one of the what I call scams or tricks in the collection business, One clerk will make a verbal agreement with you, so you send in the first payment, either by check or by what they want, automatic withdrawl.
Either way they have all of the bank coding info.

So after a few months, they go in and take all of the money, normally on a day when they are betting you would have a full paycheck in there.

[smoothy]

I totally understand that this is my debt and I have no problem paying it. How am I supposed to know how much I've paid on the account when apparently they won't contact me regarding my account in the first place. I made a payment arrangement with them I understand this. I also had another debt that I was paying on also and might have gotten the 2 confused as one of them has been paid off. I didn't notice that this "law firm" had stopped taking my payments and also decided not to contact me. I have no idea what I owe. I called the law firm once I found out that they had taken all of my money and they wouldn't give me any information as to when they last sent me anything regarding my account, how much I owed or how much more they would continue to take. I don't mind paying for this but I do not appreciate that I did take the time and set up a payment arrangement with this company and then I don't hear anything from them for months and then all of a sudden get a levy on my bank account.

You may have all the money in the world but I do not. I have 3 kids that I am trying to feed and I am just getting ready to go back to work after a 2 week layoff that I get every year. I had put money back in savings to pay for groceries which I transferred over to my checking acct and when I went to go get my groceries today I couldn't because every last dime I had they took. If they would of called me back in June and advised me of this then I would of had no problem setting up another payment arrangement. When I called the Law Firm earlier today she wouldn't give me any info at all so how am I supposed to rectify this situation when the company treats me like ****!! Just because I didn't pay this bill doesn't mean that they can treat you like crap and take all your money.

Look on your bank statements... you already have records to what you have paid. The bank DOES send you monthly statements. You have records proving EXACTLY how much they have taken... or did you just toss those in the trash?

Listen... YOU incurred the debt... THEY are entitled to their money back.

Its called living within ones means. Whatever that may be. Yeah... they gave credit to people that should never have had it... but that doesn't negate the responsibilities of that person to be responsible with that. And trust me, you are NOT alone.

You borrowed the money... you put your own wants above your responsibilities. If anyone has a right to get indignant it's the lender. They loaned it to you expecting you to pay it back... which you failed to do.

Sorry but everyone is responsible for living within their means... No need to go into it but I have no doubts you have $50 or more in spending every month that is purely for things you could really do without.

Cable TV? Cell Phone? Junk Food? Toys? Magazines? Going out to eat rather than cook at home? Movies? Giving kids an allowance you can't afford? The list is REALLY long. Eat steak instead of Hamburger or Chicken?

Sorry, but I don't intend to be harsh... but I've heard stories similar to yours more times than anyone should have to hear. And I've heard them from close relatives that somehow thought they were entitled to a higher standard of living then they were able to pay for.

I've been there before myself, due to my own stupid habits... I paid off those debts and yes it was VERY hard. But I took away a lesson from it. That if I can't pay for it today... I don't need it today. If I don't have enough money to go around... that means I'm spending it on things I shouldn't be spending it on and I have to change my spending habits.

I've learned to differentiate between what I want... and what I need.

So remember... I was not born with a silver spoon in my mouth... and I have been on the brink of financial ruin that took me a decade to pay off. I'm telling you this as someone who has been there before, and accepted my responsibilities because I was the one that spent more than I could afford. And accepted the responsibility to do what I had to do to pay off my debts to those I owed them to. And accepted I had to endure hardships to do it because of my own behaviour that put me in that situation.

I got out of debt 20 years ago... and to this day... the only long term debt I have is my mortgage. I owe no credit card bills... no other revolving accounts... no personal loans. Because if I can't pay for it today... I don't need it today.

