BEWARE of Arbitration and your settlement company

Won't the Arbitration forum consider the efforts that someone is trying to pay the debt? What happens if a company tries to scam someone like it happened in your case? If they always make the decision in favor of the creditors, more and more credit companies will get aware of this fact and hence the debtor will have no protection at all. Things will get tougher over a period of time.

Yes, interesting isn't it? Here I am the innocent one turning all my money over to a company that cannot STOP an arbitration! that's right, I just talked to a lawyer, it does not matter if your with a settlement company, debt col co. or doing this yourself, if you sign an arbitration agreement clause when you applied for that card, your stuck! In 99% of arbitration hearings with the National Arbitration Forum, they award to the creditor! and you can't overturn it!! I know it because I'm living it! that's right folks, one of my accounts I had listed with a settlement company (and because I was listed with a settlement company, they turned it over to arbitration) COULD NOT BE STOPPED! I have sent messages to the NAF and have gotten NO response! So you need to really be very careful. If you get an arbitration letter about any of your credit card companies, don't ignore it thinking that your settlement company is going to take care of it foryou. because in most cases they can do nothing about it.

I am with a settlement company and I have Chase cards (2) 0f them with the company. I have received a Mann Bracken letter. Mine says:

basically,
I have entered a contract with Chase Bank that provides for resolution of claims or disputes by binding arbitration.
They state their client (Chase) will honor this contract provision. In the event that they are unable to reach a satisfactory amicable arrangements, the filing of an arbitration claim will be evaluated as our clients last remedy. My firm is not licensed to practice law in your jurisdiction and will not pursue any legal action in the state or federal courts. In the event that an arbitration award is ultimately obtained,local counsel admitted to the practice of law in your jurisdiction will be retained to pursue legal remedies based upon such an award.

It is our hope we mutually agreeable resolution to this matter.

-----> NOW, when I spoke with my settlement company they sent me copies of the letters they sent to Mann Bracken. They said they work with them everyday. They also said that "they" can not get a judgment against me, that it would have to be sent back to Chase my original creditor. They more or less said this was an ugly, hairy scary tactic letter they use to scare us to death into paying.

????? I don't have a clue what to think now. I am scared actually. I had a lawyer tell me that I would have to be notified to go to court in order for a judgment to be granted and that the judge would more than likely favor me since I am trying.

He also asked me why I did not just go ahead and bankrupt and be done with it all. It would save me 400.00 a month and no more harassment calls. I could be on with my life. I have been in a settlement company now for 9 months and paid over 4000.00. I hate to turn back now, but I am questioning my own thoughts now.

Do you have any link to the govt. website where we can get some more information about this part? This is really risky. :(

Everything I looked up suggests that arbitrators are used to help settle debts for their clients. I am in a settlement company, so maybe they will work something out sooner or later.

IF say, it comes to a judgment. I will file bankruptcy so fast--my head will hurl.

The only thing I can tell you guys is that I signed up with Lawgistix and the two that were with chase manhattan WERE signed up with this settlement company and I was with them for 8 months. Now, if your state doesn't honor arbitration, that's one thing, I can't answer that, I'm just making you all aware of what has been happening to me. and no i didn't respond to the arbitration crap because I sent it on as I sent everything to lawgistix that i got. it did ME no good. The only thing I can tell you is if you happen to get an actual arbitration claim against you, it will come FEDEX with a settlement offer and then the claim of arbitration. I suggest if you don't get a letter from your settlement company about how to deal with this you do NOT ignore it. If you have to go to the website of the national arbitration forum and submit a response to the stuff you got in the mail. YOu want to make sure you do answer it or they will automatically force award on the creditor. I am living with this now and yes I am declaring bankruptcy!! should have done that in the first place instead of messing around with this crap!

Here you go...the website to the NAF

http://www.arb-forum.com/default.aspx

First of all: did your settlement company TELL you they would handle the arbitration for you and respond to them and provide you with a copy of the letter they sent to them? My company did, my company advised me not to contact them, as they are very intimidating people.

From what I gather from the website you sent, they have a "fair" process. They are legally bound to not be biased and will hear both sides of the story. I see nothing about them "jumping the guns and favoring the credit card company and coming after you."

I spoke with my father tonight who is a bankruptcy survivor since 2000 and he told me that this letter was all mombo-jombo type of stuff. He says that when they can't get their bluff in on you, they will send it back. I don't know, I may see the FEDEX tomorrow.

