Hello. I live in California now, but previously l

Sending the codes doesnt stop collections. You still owe the debt. They can still sue you....

Maybe so but it is redundant for them to sue when they know they cant get a dime and never will.


MCM
8875 Aero Drive, Suite 200
San Diego, CA 92123

RE: MCM account # XXXXXXXXXXXX NOTICE OF INABILITY TO PAY
Dear low-life debt collectors:
Here is the pay-off settlement option agreed upon.
Option # 4: No payment at all as XXXXXXXXXXX has only disability income and is totally and permanently disabled.
Based on the facts of disability retirement benefits in California, if a judgment is not based on a child or spousal support order, then any payments from a retirement plan for annuity, pension, retirement allowance, disability payment or death benefit are fully exempt (Cal Civ Pro Sec. 704.115 and 704.110). (Since you are not too smart, I will translate: This means if the debtor receives payments from a retirement plan, no creditor can take that money.)
And,
Section 207 of the Social Security Act (42 U.S.C. 407) protects Social Security benefits from assignment, levy, or garnishment. However, the law provides five exceptions:
? Section 459 of the Act (42 U.S.C. 659) allows Social Security benefits to be garnished to enforce child support and/or alimony obligations;
? Section 6334 (c) of the Internal Revenue Code (26 U.S.C. 6334 (c)) allows benefits to be levied to collect unpaid Federal taxes;
? Section 3402 (P) of the Internal Revenue Code allows beneficiaries to elect to have a percentage of their benefits withheld and paid to the Internal Revenue Service to satisfy their Federal income tax liability for the current year;
? The Debt Collection Act of 1996 (Public Law 104-134) allows benefits to be withheld and paid to another Federal agency to pay a non-tax debt the beneficiary owes to that agency: and
? The Tax Payer Relief Act of 1997 (Public Law 105-34) authorizes the Internal Revenue Service to collect overdue federal tax debts of beneficiaries by levying up to 15 percent of each monthly payment until the debt is paid.
The Social Security Administration's responsibility for protecting benefits against legal process and assignment usually ends when the beneficiary is paid. However, once paid, benefits continue to be protected under section 207 of the Act as long as they are identifiable as Social Security benefits using normal banking practices.
Furthermore, no attachable property is owned. SEE http://www.courts.ca.gov/ej155.pdf

It is a waste of time quoting the laws to a collection agency....they have no ability to sue you. The creditor is the one who makes the choice and they will either place it with a another collection agency or a law firm in your state.

If it's a collection agency or even a collections law firm, just send them a C&D letter. You should then only hear from them if you're actually sued.

Still seems to me, if the penny and dime junk debt buyers know they wont get money from a person, they will abandon the debt and put it back on the market... example: i have seen one persons debt account go through 5 different collection agencies and then be past SOL

If a person is truly destitute and cannot pay a debt, this is a viable way to control it, trying to save court costs on both ends as you cant get blood from a turnip (as the saying goes)

and if only the original debtor can sue, why do so many get sued by collection agency names? nThe original creditior has already long since charged off these debts, the junk collector is trying to make a profit off a gamble

Sadly, the responses I got, the first I had written to a "Law Student" who shoulda been able to provide public knowledge codes IMO...

that failed.

I did my own research, have done so for years.

Still others input is valuable.

However, Iall in all, so far all I see is that the replies areon the creditors side, and not the destitute debtors. Ever n=been too broke to file BK? ABND, IF you own no property, there is no reason to file BK, unless you do not do your due diligence and get a judgment against you. Close any bank account you paid the creditor with and bank elsewhere, they cant levy an account they do not know about... and write your bank informing them all monies deposited into that account are CA Law exempt funds, providing documentation supporting your claim.

The debt I originally wrote about is not mine, but a debt incurred through identity theft over the internet. there are no signature, no nothing to prove I actually incurred the debt, and it is in fact not mine. I just wanted to see the response.

thnak you and I close ( to me responding or visiting this site again) this thread as was created to help debtors, not creditors.

Soap lady is correct that it doesn't do any good to recite laws to collection agencies insofar as they are not lawyers and cannot sue you. But the positive side of this is that all the threats from a collection agency mean nothing. Honestly, they just make me laugh. As a former paralegal, I have to just laugh at their tactics sometimes. But do go ahead and send a certified letter to the collection agency stating that you are on disability and to no longer contact you. It is up to the Original Creditor (like the credit card company) whether or not they want to take things further like turning the matter over to a law firm. A reputable collection agency to notify the creditor that you are disabled and only receiving disability monies. Most law firms are well aware that further pursuit would be a waste of time and money.

That being said, there are some law firms who do nothing but credit collections and will try to collect from you anyway. Then the next thing will be a letter from a law firm demanding payment. At this point, you will have to send the same letter to the law firm, notifying them that you are on disability permanently and that you are aware of the statutes protecting your disability income. No creditor can touch Social Security disability monies unless it is for taxes, child support or school loans. Also send that letter to the law firm by certified mail.

In the meantime, in order to take you to court, they have to serve you personally with a Summons and Complaint. My suggestion here would be to stop answering your door to people you don't know for awhile. Many process servers only get paid when they actually serve the person so they can get pretty persistent but there is no law that says you have to open the door to them. Also, some law firms will hire the local sheriff department to serve documents. Again, I wouldn't open the door to anyone, including someone in uniform. A summons is not a warrant and they can't break down your door or anything. Just ignore anyone you don't know at your door. The point is to avoid being served if you are trying to avoid the hassle of going into court.

Also, I would buy a little throwaway phone and change my number on my main phone. From that point on, I would give anyone I owe money to the number of the throwaway phone (including cable and utilities providers) and give your regular number to family and friends only. The reason for this is that if you change your number and one creditor gets the new number, they will list it on your credit report for all creditors to find. In this day and age of 10 dollar throwaway phones, I tell all my loved ones to keep their main number to themselves.

If somehow the law firm does manage to have you served with a summons and complaint, go to court on the day indicated and bring in your documentation proving that you are on disability. The court will probably enter judgment against you but that is about as far as a judgment will go if you are on disability. Remember a judgment is just a piece of paper saying you owe money. If you don't have wages or other income that can be garnished, then the judgment remains just a piece of paper. Once again, social security disability cannot be garnished under the laws stated to you in another post.

And yes, do notify your bank that you are on disability and that your account is protected as such. One last thing, if you do get served, immediately empty your bank account as one of the tricks law firms use is to file papers with the court asking that your bank account be garnished and all the monies in the bank on the day the garnishment is served to the bank, will be held and then sent in to the court registry. Trying to get that money back will take time and if you are on disability, I know you can't afford to wait for the money to be returned. For safety, I would empty the account of all monies except for 15 or 20 dollars on the day before the hearing and notify social security to pay you by check or debit card for awhile. Might save you some trouble in the long run.

My heart goes out to you being sick and having to deal with all this on top of being sick. I hope this information helps to ease your mind and give you some good how-to tips. The creditors aren't going to go out of business because of your inability to pay so stop feeling guilty. You didn't ask to get sick and they will just have to deal with your situation as it is.