[Leslie820]

I fully take responsibility for this debt and me ignoring it in the beginning. I got the judgment paperwork in October of 09 and in January of 10 I started making payments on it. Apparently in June they stopped taking the payments from my account. I did set up an arrangement with this company but I have looked in every file I own and for the life of me can't find it so it probably wound up in the trash. I apologize for me being defensive about this but it caught me way off guard. I didn't expect to work out an arrangement with a company and then for them to do something like this. Yes it was my responsibility to follow up on this and I could give you a ton of excuses as to why I didn't. I've been working really hard the last two years to pay off debts from when I was in my 20's and stupid. I do not currently own any credit cards. For Smoothy, I do have a cell phone in place of my home phone, I do have cable but I do not go shopping for extras, I do not go to the movies, I do not eat out. I live 40 miles from the closest town with a store, and no my kids do not get money and they take lunches to school. I do in fact have all my bank statements during that time. Received judgment in October 09 starting making payments Feb of 2010 they took exactly 6 payments from me at $50. From the judgment paperwork I owe $1146 with $800 tacked on for their legal fees for a total of 1946. I made payments totaling $300.00 and they just took another $319 from my account. That's a total payment to them for 619. That still leaves me with over 1300 to pay them IF they didn't tack on interest or anything. I can't afford for them to take ALL my money because that will take over 3 of my paychecks to payback.

I do not appreciate that I called this company to get information and find out what is going on and the lady would give me NO INFO! I called today and left a message for the "Account Manager" to contact me regarding this situation and still have not received a call back. I will try again tomorrow. For now I have stopped all direct deposits into going into my account so that I can have money to feed my kids. I will deposit what I am able to and try to pay this balance. I've done what I am able to do in my eyes and the only thing I can do now is try to pay off what I can so that they will free my checking acct.

I understand and appreciate your guys' honesty in my situation. I can only learn from my mistakes and apparently at this time right now it's going to just make it harder for me to get through. Thanks.

[smoothy]

Point to remember.. and no I'm not accusing. But using a certain tone of voice when calling them will all but guarantee you won't get to talk to a live person or get a callback. I've worked with the public a long time. I HAVE when faced with someone who was clearly irrate... told them please wait while I get my manager... then proceeded to the break room for a 20 minute break before getting my supervisor. By the time we got there they were so out of control the store manager ejected them from the store and told them the police would be called if they returned. I haven't worked there in 17 years.. (no I wasn't fired, I moved on to a better job), these days I deal with higher level corporate types and government workers who thankfully are more prefessional than the average public.

I know its really easy to NOT do that when you are upset. If you can convincingly spoil them with sweetness, you might get answers. Once you hang up the phone you can call them anything you wish. And trust me... I was a hothead my entire life... so I know its hard to choke down even sarcasm in that situation. But its only a few minutes... you can do it. Its far easier than going through labor was. And not nearly as long.

Talk with your bank, ask for reprints of statements for that entire period, they will likely charge you, but you can see exactly how much they have taken up to this point. You might be able to get a copy of the original judgement from the courthouse it was tried at. So you know how much they were awarded.

[ScottGem]

Unfortunately a large percentage of the collections industry is lacking in ethics. Once they got a judgment against you they have a total upper hand. They view you as a deadbeat so they care nothing about you.

Unfortunately there is little you can do now. You can change banks or better yet, deal in cash only. You can try to negotiate a settlement. but this time get it in writing. What would be even better would be if you can get together about $1000 or more and offer a lump sum settlement. And again, get everything in writing.

[Leslie820]

Just an update. I spoke with the company that issued the judgment and have made a new payment arrangement with them which a copy will be sent to me by mail shortly. I did speak with a different representative this time and I did let her know about the previous rep I had spoken with. I did let her know that I probably wasn't on my "best" behavior when I was on the phone with the previous rep. I'm glad I gave myself a day or two to calm down and also to research the situation. I feel like a load has been taken off my shoulders and now I can try in the future for this situation to NOT happen again. Thanks again for all your help!

