Wage garnishments and collections

hollowsailor5 said:Hey, I picked up an enforcement notice a few months back regarding some utility costs from an unpaid bill dating back forever, and I missed the deadline to pay it. Nothing has happened since then. Now that I actually have the funds to cover it, can I just use the original payment slip and pay the amount listed? Will that be enough to clear the debt, and is it even the best way to handle this? I want to make sure I don't pay it, only to have them hit my bank account for the exact same amount anyway...

If the motion for execution likely lands in February or March, the Decision would have been sent by the Court in January.

The most prudent course of action is to identify exactly who sent the notice, call them, or perhaps even visit their office in person to ascertain the total outstanding balance. Ask them to issue a new payment slip so you can settle it properly. Furthermore, there is always a possibility that they have tacked on additional fees they aren't actually entitled to, so you should demand a full itemized specification.
If they simply garnish your bank account, the IRS will take another $50 from you.

That is roughly how the process unfolds.

Brandon Hill8 said:If you only pay off the principal, you're still on the hook for all the interest that's been racking up since the bill was originally due.

Bottom line: can I just send the payment using that voucher even if the deadline passed? Will they just eventually hit my account for whatever interest is left over?

hollowsailor5 said:Bottom line: can I just send the payment using that voucher even if the deadline passed? Will they just eventually hit my account for whatever interest is left over?

Look, just call the person who sent you the garnishment proposal. Ask them to run the full numbers for you, get a specific account number to wire the money to, and boom—done.

If you just pay using that old slip, you’re only hitting the principal. You’ll still be left hanging with all the interest and legal fees.

I mean, wouldn't it be a lot smarter if he just double-checked how old this debt actually is, when they sent it off for enforcement, and whether the statute of limitations has already run out?
A little bit of legwork could save him a massive amount of money.
It’s not a guarantee that he'll walk away with anything, but honestly, it's definitely worth a shot.

So, I managed to get my hands on an enforcement order, only to immediately lose it. Does anyone know where I can go to grab another copy? Should I be looking for a notary at the local courthouse or something? I have the case number handy, but honestly, I'm completely lost on who actually handles this stuff. Any advice would be appreciated.

Just give the collections agent a call and ask them directly.
I’m assuming you already know which firm is handling the case.

ruggedmaker2 said:Just give the collections agent a call and ask them directly.
I’m assuming you already know which firm is handling the case.

Right, I've got the contact info for the enforcement officer, so I'll just give them a ring and ask. Thanks for the input.

Since the thread about the public broadcaster subscription is already closed, I figured I’d ask about this here.

My partner received an enforcement notice this morning for $160 plus $310 in legal fees due to unpaid bills from the first half of 2012. We just got our own notice today, but looking at the stamp from the law firm, it seems they initiated the enforcement process on January 18, 2013—just three days before the statute of limitations would have kicked in on that first unpaid bill. Based on that, I’m assuming we are legally obligated to pay everything they've listed?

The second thing is that we actually never received a single invoice from the broadcaster. We finally realized why when we moved; we found one of their old cards and noticed the guy had written down the wrong house number. I assume that isn't really going to work in our favor, and that we're still on the hook for the full amount?

And thirdly, what happens with the other bills that we never saw, and for which we haven't (yet?) received an enforcement notice? We lived in that apartment until February 2014, and we've been paying our subscription regularly at our new place since then. When we moved to a different neighborhood, we didn't think to notify the broadcaster of the change because, honestly, it never even crossed our minds.

What should we do?

Based on everything I’ve read, you guys are probably going to have to settle up eventually—I mean, it seems pretty inevitable! I'd suggest maybe updating your address and just getting ahead of those debts now, just so you don't end up with another sudden garnishment hitting your paycheck while you're still dealing with the old stuff... though, honestly? It’ll likely happen sooner rather than later.

Okay, so is there any way we can contest this judgment since they listed the wrong address—one where we've never actually lived?

Just to kick things off here—has everyone actually gone ahead and submitted their payment application for that subscription yet?

Here’s how the whole thing went down: a collector showed up right at our door, and once I let him in, he collected the $80 which I immediately paid via online banking since I didn't have any cash on hand. The guy mentioned that moving forward, they would just mail the payment slips directly to our address.
The issue is that the two entrances to our building are connected by a hallway; he came through entrance number 11, so he wrote down that house number for the address, even though we are actually at number 9.
I gave the service provider a call to see if there were any outstanding balances, but the representative told me there weren't any, because the previous tenant had been removed from that address after their bills were returned to the sender for six months straight.
When we moved into our current apartment about two years ago, we officially registered our residency, and we've been paying everything regularly since then.

What I'm wondering is, do we actually have any grounds to complain? We never received a single bill because the address was wrong in the first place. Are we going to get screwed over just because we acted like "responsible citizens" and proactively reached out to the company to settle things?

Also, is it legally possible for them to backdate subscription charges for the apartment we were living in during that period?

ironsurfer10 said:Here’s how the whole thing went down: a collector showed up right at our door, and once I let him in, he collected the $80 which I immediately paid via online banking since I didn't have any cash on hand. The guy mentioned that moving forward, they would just mail the payment slips directly to our address.
The issue is that the two entrances to our building are connected by a hallway; he came through entrance number 11, so he wrote down that house number for the address, even though we are actually at number 9.
I gave the service provider a call to see if there were any outstanding balances, but the representative told me there weren't any, because the previous tenant had been removed from that address after their bills were returned to the sender for six months straight.
When we moved into our current apartment about two years ago, we officially registered our residency, and we've been paying everything regularly since then.

