Fake company...

[dvaras]

I have trucking company, and also I do Export to EU (Europe).
Trucking, no major problem.
Export - big problem.
I buy merchandise (using my personal credit cards, company credit cards, lines of credit, net 30), customer from Europe arrange pickup from me (when I have everything ready). When customer gets shipment , usually 30-45 days, he transfers money to my company account here in US. I did this 6 times in 2011.
Lost shipment customer never received. Carrier, (US based transport company) who pickup merchandise from me, nowhere to be find. Fake company. My money gone. Do not know - customer lie, can be, no way to find out.
Trucking business (which I have) will never be able to cover my debt. I will have to file chapter 7.
Question – what trustee will see in my situation? Yes, all charges to credit cards and lines of credit all in one month, after charges, I made 2 payments and stop (have no money). Now 4 months passed and I do not pay my bills.

[frogger]

Make sure you have copies of your police reports for your attorney & the trustee to see as well.

[DaisysMom]

Dvaras, I'm not a lawyer and can't give you legal advice, but if I were you, I would start to gather up all my records. Any records you have about the purchases you made for your export business, especially the receipts, email or correspondence with the fraudulent company you were dealing with. Then get together the records showing your income and expenses from your trucking company. Tax filings for the last couple of years and your household expenses.

Then make several attorney appointments and get some good legal advice about what options you have. Your situation is heartbreaking to have been defrauded like that, but the only way you are going to know what your options are, is to talk to a professional.

Good luck and please let us know how it turns out.

DM

[dvaras]

Thanks DaisysMom
I have a question about paying to owner operators, (truck drivers) they are my 1099 contractors, and I pay them on a weekly basis. I provide fuel cards, they use them to fuel trucks and deliver loads. I deduct fuel expenses from their weekly settlement. When I stop paying fuel card provider, and continue to pay weekly settlement to contractors, will they be at risk? Can trustees take payments back?

Thanks

[DaisysMom]

Dvaras....you need to talk to an attorney who does both personal and business bankruptcies. Your circumstances are really unique with the fraud and foreign connections. A good lawyer would be able to give you the information you need. I am sorry I can't help you more, I know how you must be feeling. Been there, done that, only in different circumstances.

DM

[MikeW]

Thanks DaisysMom
I have a question about paying to owner operators, (truck drivers) they are my 1099 contractors, and I pay them on a weekly basis. I provide fuel cards, they use them to fuel trucks and deliver loads. I deduct fuel expenses from their weekly settlement. When I stop paying fuel card provider, and continue to pay weekly settlement to contractors, will they be at risk? Can trustees take payments back?

Thanks

dvaras,

I'm in a similar situation with the possible preferential payments for a business. One thing that is important is to be consistent with how you make the payments. If you continue making a particular payment in a manner consistent with how you've always made that particular payment, then an "Ordinary Course of Business" defense may be available. But if for instance, you get behind on one payment, and finally pay it 80 days later, then that would most likely be considered preferential (if you normally made that payment within 1 week, for instance). The payment would be due back from the recipient in this case (if payment was made within the 90 day window before filing ch7). What they would do with some poor Joe who lives paycheck to paycheck, received this payment, and already spent it? That's a good question.

There are 3 defenses available for preferential payment claims: the Contemporaneous Exchange Defense; the Ordinary Course of Business Defense; and the Subsequent New Value Defense. I found this video series that does a good job of explaining the 3 defenses, along with timeline diagrams: http://www.burbageweddell.com/bankru...es-the-basics/. In these videos, they are careful to always say "This defense MIGHT be available in this example." In other words, every case is different and you will need an attorney to make such defenses on your behalf.

You mentioned that you might stop paying the fuel card providers, while still paying the contractors. I don't know if that factor alone would affect your ability to use one of the 3 available defenses for the contractor payments. On the surface, it doesn't seem like it would, as long your payments to the contractors are consistent with "Ordinary Course of Business" (or one of the other 2 defenses). But you never know. That's another question for an attorney.

MikeW