If you don't mind me asking, how much is your debt?

When did you file bankruptcy? After FEDEX delivered the papers? I don't know, my dad is sure against me filing bankruptcy. My settlement company assured me today that they work and settle with Mann Bracken every day and that they work with them all the time. They also assured me that SHOULD things get ugly with them then they would settle something with them and rearrange my payment schedule to accomodate a payment plan with them.

I am letting my settlement company take care of the whole ordeal.

I owe two chase accounts one that is $2k and one that is 12k and i'm not trying to scare you to death but on the other hand I am trying to warn people that if they get this stuff sent to them not to ignore it. and i didn't get what your talking about that is a letter to scare you. I got this thing that looked like a book! it was like 20 pages long and sent by federal express which had to be signed for. I got one for each account. I got their typical lawyer letters and forwarded them to the company just like I was suppose to. and that's the reason according to Mann bracken as to why it went to arbitration......i cannot answer with your circumstances..........i can only tell you what i was told and i'm telling you and everyone else that if you get such a thing, make sure it's taken care of because if it's dropped they will award to chase. and yes they can..........i have read many articles in the news, etc that says 99% of the time they award the creditor. this isn't something i just made up while drinking tea and eating cookies!

Now, that you were delivered the book....what do you do now? Are they garnishing your check? Seized your accts? or what?

I have an acct with Chase for 5K and my husband has one too for 5K. As far as they are concerned, we are seperated and my husband is not working. SO, they cant get blood out of a turnip from my husband. However I am working and I am not liable for his accts, so perhaps they will work with my settlement company for 5k.

See, this is what gets me. These credit card companies DESTROYS peoples lives and then here when a person decides that they have had enough and reaches out for help rather than filing bankruptcy----you would just think that they would be happy to get half the money owed rather than NOTHING with bankruptcy.

I just don't get it. CREDIT CARDS are the devil's spawn and I never, ever want another one as long as I live.....

I turned over these two thick book like pages to my settlement company who sat on it for three weeks and did nothing, then i got the second letter for both telling me that the hearing was scheduled, then i did nothing about it thinking it was taken care of, then i got the award letter in favor of chase. So that is where I am at.

No, the creditor has to take that award to file it as a complaint and i would have to be served, then it goes to court where i can appeal it, then if they get that judgement it's more time to file for garnishment, it does not happen overnight.

I saw a lawyer today and I am doing a chapter 13...it will also knock out most of what I owe on my car too, and knock down what is owed on it as far as the value, because i owe more than it's worth, the payments will be like $400 less for that as i pay $700 now. He told me that actually bankruptcy will get rid of all those R9 status and in a year the credit scores will go UP. he said the trouble with these companies is that there is hardly any money in accounts to deal with creditors if they all sue at once and in most cases they are going to follow suit due to the new laws out there today. settlement only works he says IF you have like a rather large sum of money already in place and you settle accounts fast, that's the only way it works, 3 year plans, 5 year plans, he says forget it!

I guess everyone has their own thoughts, etc about this whole situation with debt, settlement and management.

The truth is, we are all in debt! and when I did this with the settlement company, I chose to do it because I explore the management, consolidation but the payments were NOT any lower than what I was already paying......I needed to cut my monthly payment down to more than half! these consolidation companies do offer that. A settlement company offered to really reduce what I was paying per month. I thought that was "the best" alternative to bankruptcy. I was trying to be responsible. I thought I fully explored all the options...I didn't just jump into this head feet first.

The rules have changes SO MUCH since last year. citibank won't even talk to a third party company, they will ONLY talk to you now! Most settlement companies won't take Citibank. Debt con. companies can't get them to even accept terms. They just simply will NOT deal with outside sources. Will the rest of the creditors follow suit? I would have to say in my own opinion YES! Eventually they will. Things are getting tougher out there.

In the end, one year later to the day since I signed up with a settlement company.........I am on the verge of losing everything I have, everything I own. And am forced to declare chapter 13 ANYWAY, which is what I was trying to avoid.

Rules and the way credit card companies are dealing with things ARE CHANGING!!! They may be able to bide you some time but in the end, unless you have a lot of up front cash as a bulk lump sum and you want to get out of debt by settlement, it's not going to work in the long run, this comes from a lawyer, NOT ME!!!

