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| The independent answer to your debt problems | login join |
| e-zersaid | 08-09-2007 12:12 AM |
 Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | ok ,it starts off like this. i am a merchant mariner in the united states for 10 yrs. due to my job i'm not home much and my wife pays the bills. I have recently found out that creditors are constantly calling the house and also found out that my bank acct was frozen due to an unpaid bill from at&t a service that we never had. Well we had it for a few days and had it cancelled due to a party line and we couldn't make any calls without some else being on the line at the same time. So we cancelled it and got verizon. The lawyer says that we owe 891.us dollars from nov. 2001. I also found out that she has 2 credit card acct's in collection 1 of which she said was paid off years ago. we are a few months behind on a bunch of other payments. How do i prove that i don't owe at&t any money and how do i prove that she paid off that 1 credit card when i don't have the documentation? What can i do to make payment agreements with these other companys that i'm having a hard time paying?any help you may have will be greatly appreciated. thanks, |
| DW George | 08-09-2007 08:11 PM |
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Joined: 01 May 2007 Posts: 148 My Profile | e-zersaid Welcome to the forum. I am sorry to read about your circumstances. No matter how bad you think things are, its always good to get other people's opinion on things and try and get some perspective on your situation. Have you tired to speak to AT&T. I know the account is a bit old, but what communication did you have with them in November 2001 and more recently. Due you have any proof of cancellation? Do you have any proof of the party line? What has your lawyer said in respect of paying the debt? I'll do some research to see if the US has what we have in the UK in terms of a statute of limitations of debt. In England and Wales it 6 years and in Scotland it's 5 years. This basically means that if a debt has been ignored by the creditor for a given period they can't chase you up for payment. Dealing with the rest of your debt problem, I think both you and your wife need to set a side an evening and go through exactly what you owe and to whom. List all you assets and income and compare this to what is leaving your account each month. Basically a financial audit of your finances. Once you have done this you'll have a better idea of how to progress things, ie a game plan on how to sort out your finances. Once you have done this we can help you out and give you advice on various strategies in dealing with your debt. The title to this thread obviously displays that you are in a dark place about your finances. Many people will say don't worry about it it just money but in reality money does get a lot of people down. What I would suggest when you are doing your financial audit is also do an emotional audit with each other. List the things that are getting you down and the things that make you happy. Focus on the happy things and address the things that are making you unhappy. Then work out a game plan to get to where you want to be. I hope this has helped. Planning can help you get perspective of life so make a date with your wife and get planning. George |
| e-zersaid | 08-09-2007 09:45 PM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | thanks george for the quick reply. I spoke to at&t within the last 4 days,they said they have no record of this bill. I can't say when the service was cancelled because it was many years ago. I lived at the house from approx. 1993 - 2002. The lawyer that put the freeze on my acct. said the bill was from nov. 2001. I have no records for that time frame. I have no proof of cancellation nor do i have proof of the party line. I do not have a lawyer at this time. I'm trying to handle it myself. I just tried to contact my present phone carrier to get an idea when we had that service but of course they are closed. I will get with my wife and find out what the deal is with the bills although i won't be home for another week and a half. I will keep you up on the at&t situation. the main thing that gets me down is that she doesn't send me a copy of what was paid and what wasn't. It's like she's trying to hide things from me. So I get suspicious and have a bad attitude and don't trust her. I work 14 days on sometimes even more with 14 or less off and we have an 11 year old girl that I miss and she misses me but the reason I do this is to keep a roof over their heads and try to afford them nice things. I just spent almost 10,000. dollars remodeling the kitchen for her i did it myself and used all my time off when ever i was to do it. Now I find out this and it makes me nuts. Well i'm sure we'll get threw it and i'll keep you updated. thanks again so much for your efforts. |
| paladin | 10-09-2007 10:17 AM |
