Creditor Is Suing Me But I Dont Have Money What Do I Do?

Exercise I Need to File Bankruptcy? I do not have a job.

FAQ

Do I have to file bankruptcy if I accept debt that I cannot pay and creditors are trying to collect from me?

If you do not have a job and cannot pay off your debts, you can file bankruptcy. That can be an expensive and long process.
In some cases, y'all may be "drove proof." You may not have to file Bankrutpcy.

This Q & A is legal information, not legal advice, nigh debt collection and bankruptcy. Every situation is different.

This information is for people who:

do not have a job; and,
do not have whatever income from a job or wages; and,
accept debt that cannot exist paid.

If you are unemployed or if your only income is social security, SSI or other exempt money, the outset matter you need to think virtually is setting priorities for what yous tin can pay.

If you exercise non pay your hire, yous can be evicted. If you do not make your car payment, you can loose your machine and have to pay money.

If you do non pay your utility bills, the company can cutting off service.

Information at this link will aid you ready basic priorities for what debts to pay starting time:
http://world wide web.oklaw.org/link.cfm?3224

There are dissimilar kinds of debt. Secured, unsecured and other kinds of loans and debt. What is the deviation between

Unsecured debt: Unsecured debts are usually credit cards or medical bills. An unsecured debt can be from the regime, if you owe fines or taxes. For example, a banking concern or credit card company, may loan you money or sell you lot something based just on your promise to repay the loan. If yous do not brand a payment or repay the loan or credit menu company, the creditor cannot repossess anything.

When you only requite your promise to pay, the bank, credit card company, hospital or government is called an unsecured creditor.

Secured debt: A secured debt is when you borrow coin and with the hope to repay,

and

y'all give some rights to some property you own as a guarantee of repayment. The property you "collateral" use in addition to the promise is the word to describe the you use to become a loan that is secured.

When y'all buy a motorcar, the lender or creditor puts a lien on the auto. The car is collateral for the loan or debt. If you lot do non pay the loan, the creditor can take back the machine, sell it and sue you for the amount of the debt not collected by the sale of the machine.

When you buy a house, the lender takes a mortgage on your house as collateral.
When y'all give a promise to pay and collateral the creditor is called a secured creditor.

What can happen if I do not make a payment or re-pay a secured debt?

If you practice not make your payments on your car, the lender can take back your motorcar, sell information technology and then sue you for the rest of the debt if you lot owed more than than the car sold for.
The creditor will then try to collect the residuum of the debt like an unsecured debt.

What can happen if I do non make a payment or re-pay an unsecured debt?

The creditor will try to collect the nib by suing you lot and and so garnishing your paycheck, if you lot have 1. If you exercise not have a job or are not employed for wages, then your creditors can try to garnish your paycheck.

Creditors CANNOT garnish:

social security,
SSI,
unemployment compensation
workers' compensation
TANF benefits
Veterans benefits, or
pension payments.

If yous are not working and your income only comes from i of these types of checks, your creditors cannot garnish your bank account. These types of income are "exempt" from garnishment. They cannot be taken from your bank account.

The creditor may try to garnish your bank business relationship and y'all may take to go to court to prove the judge that your income is from one of these sources.

If you exercise not pay your unsecured debts, the creditors will not be able to collect from you until you money to pay them from another source, like a job.

Are in that location other types of debt?

Yep, and other types of debts take special rules that utilize to collections.

Student Loans:
Educatee loan lenders can "attach" your wages and tax refunds. This is like a garnishment, but there are no exemptions, except for special "hardship" rules. You volition need to talk to a lawyer about any student loan debt.

IRS/State Taxes:
The IRS and state tax commissions have special rights to collect taxes.

Bad checks:
Of yous owe coin for bad checks, y'all may be charged with a criminal offence and face criminal penalties in addition to attributable the money.

Court Fines:
Courtroom fines and costs are unsecured debts, only non paying them may cause yous issues with the police. A demote warrant can be issued and if stopped past the police or sheriff, you lot might exist taken to jail or face other criminal penalties. If you cannot pay courtroom fines and costs, yous tin go to a court hearing, tell the estimate why you cannot pay and set up a different payment schedule until you are able to pay more or pay them off.

Child Support:
Collection of child support debt as well has special rules. If you owe back kid support, you can exist charged with a crime or help in contempt of courtroom. You may get to jail. Your revenue enhancement refund can be "attached." You could take your drivers' license suspended. Other types of licenses' that you need for work can also be suspended.

What happens when a creditor sues me and gets a judgement?

A creditor can take funds from your depository financial institution account after they have sued yous and get a judgment against you lot. A judgment is a ruling past a guess that you owe the money to the creditor.

After a creditor sues y'all and gets a judgement, your banking concern account or paycheck tin be "garnished." The creditor has a correct to brand your bank or your employer take money from your account or your paycheck. This is chosen a "garnishement."

Creditors CANNOT garnish:

social security,
SSI,
unemployment compensation
workers' compensation
TANF benefits
Veterans benefits, or
alimony payments.