Take what you want from this post, listen to it or not, I don't care! I do NOT want anyone to end up like me.

Read your arbitration clauses, but I believe you have the right to reject the arbitrator and choose a different one. the key to arbitration is SUPPOSED to be that it is a neutral party, however,how can a arbitrator on Chase's (or any other creditors) payroll remain neutral?

That's right Clay, my point exactly........then they tell me I can't appeal, this whole thing is BS...I think I'm going to appeal it anyway to the forum and claim unfair practices....i mean what really do I have to lose...........I can tell you though, when it gets to the courthouse, I WILL appeal it to bide me time.

I think int he arbitration process, there comes a point where the matter can get referred to the legal system if they arbitrator feels they are at an impass.

SO, when it goes to courthouse...what is their next
step? In case this happens to me?

they get a summary judgement and then they file to either garnish your wages or put a lien on property but has to go through local courts.........they still have to file a complaint with the court and you and then due process still has to be done where your served, etc. but yes they file it then they can proceed to garnishment court and file that.

Guys, you are really freaking me out now! I was juat about to take the plunge into debt negotiation, and from what I'm reading, will I have to declare bankruptcy anyway later on?
Linda, what company are you using, if you don't mind my asking..? I have been approached by Superior debt solutions. Has anyone dealt with them?
Thanks!

If you read through alot of the PDL contracts,they too call for Binding Arbitration. So I wonder what the relatonship is. I actually called National Arbitration Forum and asked them why a company would secifically tell me I had to use a particular arbitrator,she said that's the way the debt company
set it up.

So I too wonder how fair it is!

In addition, I believe the only time courts get involved is if the judgement is not honored.

no the company HAS to take the award to your local courthouse and a complaint must be filed first, then you must be served,,,,,,,it's part of due process. they just cannot walk in and start garnishing wages. they have to get the award turned into a summary judgement and then take you to garnishment court. it MUST be filed with your local courthouse to get any kind of legal action taken.

Ok, so once it goes to our local courthouse, to get a judgment to garnish wages, we can go and state our case and I have been told by local attorneys the the judge will turn down the judgement and rule in my favor with all the supported documentation that I am current in my debt settlement program and TRYING to really not take the bum way out, you know what I mean?

Guys....the only thing that is keeping me from filing bankruptcy is two things actually.

--the fact that it is better to settle on an amount in the long run than it is to just walk away from it all through bankruptcy.

--I am afraid through bankruptcy, they will come and take everything in my house. NOT that I have valuable things (only through my eyes that is...) I have heard of trustees wanting your family portraits and your jewelry.

Never heard of that happening. Most creditors never
even show up at the bankruptcy hearing!
Although, A couple years after being discharged I have heard of the creditors trying to get there money back!
Also remember if things were going rough with them,
they would not think twice about filing!

I was told by my debt settlement company that going to court was always a possibility. My debt counselor has been pretty open and honest about these things with me when I've asked her. I start worrying and that's when she gets an e-mail. There is no guarantee that it won't go to court and I won't get garnished through my paycheck. I knew that possibility going into the settlement process. It is something I thought about for several months before I signed up. I am working with a reputable settlement company though. I believe I made the right choice for me. I was also told that if something does goe to court, I have all the documentation to prove that I am trying to do something about the debt. We could always ask for more time to settle with the creditor in case something like this happens. Quietsound, I'm sorry to hear that you have to go through this. I will keep my fingers crossed for you !

If you file chapter 7 yes they will take everything and sell your house to pay the debt. If you file chapter 13 they don't take your house and stuff. with a 13 you pay back money over a 3 to 5 year program that the courts make the creditor adhere to.

In my situation, I have debts in my own name, my husband has debts in his name and we have the lessor of debts in both our names jointly. in a chapter 13, my debts get wiped out, my husband's debts get wiped out. the title to the house is protected because of tenants in their entirety....the only thing we pay in the chapter 13 on the payment plan is the JOINT amount ........no it's not true, the R9 status on your report is WORSE! than an actual bankruptcy....i'll repeat that, it's worse showing all the debts and the R9 status on your credit report. once the bankruptcy happens those R9 status go away.

OH this whole thing has been a nightmare, I started out with Lawgistix a year ago in august and If I would have known all this was going to happen I would have just declared bankruptcy then and there and to hell with all of it. this has wrecked my life, my health and everything else.

