can I go to jail????

There is no debtors jail and hasnt been for a couple of hundred years I think. You WILL NOT go to jail.

At any rate what would be the point of putting you in jail?

After we get a judgement against you, if you fail to turn over your assets as ordered, you will be found in contempt of court and will be jailed. You need to just pay up.

You can not and will nit go to jail for not paying a bill. it is a civil matter, not a criminal matter. Please do not worry about that.No Nonsense needs to get the facts straight.

I have no assets....I do not own anything and won't for 10 years....or more. So if I have no assets to turn over than what happens?? :?:

If you have no assets you cant give them any. What is this debt you owe for. Please do not worry. You will not go to jail.

don't listen to collector.doc brown is in the delorean waiting to take him back to 1992.the worst that will happen is you work out payment arrangements you can afford.you will not go to jail.

it's credit card debt from capital one original amount from them 1000.00 they jacked up with fees to 1600.00 it went to collections and now it's 2825.00. I am going to answer the summons today...can I still ask for verification of debt even if I am already being sued?

ask for validation,that does seem like they jacked up your debt.at least it looks like it could be reduced at worst.they would have to justify that big of a spike.

The judge won't tell you that you have to skip on paying for necessities to satisfy the debt even if they do get a judgment, like they won't say you have to skip on paying for prenatal care, rent, car etc. There is a possibility if a judgment is obtained that they could file a writ of execution to force sale of certain properties but there are items that are exempt from this.

What the collector was referring to was perjuring yourself, in which case it could carry jail time. Just don't do that and you'll be OK. If you would like to go into this with legal council you can start shopping around for an attorney at naca.net.

I just wanted to say that I don't own anything to sell for money. My car is capital one auto financed and my mobile home is on a 10 year loan as well(My fiance is 1st on that loan). I don't have anything else. I really don't have any items to sell. Can I just ask the judge to garnish my wages if need be??

i think rather than a garnishment,you could work out payment arrangements.just let them know what you can afford per month.that is better than a garnishment.

Angie,

On the lighter side,

with a 3 year old and one on the way it will be allot longer than ten years before you own anything other than strollers, wagons, bikes, skateboard, dolls........... :)

My son is dealing with American Credit & Collections LLC. They are out of Scranton Pennsylvania. He recieved a letter from them back in October 2007. They threatened to take litigation against him if he did not pay them a debt from some online College, Penn Foster. He called them and agreed to set up payments. The payments were being debited from his bank acct. The last two payments came back. He was unable to make them, so now they are threatening to take legal action and charge him with a felony. Since when do collection agencies come off threatening to throw people in jail? They stated that they do not take Western Union quick Collects. Could it be that they may not be bonded and should'nt be collecting payments from people period? When they sent him the very first letter, they threatened him with legal litigation to collect the debt right off the bat. My son who lives in another state still has the letter and he stated that no where on the letter is there a statement regarding the 30 day debt verification of validation. I have read other consumer complaints on this company and some people are taking them to court. How about it....possible lawsuit?

My son is dealing with American Credit & Collections LLC. They are out of Scranton Pennsylvania. He recieved a letter from them back in October 2007. They threatened to take litigation against him if he did not pay them a debt from some online College, Penn Foster. He called them and agreed to set up payments. The payments were being debited from his bank acct. The last two payments came back. He was unable to make them, so now they are threatening to take legal action and charge him with a felony. Since when do collection agencies come off threatening to throw people in jail? They stated that they do not take Western Union quick Collects. Could it be that they may not be bonded and should'nt be collecting payments from people period? When they sent him the very first letter, they threatened him with legal litigation to collect the debt right off the bat. My son who lives in another state still has the letter and he stated that no where on the letter is there a statement regarding the 30 day debt verification of validation. I have read other consumer complaints on this company and some people are taking them to court. How about it....possible lawsuit?

