At Fault Person Does Not Want To Pay!

[joesrods]

What is the name of your state?Hello,

I live in New Jersey and a woman hit the back of my car while I was yielding. She told me not to call the police because her insurance company had recently dropped her policy. She assured me that she would take care of the damage. I did not get a police report. I got a couple of estimates and we decided that the cheapest one $2500 is what she was going to pay. She told met that she was in a very difficult financial situation, so I gave her a month to get me this money. After a month she said she was not able to get the money and sent me a fax explaining that she owed me $2500 for damage, and that she was not able to make it in time. She wants to set up installment payments, but I do not want to do this, I already had the car fixed with my own money and need the money back as soon as possible. If I take her to small claims court, is the court going to set up istallment payments, or are they going to make her pay me the full amount. Also can she be charged with any crime like theft by deception with the local police department? I know if the court or I set up installment payments with her she is going to be paying me about $25 a month, and that is just not acceptable and will take a really long time to pay all the money back. Is there anything I can do to get this money quickly?

Please help I do not know what to do!

 

[divgradcurl]

If I take her to small claims court, is the court going to set up istallment payments, or are they going to make her pay me the full amount.

Neither. If you win, the court will issue you a judgment in the amount you win -- it's still up to you to figure out how to actually collect the money. However, with a judgment in hand, you have options not currently avaialble to you, such as having her wages garnished, or having her assets (if any) siezed and sold at auction to satisfy the judgment.

But the court will not get involved in the actual collection of the judgment. If you want to set up payment plans, it's up to you.

Also can she be charged with any crime like theft by deception with the local police department?

No.

I know if the court or I set up installment payments with her she is going to be paying me about $25 a month, and that is just not acceptable and will take a really long time to pay all the money back. Is there anything I can do to get this money quickly?

See above.

However, if she doesn't have sufficient wages to garnish, or doesn't have any assets that can be sold to pay off the judgment, well, you can't get blood from a stone, as they say.

Where is your insurance company in all this?

 

[joesrods]

At Fault And Will Not Pay!

Thank you very much for your reply. I do not want to get my insurance company involved because if they pay me the $2500 that I already paid, than my insurance will go up. I do not need the money that badly and do not want my premium to go up. It is the whole principle of the thing, I had to pay my own money for something I did not do, and feel as if I am not going to see that money any time soon.

I know that she works full time, as far as assets, I do not know what she has that is valuable. I do not want the payment plan, unless she can pay me the sum of the money within a couple of months not years.

Is the court going to request her wages after I win, and if they do will they just give me say two or three months worth of paychecks. How does this work. I am sorry this is my first accident and suit I am very new to this.