Payroll gave my info to CA

[ivehadit]

Anyone know if this is standard procedure? got a call from CA for BoA she threatened garnishment, said she talked to my payroll and knows I have no current garnishment. She gave me the persons name which is ligit, but I wonder if she's bluffing. With the restrictions on personal information I find it hard to believe they could give out that info without my consent or a court order.

[AngelinaCatHub]

I believe you are right. However, do you think it wise to address this as it is your employer. If careful, you might ask HR person. Depends on how big the business is. 'Hub

[ivehadit]

My thoughts exactly, I don't want to jepordize my job but I also don't want to show my hand, that was a huge blow if true. I work for county govt so public info may be different than private corp. I think I will treat this as a bluff until I know different. I've been acting dumb with the ca she's threatening garnishment and not a word about going for judgement which I know must happen before garnishment can happen. I live and work in Ohio if that matters.

[magyar123]

Obviouly the CA just wanted to make sure that there are no other present garnishments and will soon run to the courthouse and get a default judgment against you, especially if you have been ignoring their hounding tactics.
As for the legality of the employer divulging the information that you "currently" don't have any other garnishments might be a labor code privacy issue. Contact your statre's labor department.

[anime-chicka]

I'm fairly certain that HR/Payroll is not supposed to be giving out that kind of info unless there is certain documentation presented. However, we're pretty tight lipped around here anyway when it comes to employee information, so ymmv.

I'd definitely talk to someone on your local labor board to see if this is in fact legal to do.

[AngelinaCat]

Unfortunately if you work for any kind of governmental entity whether it be state, county, or municipal, payroll information can be Public Record and anyone can request it. Just how much information can be divulged is dependent on the Public Records law of your state.

I don't like it, but that is the way it is. I guess the Public's need to know my business supercedes my Right to Privacy. It has to do with the public' taxpayer dollars being used to provide services. I have worked for both a county agency, and a city agency.

[BigJohn]

Anyone know if this is standard procedure? got a call from CA for BoA she threatened garnishment, said she talked to my payroll and knows I have no current garnishment. She gave me the persons name which is ligit, but I wonder if she's bluffing. With the restrictions on personal information I find it hard to believe they could give out that info without my consent or a court order.

I suspect the collection agency did not get the information from payroll, but actually tricked you into giving out the information freely.
Telling you the name of the person in payroll was a way to get you to let your guard down. When they told you have no garnishments, they were trying to get you to confirm that fact. But as I said at the beginning, I only suspect this is what happened to you.

[GoingDown]

I agree. I think they were just bluffing and tricked you into giving them info they didn't really have yet.

You should hear some of the leading questions collection agencies have been asking me over the years. But now, I just don't talk to them at all anymore. I hang up on them immediately, or just don't answer the phone when I know it's them calling.

You are lucky you work for a government employer. They are usually very good about not firing employees over wage garnishment. Several people I know work for a local Medicaid office and have had wage garnishments and their employer didn't care at all about it.

[treehugger1]

I also work for a state employer. The garnishments come in and they just input the data into the payroll processing system. They do a great deal of garnishments; debts, child support, alimony, student loans, etc. It's just another part of payroll.

I would be surprised if your employer (public or private) volunteered any information other than you are an employee. Details of garnishment, withholding, payroll deductions, etc are probably considered confidential information, regardless of whether you work for a public or private employer.

Now, once I am under wage garnishment, I often tell the creditor/CA and I seldom ever hear from them again. When you are under wage garnishment, then it is on a "first-at-the-trough" system (at least in my state.) In addition, just because someone has a judgment against you does not imply they will automatically move to filing a writ of attachment against wages. The judgment simply sits there for a very long time until someone decides to act on it.

I'm only speaking from experience here, and your experience may differ. But, never, EVER, share employment info on the phone with creditors or CA's once you have defaulted. You do have a right to personal privacy and protection against ID theft. Simply tell folks to submit inquiries in writing. Give them an address where you accept mail. Preferably, you can get a PO Box and use that as your mailing address.