I forgot to include in the last post that ACC sent to this address a certified letter. My son lives in TX. The letter stated that the last payment that my son made on his acct came back and that they will be filing felony charges against him. I had spoken to these knuckleheads on the phone two weeks ago about my sons' acct which they were not supposed to be doing. They could be sued just on those grounds. My son did not give them permission to speak to me. They did stated bottom line that he would either be brought up on criminal charges for the check coming back,(Most legitimate debt collectors will ask that the amt be paid either through another acct, or other means if your acct comes back NSF) or he would be sued if the debt was not paid in full. All this over $500.00. The debt collector for some reason phoned me back the same night that I had spoken to him about my sons' acct. On my caller id it said private under 1 missed call. When I called him back, this same collector swore up and down that he had not called me back. (I had not been in the room to answer when it rang) This may have been an attempt to get my address...I don't know. Sent a C&D letter yesterday. Actually was able to utilize this DebtCC websites' resources to type it. Thanks! My son will contact an attorney Monday and I will also contact an attorney here in my state. If anyone else has dealt with these people, please drop me a line at xxx . May God bless and keep you all. Walk by faith, not by sight
E-mail removed for your safety..Bossy4455

Yeah... A lawsuit [him against them] is a distinct possibility here. Cas have been threatening people with jail time and worse since about forever, but that doesn't make it true, or legal. I spotted at least two serious fdcpa violations in what you wrote. I'm tired, there are probably more. It would definitely be worth you/your son's time to consult with a qualified consumer attorney. You/he should also file complaints with the Attorneys General of his state and the state the collectors are based in, as well as the FTC.

I would say you have grounds for a suit, debts are civil matters, not criminal. It is a violation of the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act to threaten a person with jail time or to say that they have committed a crime. This may be pursued via civil suit for $1,000 in statutory damages plus punitive damages, attorney fees, and court costs.

you can search for a consumer law attorney at NACA.net

And your son lives in Texas? Excellent! Texas has some very favorable consumer protection laws.

Thanks for the support and the advice. What are the consumer laws in Texas. Spoke to Bud Hibbs on the phone two weeks ago. Should we except anymore certified mail from these people? :)

The name of this company if American Credit & Collections LLC. ANyone that has dealt with them, please post comments about them on this website. They maybe able to help someone else who in the future my endure the unfortunate experience of running afoul of them. Thanks again.

Check wih Bud on what the laws actually are and where to find them. I'd bet the laws in question are online. Try starting with the official Texas website. Also check with the TX Attorney General's office. File a complaint with them!

My son was finally able to get hold of an attorney. He will fill out some preliminary paperwork and the attorney will send a letter to the Collection Agency. We had sent them a validation letter earlier but it had the client no. on it and not the acct no. When I realized the error I corrected it and sent another one out yesterday. This was before my son spoke to his attorney. Feel better now because we now have a legal eagle on board. Once this incident is behind him, I need to find out...Does this forum provide debt consolidaiton services and are their lawyers on board to help deal with the creditors? My son has other past due accts and will need to get something together to start paying on them. This would possibly be the only way to get out from under, unless he declares bankruptcy. He does'nt want to do that so debt consolidation maybe his best bet. How does debt consolidation effect your credit? Will it help?

debt consolidation agencies work with your creditors to lower your interest rates and may sometimes allow you to pay less than what you actually owe, especially when it comes to collection agencies. If the CA reports a settlement as a settlement as opposed to paid in full then it can adversely impact your FICO score.

You can't go to jail for debt, but you WILL go to jail for disobeying a judge's orders. Judges don't want to hear your hard luck stories; they expect you to pay your debts. There are many ways for you to raise money to pay debts. . You need to pay up. Edited for vulgarity--if you are attacking, etc., it will be edited or deleted..Refer to the Terms Of Service rules..Bossy4455

Oh, look! Another troll. Isn't that special.......

Don't you just love it ( saying this sarcastically..of course..) when people get on this forum and say, " YEP...you're going to jail,"..and THEN don't give any kind of ID AT ALL???? I've NEVER known a CA to put anyone in jail..and I've dealt with ALOT of CA's. As someone has said above, debts are a Civil matter..NOT Criminal. Even when I dealt with CashCall and couldn't make thier payments, they said they would "send me to jail for defaulting on a loan." AM I there, yet?/ NOPE!! Don't worry, ANGIEMARIE..you're in 'good hands' with 'us' ( people on this forum).

If your son is a resident of Texas, yes, the collector can face criminal charges. All violations of the Texas Debt Collection Act are by default also violations of the state's Trade Practices Act and are also criminal violations.

"Judges don't want to hear your hard luck stories; they expect you to pay your debts. There are many ways for you to raise money to pay debts. All are less bothersome than confronting jailed biker chicks with mop handles. You need to pay up. "

What a bloody joke. Judges like to see people like me tear the heads off of people like you. Another troll I suspect.

[quote=LawStudent]What a bloody joke. Judges like to see people like me tear the heads off of people like you.[/quote]

Ouch!

no nonsnse collector i presume,yes i know it's you your response said it all.the you need to pay up sold it.you fired up your normally inactive brain cells to try to put one over,nice try mope.