No your right, it says in the contract that it "can" happen but you get the right salesperson pushing these companies they tell you anything to get you to sign up. No it won't happen, only 1% get sued, no it's double dipping, to turn it into their insurance co and then they write off half to IRS and they don't sue cause it's double dipping. I'd love to smash in the head of the woman who sold me on this. The thing is, regardless if anyone likes it or not, the credit card companies are going to start thinking of new ways to get their money. they aren't gonna sit for months and months and years and years. But again, I started these posts to make people aware of what is going on. It's certainly NOT to get in trouble or to cause trouble, I'm in ENOUGH trouble as it is.

No, Chapter 7 does NOT take your house--if you are current in payments and they don't take your vehicle if you are current in payments. They CAN take some of your stuff/belongings, however most is exempt. I was wanting to find out exactly what was exempt....

I am signed up with a settlement company as well that is reputable. They have been in business since 2003 and has only had 13 complaints against them that were all settled. They are also a member of BBB. I believe Lawgistix is not a member of the BBB. I found my company off the CNN website and they have never told me I WOULD NEVER get sued and they did not "talk" me into signing up with them. They did not ask for an up front chunck of money, and they did take a large portion out of my first three payments, however now for 11 more months they take 176.00 out of my 400.00 which is not bad. After the 11 months the full 400.00 is mine for my acct to settle with.
I have 1500.00 in my acct to start settling with now...

My cards are major company cards--(2) chase cards (2) Sears cards, providian, Bank of America and I have (2) wffnb cards with 1k balances--

I honestly don't think any of these companies are in trouble or hurting. When the credit card companies changed their minimum payments the end of last year--they knew people could not afford this..they EXPECTED this type of crap to happen. THAT is why I jumped on the deal when I did. I was unable to pay my accts when the payments increased 50-75.00. I read on CNN that cards are prepared to take losses this year from the new law which will then result in new tougher laws for the future.

I hate all credit cards and I am just praying mine are the one they are writing all off and hopefully they will know they can't get blood from a turnip.

Another thing is this: Since my father filed bankruptcy in 2000, he has since then got back into cc card det in 15k and they have been threating to sue him with arbitration letters and such for the last 3 years--have not done anything to him. No summons or garnishments.

Only difference with his situation and mine is he got out of his ordeal in 2000 quickly-I have lived almost 10 months without a credit card and have no intentions of getting another one.....EVER.

Well hon, if it works for you it works for you. however bankruptcy was alot different in 2000 than right now and I don't know where your getting your info but chap. 7 is NOT the way to go if you have any assets, a house, whether it's on time payments or not, they will sell your house with a 7. they will use that money and pay off the debt. a chapter 13 is where you can keep your home. but i'm not going to go back and forth about this, where YOUR at now is where I was a year ago! I had the same "rationalizations" as you have and what you addressed with the same logical questions and answers but I'm telling you I learned a whole lot real fast. they didn't take a chunk of money from me, they took it out in four payments ..........I'm certainly am not going to sit here and argue which company, is the best, what method is the best, I'm telling you my situation and what happened, this is information only. If you feel your settlement company is great, who am I to argue it. YOu can rationalize it to the moon. I would like to however hear from you a year from now and let me know your experiences and I hope you fair better than I did.

I enrolled in a debt settlement program 5 months ago and pay a monthly fee that does not go towards any debt. They ckaim to in the end save me thousands of dollars. However, already 5 accounts are in the hand of some real tough law offices. Wolpolff and Abramson and Frederick J hanna. I am scared to death. Many threatening calls, I live in PA where wage garnishment is exempt, but this is a nightmare and I wish I would have filed bankruptcy. I am concerned because my name is also on my parents home with my sisters. My settlement company is credit solutions. How long are creditors going to wait for an arrangement or settlement? My husband and I are both enrolled . We accumlated much debt due to his business faling. He is a contractor and hasn't been paid 40k + in the last year and a half. On top of that he is having health problems. I want to pay my debts, but am now dealing with companies referring to the acounts as being close to charge off. What does this mean? When should I expect a summons for judgement? Any advice would be helpfyl. Thank you.

On the arbitration issue Lcw is correct. Just as soon as you receive notice of hearing,you file objection with mediator.You keep objecting until it goes to court.If you can get it to court,then the attorney has to prove the case.