Garnishment Question

Submitted by Anonymous (not verified) on Fri, 07/16/2010 - 20:37
Forums

My bank account was frozen by a debt collection law firm for sixteen days. On the sixteenth day after I got paid my bank account had a zero balance. So I am destitute for a whole month about now. I accept this I guess its legal? Not ethical, but legal. I received a court document saying I had a $150 garnishment against me and I thought that’s all they were going to take out of my bank account. My question is are they going to drain my bank account every time I get paid? Also not having money for a month I’m probably going to lose my job because I can’t afford gas to get back and forth. If this happens I will not have a way to pay off the rest of my debt. What can I be looking for and how are they going to come after me next?

Hi Mike,

I accept this I guess its legal?

This can be legal only if it has been authorized either by the court, or by you.

I received a court document saying I had a $150 garnishment against me

Can you tell whether or not you received nay court ppaers before this? The Fair Debt Collections Practices Act requires the creditor to serve the debtor with court papers regarding a lawsuit. Only if the creditor wins the lawsuit, can he garnish the debtor's account. However, if the debtor has not been properly served, he can file a motion to vacate the judgment. So, what you need to do is first check out if there's a judgment listed on your credit report.

My question is are they going to drain my bank account every time I get paid?

Until the debt amount gets paid, they are going to garnish your wages. However, this also depends on the state laws. You need to check your state laws on garnishment.

Thanks,

Aaron

Sat, 07/17/2010 - 07:13 Permalink