Obviously a troll is a debt collector. No one in the forum is attempting to escape paying their debts. This person assumes as much. It is the awful way that some collectors will go after people for something as finite as money. Those whose only ambition or passion in life is to obtain material wealth are missing out on what life is really about. Not money nor material wealth, although having nice things is something we all enjoy. When the good Lord calls your soul away from this earth, what sort of an account will you give him..., how did you treat your fellow man? Did you exhibit empathy toward people, even people that you deemed unworthy of empathy... were you compassionate...did you let your family know that you loved them and cared for them...were you a friend indeed in the times when people needed you to be a friend..Did you spend the time that you were alloted during your sojourn on earth to bring light into the world...or will your celestial record show that some of your actions contributed in some shape or form to human suffering and pain? Of course we are all human, and we all have done things that have hurt other people in some way shape or form, but to purposely take part in activities that make life difficult and even unbearable for some is an awful way to live. I am a Christian and I have to say that I would never take a job or participate in a profession that exploits and uses terroristic tactics in order to get money from someone. Yes people should pay their debts....but show compassion and humility. Why gain the entire world and loose your soul...because of the love of money? It's not worth it. It is the love of money, and the mad dash and acquistion of material wealth that is contributing so much of the misery in the world. Where there is greed and avarice, there is corruption. To lie cheat and steal is not honourable. If you owe a debt no doubt one is obligated to pay it, but using threats and extortion and character assasination is not a constuctive or humane way to collect the debt. No amount of money is worth stooping to such levels. To all those that are being pursued by questionable debt collectors, place all your trust in the ultimate advocate, Jesus the Christ. He will give you a peace that the world cannot give you, nor take away. " Then Jesus said to his disciples, " Therefore I tell you, do not worry about your life, what you will eat, or about your body, what you will wear. Life is more than food, and the body more than clothes. Consider the ravens: they do not sow or reap, they have no storeroom or barn, yet God feeds them, And how much more valuable are you than birds!" Luke 12:13. For those involved in the business of collecting debt in a manner that either teeters on that which is illegal or is outright illegal, "No one can serve two masters. Either he can hate the one, and love the other, or he will be devoted to the one, and despise the other. You cannot serve God and money." Matthew 6:24
"For God so Loved the world that he gave his only begotten son, that whosoever believes in him, shall not perish, but have everlasting life." John 3:11.

Go get'em, BANDIBREATH!!! I figure it this way..if the individuals, on this forum, did NOT want to try and take care of their debts, they would not be here. I'm noticing we are getting alot of 'young' people, who just need some guidance, on how to take care of their issues. the LAST thing they need is some scum to scare them half to death!!!

I like many other Americans have debt problems. I have a Capital One acct. that has gone bad. Gerald E. Moore and Assoc. have this acct. now and I have already caught them in a lie about my credit score. They were saying that they checked and I know better. They said that it was 200 points greater than it actually is. I know because I have a financial advisor working with me now and they have checked it of course and have given me the score and report. It is sad that I know that I owe some money to Capital One, but to not work with me and to sick these liars on me angers me. I am willing to work and pay what I need to, but be fair. I can not get a loan that Gerald E. Moore and Assoc. say I can get with the credit score I don't have. I am getting papers in the mail and they are saying that I should have got served, but no Sheriff's car has been out here. I am a 3rd shift employee so I am here during the day. Is this something I should worry about? I am feeling that these people are creeps and I am not sure of a direction to go. Of course they get paid when Capital One does, but I have tried to go back to Capital One but they give me the Gerald E. Moore number to call to get assistance. Any advice is welcomed....... Thank you for your time.

First and foremost, keep records of everything connected to this situation. Save all papers that they send ou, including the envelopes they come in. Keep detailed note of any phone calls, or better yet, tape the calls if it's legal in your state. [What state are you in, BTW?] Under Federal law [fdcpa] collectors are not allowed to lie, abuse, harrass, etc. Document their violations, and you can file suit against them. You can recover damages of $1k per violation, so this is serious busainess.

OK, next thing to do... Send them a demand for validation. There's a very good template for a DV letter here. The template contains a limited cease and desist paragraph that will limit them to contact through the mail only. If they continue calling after receiving the letter, that's more violations. Send the latter certified mail, return receipt requested. It costs about $5 to mail it that way, but you'll be able to prove they got it, and when.

Good luck to you. If you have more questions or need help, holler.