What I'm wondering is, do we actually have any grounds to complain? We never received a single bill because the address was wrong in the first place. Are we going to get screwed over just because we acted like "responsible citizens" and proactively reached out to the company to settle things?

Also, is it legally possible for them to backdate subscription charges for the apartment we were living in during that period?

I've heard stories about them doing that, but I read somewhere recently that they aren't allowed to just barge into apartments to charge you anymore. Why did you even let them in? 🤔

If I had to guess, I'd say they can only charge you for one year back before the statute of limitations kicks in. Basically, they can try to bill you, but you just invoke the statute of limitations and call it a day. 🙂
I see people mentioning 6 months, but it doesn't cite a legal source, so you'll need to look that up yourself (check the AT&T website or something).

I’m honestly at a loss here. Back in 2009 and 2010, I was dealing with an enforcement order from a local collections agency acting on behalf of AT&T regarding some stuff from 2008. That whole thing was settled, or so I thought. Fast forward to late 2014—I went to sign up for an AT&T subscription again, only to find out I couldn't because that same collection agency still had me blacklisted. They told me I had to deal with them directly, which is exactly what I did. It turns out there were some court costs left unpaid in the amount of $83, but since then, those fees have ballooned to over $567. AT&T claims I don't owe them a dime, but they're telling me I have to clear this up with the agency first. These vultures won't budge unless I pay off the entire debt, including all these interest charges I had absolutely no idea existed after the initial enforcement

How on earth did a debt of $83 balloon to over $567 in just six years? Just fire off an email asking them straight up why the balance spiked like that and why nobody bothered to notify you. Demand a full itemized breakdown of every single cent they claim you owe.
How were you handling the collection? Were you paying them directly, or were they just grabbing it from your bank account? Did you actually get a formal notice of the levy and a confirmation from the agency that the debt is cleared?
I recently dealt with a situation involving T-Mobile where they offered me a settlement. They told me if I paid the full amount plus court costs, they'd waive the interest. I took the deal, but I made sure to demand written proof that the debt was settled in full and that they have zero remaining claims against me.

They’ve gone and seized my wages, even though I don't owe them a dime. Instead of actually helping, they're just blocking everything, and honestly, dealing with these guys at the Department of the Treasury has been a nightmare. I tried to have a civil conversation with them to clear this up, but they aren't interested in giving me any explanations; they just resort to threats, telling me they'll just trigger another garnishment if I don't pay up immediately. My employer even showed me my pay stubs to prove that the specific amount was already deducted for the seizure, but apparently, that doesn't matter to them one bit.

And that’s exactly what keeps me up at night. It feels like you aren't even considered innocent globally until they actually prove you're guilty—but here in the States, the presumption of innocence feels like a total myth. You're guilty until you can somehow prove otherwise. The government and the legal system are basically designed to protect themselves rather than the individual. They can just slap you with a garnishment, drain your bank account without answering to anyone, and leave you high and dry. Sure, you can try to sue them later, but honestly, who has the time? By the time you actually see a dime of your own money again, you're looking at ten years of

Dana Chavez4 said:They’ve gone and seized my wages, even though I don't owe them a dime. Instead of actually helping, they're just blocking everything, and honestly, dealing with these guys at the Department of the Treasury has been a nightmare. I tried to have a civil conversation with them to clear this up, but they aren't interested in giving me any explanations; they just resort to threats, telling me they'll just trigger another garnishment if I don't pay up immediately. My employer even showed me my pay stubs to prove that the specific amount was already deducted for the seizure, but apparently, that doesn't matter to them one bit.

Look, if they pulled it from your check, there's a real chance they didn't remit the full amount listed on the court order. Maybe they misread it, maybe they're incompetent, who knows?
Go down to the payroll department at your office and demand to see the paperwork. Make them show you the official order versus exactly how much was sent over.
There could definitely be a mistake there.

It's also totally possible they paid it but failed to send the confirmation receipt (if the court required one), so now you're stuck chasing a ghost debt that technically doesn't exist anymore because someone, somewhere, simply failed to do their job.

And honestly... seeing it jump from $83 all the way to $567? Wow. I have no clue how that even happens.

rapidskipper12 said:How on earth did a debt of $83 balloon to over $567 in just six years? Just fire off an email asking them straight up why the balance spiked like that and why nobody bothered to notify you. Demand a full itemized breakdown of every single cent they claim you owe.
How were you handling the collection? Were you paying them directly, or were they just grabbing it from your bank account? Did you actually get a formal notice of the levy and a confirmation from the agency that the debt is cleared?
I recently dealt with a situation involving T-Mobile where they offered me a settlement. They told me if I paid the full amount plus court costs, they'd waive the interest. I took the deal, but I made sure to demand written proof that the debt was settled in full and that they have zero remaining claims against me.

Looking at how things usually go with the American system, it actually surprises me that the amount isn't even higher than 😢 Unfortunately I lost my iPhone using Tapatalk😢

Dana Chavez4 said:They’ve gone and seized my wages, even though I don't owe them a dime. Instead of actually helping, they're just blocking everything, and honestly, dealing with these guys at the Department of the Treasury has been a nightmare. I tried to have a civil conversation with them to clear this up, but they aren't interested in giving me any explanations; they just resort to threats, telling me they'll just trigger another garnishment if I don't pay up immediately. My employer even showed me my pay stubs to prove that the specific amount was already deducted for the seizure, but apparently, that doesn't matter to them one bit.

First off, NBC shouldn't be able to deny you service just because you owe a third party—that’s completely against the law.
(though, to be honest, I'm not sure why those $27 are getting under your skin so much, but hey, fair enough)

Second—there is absolutely zero legal basis for an amount related to $83 to have ballooned by 1700 in just a few years. There just isn't.