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Joined: 06 Jun 2007 Posts: 55 My Profile | Hey e-zersaid I have checked out the law relating to the Statute of Limitation in the US and it varies form state to state. Can you tell me which state your AT&T debt was incurred? You also mentioned a lawyer has frozen your accounts, does this mean AT&T has gone through the courts and taken legal action against you? On a personal note, I agree with George and think that you and your wife should sit down and have a heart to heart, she may be also missing you! Paladin |
| e-zersaid | 10-09-2007 10:16 PM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | Lol, she only misses me on payday and that was until direct deposit. The bill was from Staten Island, New York. I appreciate your help. I just got into port and I called Verizon they said I had service with them as far back as they could check which was Sept. 2000. My bank is going to fax me the legal stuff tomorrow. Thanks so much again. |
| e-zersaid | 10-09-2007 10:28 PM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | I'm sorry I forgot to respond to the AT&T legal action part. AT&T said they don't have any record of me having an acct with them. A lawyer/collection agency is the one that had put the freeze on the acct. They will not give me any info with out me first giving them my social security # which I will not do. I'm going to try to find out from the county clerks office how this all went down. It's a slow agonizing process. I googled the lawyer and the collection agency and they work hand in hand and there has been some talk that they are scammers.we will see. |
| paladin | 11-09-2007 11:05 AM |
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Joined: 06 Jun 2007 Posts: 55 My Profile | Hey e-zersaid Lets assume you owed AT&T money. In the state of New York they would have 6 years to obtain the money from you. After that they have not right to pursue you for the money. What I think has happened is that AT&T have sold the debt on and this collection company are now trying to make a few dollars by pursuing you when the debt can no longer be pursued through the courts. For more information on time bar debts; your rights and debt collectors. hope this helps P |
| e-zersaid | 12-09-2007 10:22 AM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | PALADIN, Thanks that's great news. Where did you get the info for the 6 years in New York? I tried to find it and can't. I want to print it out and make it available for court if necessary. I just have to get proof of the date of the debt. So correct me if I'm wrong. If the last bill was due in Sept of 2001 then even though they froze my acct they are still beat? Or would it have to be July of 2001 because they froze my acct on Aug 10, 2007? Well it's a step in the right direction. Thanks again : ) Edited by HWG changing case |
| paladin | 12-09-2007 10:46 AM |
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Joined: 06 Jun 2007 Posts: 55 My Profile | There are various sources for the 6 year reference, here is one. I am not up on US banking law, I don't know if the DC need a court order to freeze your bank account. I would imagine they would have to inform you if they were taking legal action. That aside you should ask, in writing, for proof of the initial debt. If they can't provide it to you then follow this up, again in writing, with a letter stating that you are considering taking legal action against them should they continue to have your bank account frozen. The action will be for stress and distress, and loss of credit score and the consequential financial loss resulting form their actions. |
| e-zersaid | 13-09-2007 07:26 AM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | i recieved a copy of the subpoena today it is a restraining notice information subpoena. thanks for the links they are outstanding. my son deals with the county clerks office alot so he is trying to get more info i.e. the proof they supplied to get the subpoena. any idea what this restraining notice information subpoena is? would that just be for information? thanks again you are the king! |
| DW George | 13-09-2007 10:34 AM |
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Joined: 01 May 2007 Posts: 148 My Profile | E-ersaid From what I have read, it appears that the DC company has had a successful claim against you in a court if they have frozen your bank account. The information notice subpoena is a request from the court on behalf of AT&T to find answers to the whereabouts of your assets. Hope this helps, I don't know if Paladin has anything to add? George |
| DW George | 25-09-2007 09:44 AM |
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Joined: 01 May 2007 Posts: 148 My Profile | I have bumped this to see how you are getting on e-zersaid. |
| e-zersaid | 01-10-2007 03:37 AM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | ok this is where i am. store c/c sears in collections sold to collection agency, balance $1358.00 gave them $200.00 they will only except 5 payments of 289.00 per month that equals $1645.00 store c/c homedepot not in collections yet bal. $6222.11 they will except 102.00 per month for 5 years store c/c best buy not in collections yet $893.39 will not cut any deals yet. these are the cards in my name. the company that bought my sears debt would not take my offer of 100. per month for 14 months what can i do about that? my wife has 3 acct's in collections i'm still trying to get the information on them. i haven't contacted the company that has my bank acct. frozen ( the AT&T acct) i'm still trying to find out how i was supposedly served. with the summons. i have opened another bank acct. and will have my direct deposit transfered to that acct. in the comming weeks. thanks for your concern and help. |
