Summons for credit card debt

[mike.mike.mike]

What is the name of your state? ohio

I posted this on a message board the other day and still have no response:
I received a certified letter today from the Franklin County Municipal court regarding a a credit card that I had from 10/31/03(well the date of it on the summons). The attorneys are from Javitch, Block, and Rathbone located in Cleveland. I contacted the phone number and tried to get this resolved only to be told that I must make the full payment and no payment plan can be offered. They then offered me to pay a lump sum of $200 less the 1500 owed. I can't afford this with our poor economy on top of all my other bills (well maybe if I stopped eating). I have 28 days to reply to this summons and am lost. I don't want to file bankruptcy. I need help. Can someone please assist me. I live in Columbus Ohio--

MY REAL QUESTIONS ARE BELOW, BUT IF SOMEONE CAN HELP WITH THE ABOVE PLEASE DO.

I contacted them again and they said I can make a payment plan if I fax them 2 copies of my paystub. I'm nervous to do this b/c I don't want them to garnish my wages. They said they will determine what I can pay. I can only afford $100 a month. How should I resolve this and if they do let me make payments, do I still have to reply to the summons? If so, how do I reply to the summons?

[Texas Pooh]

You still have to fill an answer or a judgment will be taken against you. Once a judgment is entered, they can begin garnishment proceedings (I think it's 25% after deductions in Ohio, but somebody will post the amount in a minute). To file an answer, go to your local court, which probably has some fill-in-the blank samples you can use.

While I understand your reluctance to provide payroll data, if they get a judgment, they will find out where you work eventually anyway and garnish your wages. You're just avoiding the inevitable.

If you want a settlement plan, you need to be prepared to give them all the financial information they are requesting to justify your proposed settlement plan. They have no reason to give you a payment plan, especially when you are requesting a plan that will take more than a year and a half for the creditor to recover the monies due to them . It's up to you to convince them a payment plan is preferable to litigation.

[debtcollector`]

Realistically, you are not going to get $100 a month on a $1,500 debt. You might get payments of $250 - 300 a month and there is no way you will get a payment arrangement of less than 20 percent of your salary. They will take 25 percent with a garnishment.

DC

[Skapare]

Originally Posted by debtcollector`

Realistically, you are not going to get $100 a month on a $1,500 debt. You might get payments of $250 - 300 a month and there is no way you will get a payment arrangement of less than 20 percent of your salary. They will take 25 percent with a garnishment.

DC

As a professional, what would you do if you held this account, and it really is factual that the debtor has no more than $100/mo remaining income to pay on this debt, and that if more than that is garnished from their wages they would not be able to live where they live, have to move, losing the job, and leaving you holding an uncollectable debt/judgement? if your choice is between taking $100/mo and getting nothing, which do you prefer?

[debtcollector`]

Originally Posted by Skapare

As a professional, what would you do if you held this account, and it really is factual that the debtor has no more than $100/mo remaining income to pay on this debt, and that if more than that is garnished from their wages they would not be able to live where they live, have to move, losing the job, and leaving you holding an uncollectable debt/judgement? if your choice is between taking $100/mo and getting nothing, which do you prefer?

As a professional I do not care if you get evicted or lose your job. I will collect statutory interest on the judgment and treat it like a special savings plan that follows you for the rest of your life. I would garnish your pay, seize every non-exempt asset and get my money. How it hurts you is not my concern.

You had ample time before it came to the lawsuit stage to make arrangements and pay what you can afford. If you had done so, the debt would have long since been paid. If you try to give me an ultimatum, I would stomp you. At this point, I would have nothing to lose. And everything to gain.

You need to understand that the judgment holder, if knowledgeable, is going to get paid.

DC

[Skapare]

Originally Posted by debtcollector`

As a professional I do not care if you get evicted or lose your job. I will collect statutory interest on the judgment and treat it like a special savings plan that follows you for the rest of your life. I would garnish your pay, seize every non-exempt asset and get my money. How it hurts you is not my concern.

You had ample time before it came to the lawsuit stage to make arrangements and pay what you can afford. If you had done so, the debt would have long since been paid. If you try to give me an ultimatum, I would stomp you. At this point, I would have nothing to lose. And everything to gain.

You need to understand that the judgment holder, if knowledgeable, is going to get paid.

DC

I guess you are not aware that what the owner of the debt wants to be paid is not always something that people can afford? People do lose jobs (more so in bad times) and this is quite often what turns an account in good standing into a collections account that might not even be collectable.

Do you realize that someone asked to pay more than they can afford often drives them to bankruptcy, frequently with total discharge of all debts? Are you willing to risk that?

So would you rather face the possibility the debt would be uncollectable, or agree to accept what the debtor can afford to pay? I'd rather take what I can get as soon as I can get it. Of course if I believed the claimed level of finance might be false I'd want to pursue other avenues such as a judgement. But that still does me no good, and can cost me money, if all it does is drive someone who can pay a little into bankruptcy where they pay nothing.

Originally Posted by mike.mike.mike

What is the name of your state? ohio

I posted this on a message board the other day and still have no response:
I received a certified letter today from the Franklin County Municipal court regarding a a credit card that I had from 10/31/03(well the date of it on the summons). The attorneys are from Javitch, Block, and Rathbone located in Cleveland. I contacted the phone number and tried to get this resolved only to be told that I must make the full payment and no payment plan can be offered. They then offered me to pay a lump sum of $200 less the 1500 owed. I can't afford this with our poor economy on top of all my other bills (well maybe if I stopped eating). I have 28 days to reply to this summons and am lost. I don't want to file bankruptcy. I need help. Can someone please assist me. I live in Columbus Ohio--

MY REAL QUESTIONS ARE BELOW, BUT IF SOMEONE CAN HELP WITH THE ABOVE PLEASE DO.

I contacted them again and they said I can make a payment plan if I fax them 2 copies of my paystub. I'm nervous to do this b/c I don't want them to garnish my wages. They said they will determine what I can pay. I can only afford $100 a month. How should I resolve this and if they do let me make payments, do I still have to reply to the summons? If so, how do I reply to the summons?

Rely to the summons for discovery. Have them prove the debt and how they came to a $1500 debt. Tell them you want each and every transaction with your signature bearing. i fought off Citibank this way.. I won the judgment against them because they couldn't prove the debt