If you lot are not working and your income just comes from one of these types of checks, your creditors cannot garnish or take coin from your bank account. These types of income are "exempt" from garnishment. They cannot exist taken from your bank account.

If a creditor gets a judgment and takes it to a depository financial institution, the bank will freeze your account. You have the right to go to courtroom and explain why the depository financial institution cannot take money from your account.

This is called a garnishment of your bank account.
Y'all have the right to asking a hearing and claim an exemption based on the type of income in your bank account or that yous need a hardship exemption. You lot will take to request a hearing inside v days of getting the discover that the bank has frozen your account.

You must go to court to show the judge that your income is from ane of these sources or that you have unusual circumstances that would make it a 'hardship' for your family unit for the whole corporeality to exist taken from your account.

You must be able to show that the money comes from "exempt" or protected sources similar these:

social security,
SSI,
unemployment compensation
workers' compensation
TANF benefits
Veterans benefits, or
pension payments.

The judge volition tell the bank to allow yous to take the money in your account.

If you take coin from a job, or wages, the creditor tin can sue you lot, get a judgment and have your employer take money from your paycheck. Some of the money from your paycheck may be exempt if it is coin you demand to support your family. You have the right to go to courtroom and explicate why the banking concern cannot take money from your business relationship.

Either way, y'all have to get to courtroom to become your funds returned to you!

When I get to the Asset Hearing, do I take to hold to making payments?

If you lot have merely exempt funds in your bank account, exercise not agree to a payment plan.

If yous simply take exempt funds, you do non have to agree to a payment plan no matter how much force per unit area the creditor or the approximate put on yous exercise brand payments.

If you practice agree to a payment programme, the creditor will try to enforce that plan against you.

If the judge orders you lot to may payment and yous merely take exempt income, plase contact Legal Aid ASAP! That courtroom order must be appealed!

How will the creditor know where my bank account is?

The creditor gets your account information from payments that you lot make.

If you lot are sued and the creditor gets a judgment against you, the creditor tin can as well file for a Hearing on Avails. You will be required to go to court and give the creditor information well-nigh all your banking concern accounts and other things of value you ain.

Please phone call Legal Aid immediately if you lot are sued!

A creditor also may inquire the court for an "Asset Hearing" sometimes called an HOA (Hearing on Assets).

Yous may receive a courtroom summons or a subpoena to come to an Nugget Hearing.
Fifty-fifty if you lot simply have

What happens if I do non take a bank account?

If you do not have a bank account your creditor cannot garnish you lot.

If you do non have a job, there are no wages for the creditor to garnish.

Are there other ways a creditor can get to any other holding?

Aye. A creditor can go to court after he gets a judgment and ask the judge to "attach" or allow the sheriff to take your property.

If the debt is secured past property as collateral, the creditor tin can "attach" that belongings.

If the debt is unsecured, the creditor may try to attach something else of value.
Some things you own are "exempt" from attachment so a creditor cannot accept them to sell. For example, a creditor cannot strength you lot to sell your home (if you live there) to pay your debts.

In some circumstances a creditor can identify a lien on your property so that when you do decide to sell it, the creditor will be paid out of the proceeds.

In Oklahoma, there is a listing of "exempt" property that a creditor cannot accept from you to sell. Generally a creditor cannot have or brand you sell your household items, your car (up to a value of $7,500), clothing (upwards to a $four,000 value) or wedding or ceremony rings (up to a $3,000 value). Tools that you use for you job are also exempt.

A listing of exempt holding tin be found at the post-obit link: http://www.oscn.net/applications/oscn/deliverdocument.asp?citeID=71487

Can my creditors keep calling me and sending me letters?

Yes! Creditors can keep calling and sending you letters. This tin be aggravating and turn into harrassment.

What can you exercise?

Talk to them:

Tell the creditor that your simply income is social security (or 1 of the other exempt types of income), but ONLY IF THIS IS TRUE.
Tell them you will pay the debt when you are able.

Send them a letter:

If the creditor that is harrassing you is a drove agency or a lawyer you can send a letter telling them to stop calling and writing you.
Information technology must be in writing. It is called a "finish communications" alphabetic character.
Send the letter past certified mail and keep a copy in example you have to prove it later.

What if the creditor is NOT from a collection agency or a lawyer? What if the creditor or someone from that visitor or banking company calls?

The "cease communications" letter but stops communications from someone collecting on behalf of someone else, like a collection agency or a lawyer.

If yous owe a department shop coin from their credit carte and someone from the department store calls, y'all cannot send a "cease communications" letter.
Y'all tin can tell them that you cannot pay. They volition probably sue you, but if you have exempt income or avails, they will not be able to take your coin or assets. BUT only if you lot become to courtroom when yous become the courtroom papers.

You lot must go to courtroom when someone garnishes a depository financial institution account or a paycheck.

Telephone call Legal Help immediatly when you get court papers!

Final Review and Update: Apr 02, 2018