Yes, we have to get out of this payday loan debt trap! Over the years, I have had and paid off several payday loans. I live in Texas. At one time, I believe that I had about 10 - and thank God that craziness is over. I now only have 4 loans that I am in the process of paying off. Most of them allowed me to make arrangements once the debit or check returned from the bank. When I first started getting payday loans back in the late 90s, I remember having a check return and getting a note from the company stating that I would be charged with "theft by check," and I lost many nights of sleep thinking that I could be arrested because of that situation. When it came down to it, the company allowed me to make arrangements and pay it off, and I got the check back. Now (in different states) these services are regulated, and consumers have more protection. The point is not that the people are trying to get out of paying the money back, but we are trying to avoid paying quadruple the amount we borrowed. That's what happens once you pay renewals over and over again. I have been doing even more research lately and asking more questions because I have 2 loans that I want to go ahead and pay off, and of course the companies want to give a person a difficult time about setting up a payment arrangement. One is ACE, I have done business with them for years, and of course they try to give you a reply such as "file the case," I have spoken to the Office of Consumer Credit Commissioner, and they basically said that they cannot file any criminal charges on this type of loan. WHAT CAN THEY FILE? Basically, I had to close my account because an unauthorized transaction had gone through my account and my banking institution required that I do so in order to prevent that from occurring again. So the ACE debit returned because I was not in town either on the date that I needed to go in and pay it. The original prinicipal amount of the loan was $1,000 and the fees were $208. With the NSF charge and late fees, the total became $1,300. At this point, I have paid $650 and have a balance of $650. I was scheduled to pay the remaining amount on 10/31, but the funds I thought I would be getting are being delayed. I called back and tried to modify the payment arrangement, and the rep basically told me that I couldn't change anything until after the "default" date - meaning - if I don't make the payment on 10/31. I have already drafted a letter that I plan to send certified with a payment arrangement that I can keep in correlation to my paydays. It seems that they would prefer to allow me to do that instead of "filing" it, or sending it to a 3rd party collection agency. I just want clarification, etc to see what ACE normally does, and what they can do. I have read the related information in the Texas Finance Code, and know that wage garnishments relate more to unpaid child support and defaulted student loans, but not consumer loans. PLEASE REPLY.
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