[Fr_Chuck]

Good luck, and I hope they do mail you this in writing,
But when paying, best thing, do not pay them from your bank account, ( assuming you open a new one) pay them by money order mailed to them. If you have a written agreement, and don't follow it, or if you don't get a written agreement, if they have a new bank account numbers they can just come take all of that money also.

I have a saying on collection people, if their mouths are moving they are lying.

[tamahome21]

this may be a little late but I have the same issue , I owered discover card aout $4,000 and had been making payment of $250 a month ( automatic from my bank account ) until 1 day it stop and I didn't bother to call then a year later I got a letter from the court saying I owe a total of $6,110 total which is $1,600 plus interest plus court fees , but by the time I got the mail my bank had already been levied , luckily I have home saving so they only took out $1484 but they will probabbly try again soon , what I'm saying is that within the first 2 - 3 weeks the money isn't in your creditor yet , it's in the sherift's holding and u can file for a motion to have the levy lift and provide some kind of payment plan with the debtor even after they court had issur money judgement , there are ways to work u just have to contact the sherift who had levied your bank and u might get your money bank in the bank instead of posting on the internet , the best way is to call , I had my levy bank minus the $70 fee and I only put enough money in the bank so the creditor can take it but yes I do have to pay the whole amount which is $6,000 something but at lest its not one lump sum , I learn my lesson that u should pay attention and my case is worst than yours , hope this will cheer u up because u can always find more money , its just time that's all =)

[smoothy]

this may be a little late but i have the same issue , i owered discover card aout $4,000 and had been making payment of $250 a month ( automatic from my bank account ) until 1 day it stop and i didnt bother to call then a year later i got a letter from the court saying i owe a total of $6,110 total which is $1,600 plus interest plus court fees , but by the time i got the mail my bank had already been levied , luckily i have home saving so they only took out $1484 but they will probabbly try again soon , what im saying is that within the first 2 - 3 weeks the money isn't in ur creditor yet , it's in the sherift's holding and u can file for a motion to have the levy lift and provide some kind of payment plan with the debtor even after they court had issur money judgement , there are ways to work u just have to contact the sherift who had levied ur bank and u might get ur money bank in the bank instead of posting on the internet , the best way is to call , i had my levy bank minus the $70 fee and i only put enough money in the bank so the creditor can take it but yes i do have to pay the whole amount which is $6,000 something but at lest its not one lump sum , i learn my lesson that u should pay attention and my case is worst than urs , hope this will cheer u up because u can always find more money , its just time that's all =)

If you are in the USA that is NOT correct... a garnishment is levied AFTER a court hearing... many times ignored by the debtor who doesn't show up. That always results in a default judgement being issued.

Once the court rules in favor of the bank... a judgement is issued against the debtor.. and a Writ of garnishment is issued by the court... as long as that Writ remains valid they CAN seize bank accounts and garnish your paychecks (within legally established guidelines.) No Sheriff nor debtor has the authority to disregard or change those terms... Only the court can, or the Bank. Sheriffs are agents of the court... the Courts aren't agents of the Sheriffs.

They can take an entire account balance... up to the amount of the debt... from any bank account they find. Or they can take a certain legal percentage of your paycheck... until that debt is satisfied.

The debtor might ask them to change it to something less... but they rarely do because its not in their best interest and they already were awarded the right and ability to collect it.

Its always cheaper to make a deal and pay them off somehow... BEFORE the court date.

[ScottGem]

this may be a little late

Yes it is, normally we prefer that threads inactive for more than a few months not be responded to. However, you response needs to be corrected.

, what im saying is that within the first 2 - 3 weeks the money isn't in ur creditor yet , it's in the sherift's holding

This part is accurate but the rest isn't.

and u can file for a motion to have the levy lift and provide some kind of payment plan with the debtor even after they court had issur money judgement

Yes you can file to lift the levy, but you have to have grounds. Just offering a payment plan isn't enough. Also, as smoothy said, the sheriff is simply an agent of the court and cannot make any arrangements.