[BigJohn]

I also work for a state employer. The garnishments come in and they just input the data into the payroll processing system. They do a great deal of garnishments; debts, child support, alimony, student loans, etc. It's just another part of payroll.

I would be surprised if your employer (public or private) volunteered any information other than you are an employee. Details of garnishment, withholding, payroll deductions, etc are probably considered confidential information, regardless of whether you work for a public or private employer.

Now, once I am under wage garnishment, I often tell the creditor/CA and I seldom ever hear from them again. When you are under wage garnishment, then it is on a "first-at-the-trough" system (at least in my state.) In addition, just because someone has a judgment against you does not imply they will automatically move to filing a writ of attachment against wages. The judgment simply sits there for a very long time until someone decides to act on it.

I'm only speaking from experience here, and your experience may differ. But, never, EVER, share employment info on the phone with creditors or CA's once you have defaulted. You do have a right to personal privacy and protection against ID theft. Simply tell folks to submit inquiries in writing. Give them an address where you accept mail. Preferably, you can get a PO Box and use that as your mailing address.

When a creditor calls, how does a person know it is a creditor, collection agent or somebody looking for a new identity?

I talked to somebody who called for me in regards to a hospital bill. She would not talk to me until I verified who I was. I would not talk to her till she verified who she was. She refused to verify who she was and she actually got mad because of that. Being she refused to verify who she was, there was no use to continue with the conversation.

[magyar123]

When a creditor calls, how does a person know it is a creditor, collection agent or somebody looking for a new identity?

I talked to somebody who called for me in regards to a hospital bill. She would not talk to me until I verified who I was. I would not talk to her till she verified who she was. She refused to verify who she was and she actually got mad because of that. Being she refused to verify who she was, there was no use to continue with the conversation.

LOL -
The caller: Who am I talking to?
The person being called: Huh? Who are you?
The caller: None of your business
The person being called: So why should it be any of your business who I am?

[Doghouse]

Agree with Bigjohn and others here. No way payroll will volunteer wage garnishment info to some random caller from a CA. Info such as salaries for govt employees may be public info but things such as alimony deductions, child support, withholdings, wage garnishments etc are definitely non public info.

If they know what govt agency or dept you work for then it's not very difficult to find the name of a HR payroll person working at that specific government agency or dept. Conclusively, I'd also say you were basically tricked into divulging whether you currently have wage garnishments or not, based on how you responded. Shy of a court order, call their bluff.

[treehugger1]

After further thought, I contacted my HR. They will ONLY verify that I am an employee. They will verify this for whomever calls. They cannot furnish any other information unless required under subpoena. Even then, I think any court order must be specific and cannot be a "fishing expedition."

I've also learned something new. On many payroll check stubs for direct deposit, your bank account number might be listed on the paystub. I was told that if I ever needed copies of income verification and deductions, I can get these without any DD account number on the copies. Since I don't have a DD bank account this point is moot, but interesting to know.

[treehugger1]

A bit more info on the original post. It was stated that you heard from a CA for BoA. Was this a CA collecting for BoA (assignment,) or was this a CA who now owns the debt? My experience with BoA inhouse collections has been pleasant, but one of my accounts was sold to a nasty CA firm that paid some California law firm to dun me. I followed through with a DV and C&D and have not heard a word in several months. One time they slipped up several weeks after the C&D and I reminded them of their obligations. The caller was apologetic. I think too many people react without thinking and sometimes invite more trouble. After a bit of experiences we have all learned to check ourselves when necessary. But thanks to this forum and others, we can all learn very quickly how to protect ourselves.

[BigJohn]

I think a Golden Rule that GoingDown has is:

"One of the most important lessons I have learned about creditors [,collection agencies] and probate is to never talk to any creditor or collection agent on the phone. Just hang up on them, and never speak to them. [Better yet, never answer the phone]. Any information they get will be turned around and used against you [possibly in a court of law]. "