Sr. Who just received summons for not paying credit card - what to do?

[banklost100]

I know a senior who is not very bright, who ran up a lot of credit on credit cards and one of the credit card companies just sued her. She received the summons from court and has 30 days to respond. She has no income, no money in the bank, no assets other than receiving SSI, same thing with her husband.

She also doesn't speak English very well, nor does her husband. Should she just ignore the summons and let the court put a default judgment against her and then just ignore the collection agency when they call and harrass her?

Can the collection agency the credit card company used to file the lawsuit go after her SSI payments which are automatically deposited to her bank account? The only way she can get the money is through auto deposit to her checking account. Can the credit card company freeze her account or do anything else to her?

Should she eventually file chapter 7?

Thank you

[AngelinaCat]

She needs to cut up the CCs immediately. Then she needs to get her ducks in a row and file Ch7 to stop the suit. If the CC company that is suing her is attached to the bank that she has her checking/savings accounts with, there is a possibility that they could garnish/freeze the account(s) through cross-collateralization. Whether they will or not depends on the language contained in the mice-sized type that is contained in the contract she sign when she obtained the CC. SSI should be exempt, but it isn't always treated this way. Also, some districts restrict the amount that can be garnished, if the garnishee is a Head of Household, which if she is married, she may not be.

She needs to schedule some free consults with attorneys--hopefully there are those that can speak her native language. The BK process is difficult enough without having language and other barriers thrown into the mix.

Good luck to her, and please keep us posted.

[banklost100]

Thanks AngelinaCat,

I was hoping the chapter 7 would not be necessary, but she could just ignore the creditors since she may be judgment proof for not having any assets, only the SSI checks from her and I believe maybe social security from her husband.

They are in California. Again elderly and not too bright for understanding consequences to their actions or the legal system with bk laws, creditor boundaries, etc.

If ch 7 is the only route, then that will be what she will have to do. Just curious about if it can be avoided though.

Does she have to respond to the summons or can she just ignore it and then file ch 7 later if necessary?

[AngelinaCat]

It would be better for her to answer, in my opinion, than to just accept a default judgment. She can either admit she owes the debt--keep in mind SOL, if she admits, and the SOL is about to run out, she resets the clock to zero--or deny it.

When we were being sued, we plead: "that we neither admitted OR denied owing the debt". Then the judge set a date for us to go to Arbitration--this is where a payment schedule is set. In our district, Arbitration is only scheduled one day each month. We were going to be out of town that day--unavoidable, and said so, which was true. The judge then set the date for the following month. That gave us two months breathing room, and we filed Ch7 before that.

The suit in question was not for a credit card, but a car loan that 'Hub had foolishly co-signed for an acquaintance. When acquaintance defaulted, we got stuck with it.

There will be others that will say for her not to bother at her age. But keep in mind the possibility of the cross-collateralization.

It's a shame, but there are many that prey on the Elderly--especially when there is a language barrier, or other impediment.

[frogger]

she could just ignore the creditors since she may be judgment proof for not having any assets

She may be "collection proof", however she is not judgment proof. If a judgment is awarded, then a brand new set of stats start with that judgment.

She may have nothing to take today, however if she has anything in the future, the judgment is always lurking around, ready to be executed upon any recoverable assets.

Should she file? Perhaps, perhaps not. IMO, it really depends on the outlook for her future, her potential assets, any potential property ownership, etc.

If she has nothing and will not ever have anything, then filing is probably a moot point.

[NoMoreCards]

There is nothing stopping the CC company from getting a judgement and then freezing a bank account. After the account is frozen, and the money is taken, the elderly couple can work to prove that all monies in that account are exempt. However if they deposited a 10.00 check from someone for any reason, that money has been co-mingled and it would be difficult to prove the funds in the account are exempt.

Quite honestly, I don't think the couples age, language barrier or lack of understanding of the laws would have any bearing on this. The laws are still there and they will need to somehow deal with their issues. Filing Chapter 7 is probably their best bet. The only problem I see is if they clearly do not understand what they did and how this happened...nothing will prevent it from happeining again. Once they file CH 7, they can not file another CH7 for 8 years.

Wishing you all the best.

[frogger]

The only problem I see is if they clearly do not understand what they did and how this happened...nothing will prevent it from happeining again. Once they file CH 7, they can not file another CH7 for 8 years.

That would be my major concern in this situation.

[banklost100]

Thank you everybody for your excellent responses.

So far it is looking like if we are to predict these people will have no future income or money coming to them other than SSI, and no possessions they own other than say a cheap car, the credit card company can't do anything other than keep the debt over their heads in case they do run into some future money and possibly temporarily freeze their checking account until they can get it unfrozen through the courts,

or file a chapter 7 to make this go away and most importantly never give these people a credit card ever again and make them live within their SSI paycheck budget.

[AngelinaCat]

If you really care about this couple, you may need to inform yourself about bankruptcy matters, and become their new 'best friend'.

If the CC company manages to freeze their checking account, it could be MONTHS before they get it all straightened out. Nothing happens overnight in any court system, and if their accounts are frozen where they cannot receive money, or get to it, bills for utilities don't get paid, and food and clothing becomes unavailable. What about rents? Do they rent, or do they own their home? If they own their home, do they own it outright, or is there a mortgage? What about insurance for the home? Themselves? Property taxes?

There is a much bigger picture here that needs to be considered. It isn't easy. Also, if they fear losing their independence as so many Seniors do, you as their best friend, will have an even harder task.

Good wishes to all of you.

[banklost100]

Angelina, I went through bk myself a few years ago and had a different screen name, still trying to dig up my old account on bkforum, so I had to set up a new account, but I remember you, and we had good conversations which were helpful to me. I learned a tremendous amount about bk as well going through this horrible experience and this board was extremely helpful to me.

These people rent, they have bills for utilities as well. I do not know them personally but am close to someone that does know them very closely. I am relaying the data.

[woeisme]

their best bet is to answer the summons, hopefully with a translator or someone who can speak on their behalf. What they need to do is make it clear to the creditors that they have nothing to gain by going after these people for the $, make sure that the credit card company understands they have no assets and all their $ is exempt SS and most of the time they will not sue or try to do judgements since they want easier money and lower-hanging fruit. This isn't' to say they won't keep hassling the couple, they will, but my brother is in a similar situation, owes a ton but been on SSI for 12 years with no assets and no one has ever sued him because they know it's a waste of the filing fees to the court. That's what this couple needs, someone to explain it to the CC people so they understand there's nothing to be had by going to court.