| DW George | 02-10-2007 11:15 AM |
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Joined: 01 May 2007 Posts: 148 My Profile | Hi e-zersaid It is quite clear that you have a problem with balancing your home budget. I know you said earlier that you left this for your wife to do, but she doesn't seem to be good at home finances. I have said earlier it is always good to have a plan and here is a plan. Draw up an Statement of Affairs (SOA). This will let you know where all your money goes. What you then need to do is analyse why it is not balancing. Ignore your debts just now. Ask yourself why can't you survive on the income coming into the household. Next find areas in your SOA where you can trim your spending. That may mean cutting the cost of your heating by wearing a jumper in the house or turning down/off the aircon during the summer and just putting up with the heat. You must be realistic about your current finances. Once you have minimised your expenditure you then should look at maximising your income. This can be done in a variety of ways. It does not necessarily involve getting a better or an extra job, however don't ignore this option. If you have junk lying about the house sell it on ebay or at a flea market/ car boot sale. I know many people who make quite a lot of money from selling not just their junk but other people's junk at flea markets. If you have an expensive car sell it and trade down to a cheaper model. Once you have adjusted your lifestyle to suit your income you'll know exactly what you can afford to pay each month towards your debt. (your goal is to spend less than you earn). Write to all your creditors with your SOA and a proposal of what you can afford to pay them. Ask for them to freeze the interest payments. I hope this helps. Post you SOA and we will offer help and guidance. George |
| helpmenow | 03-10-2007 10:40 AM |
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Joined: 15 May 2007 Posts: 30 My Profile | Hey e-ersaid I too have had many problems with balancing my debts. I have recently signed a IVA which is similar to bankruptcy. The hardest part for me was excepting that I had failed. But as George says its good to have a plan and I think what he has marked out for is certainly a good start. Doing an SOA certainly made me face up to my lazy spending habits. For example, buying sandwiches and a drink at lunchtime, costing me £5, which equated to £25 per week (£108 per month). Newspapers £1 a day, £5 per week, £21 per month, buying a monthly rail ticket , rather than a weekly saved me £10 per month. Without even trying I managed to save nearly £140 a month. I have started shopping about for the best buys and where possible haggle and try and get the price down for major purchases, I get a kick out of getting a deal on things a buy, which annoys/embarrasses my husband. I found it very easy to get into a lot of debt and now, due to the restrictions of my IVA, I am now forced into to living within my means. Which I/we are doing and will continue to do so for the rest of our lives. I am not getting into debt again. I hope I haven't rambled on for too long. I am not preaching to you just sharing my experiences with you. Helpmenow |
| e-zersaid | 11-10-2007 11:33 AM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | george & helpmenow, thank you for your responses, it's been a little busy at work and haven't had much time to get on the internet. i've also been trying to figure out my bills. contacting to find out due dates and payment agreements , methods of payment etc. i will ck out the soa. i have another story to share with you as soon as time allows. thats it for now. thanks again. |
| e-zersaid | 12-10-2007 07:13 AM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | i filled out the soa but when i hit continue it wouldn't move on without the country. it wouldn't allow me to enter the country. any ideas? e-zersaid : ) |
| DW George | 12-10-2007 09:21 AM |
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Joined: 01 May 2007 Posts: 148 My Profile | The SOA is only set up for the UK just now. If you want to use it there is no problem. Just become an honorary Scot. The country is only of use to those who want to take up our debt advice service. George |
| e-zersaid | 12-10-2007 10:42 AM |
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Joined: 07 Sep 2007 Posts: 13 My Profile | lol, ok how do i do it? is doesn't let me enter anything in that space for country and without that it won't let me continue to the next page. |
| DW George | 12-10-2007 11:09 AM |
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Joined: 01 May 2007 Posts: 148 My Profile | Just stick in Scotland or any of the countries listed. You are only using the SOA as a calculator. Some things will be for the UK eg TV licence, council tax. So in place of this substitute the US equivalent. |
