
Originally Posted by
JuliAnne333
The only way that a medical debt could end up placing a lien on your bank account or garnishing wages is if they sue you in court and win. If you get a summons for the medical debt, be sure you go to court and plead your case to the judge. Otherwise, the collection agency that now owns the debt will win by default, and they will haul you back into court to show your assets etc so they can start collecting. When a collection agency wins a suit against you, they have to by law inform your bank 30 days before they start taking money from your account. It does not happen out of the blue. Also, when you know you are being or have been sued and lost, that it is time to STOP putting money in a bank account that has your name and ssn# on it! The only entity that does not have to give you 30 days is the IRS. But, the IRS literally can take years to get to the point of seizing your bank accounts/garnishing wages or taking your property. They will send many letters to you, and even HUNT YOU DOWN and send out an IRS agent who carries a badge and a gun to talk to you about your debt! LOL
Back to your medical debt: You say it is in the thousands. Well, let me ask you, is this debt (even IF you start making OK or good money camming) MORE than one years salary for you? If so, you are technically bankrupt, and the chances of you paying this debt off are pretty close to zip, being every day fees, interest and who knows what else is being tacked onto the initial debt. You would do better saving up a couple grand to visit a bankruptcy attorney and get this behind you if that is the case. Many people end up bankrupt because of unexpected medical bills and little to no insurance to help.
Has this medical bill been written off by the hospital or Dr? Usually a hospital or Dr's office will only service the debt for 4 to 6 mos. After that, they sell it to a collection agency. That is when things get fun. You will have the collection agency bugging you to set up *payment arrangements* if you can't pay in full. They will bug you for your bank account # or debit/credit card number so they can draft a set amount monthly. NEVER NEVER NEVER give a collection agency your bank account, credit card, checking account or debit card number. NEVER!!! They will go to town with it! If you cannot pay them a lump sum, then, DO NOT PAY THEM!!! NEVER NEVER NEVER enter into any "monthly payment agreement" with a collection agency. Why? Because, the chances they will take 6 to 12 mos of payments from you, then turn around and write off the debt and sell your account to another collection agency is HIGH. Then, guess what? You are starting all over again! Besides, the interest and fees don't stop when you are making these monthly payments. So, most likely, very little of whatever you are paying them is actually knocking down that debt. Depending on the age of the debt, the only way to go is to negotiate a lump sum settlement. If the debt is fairly new (say under 2 years) you would be lucky if you offered 1/2 and they took it. If the debt is getting close to the statute of limitations to sue you, they may be more inclined to take less. If it is PAST the statute (and you would have to look up what the law is in your state for medical debt and how long they have to sue you) of limitations, DO NOT PAY THEM A DIME!!! Why? Because, the time frame for them to successfully sue and win has passed! Now, this does not mean they cannot attempt to serve you and drag you into court --- heck, collection agencies ( especially the sewer debt collectors ) HOPE you are ignorant of the law or just too freaked out and scared to show up in court and show the judge that their case has no merit! Another thing: Paying off old debt is NOT going to fix or improve your credit score. When the debt is written off, the damage is done. Only TIME and re establishing your credit will bring your score back up.
Anyways, this was longer than intended, and yes, *normal* people have bank accounts, but, it only takes one snafu to end up in ChexSystems and be blackballed from getting another account. If you do not pay your debt, the bank has the option to sell your debt to a collection agency that can sue you. Your info will also be on file with ChexSystems for 5 years. There are some banks that do offer "second chance" accounts, but, you pay a fee, have to carry a certain balance, and only get a debit card. You will NOT be given paper checks you can write. All banks are different, so they may have other rules for these types of accounts. I know people manage without bank accounts, but, if you ever want to make a large purchase on credit like a car or house and you don't have a bank account, that typically does not go over too well with the lender. They find it odd. LOL
I just don't want to see you get roped in by a collection agency that will take your payments and then either re sell your debt putting you back at square one, or sue you! There is a general fallacy that has been around since I was a kid (some 50 years ago) that if you are making even a small payment to the collection agency every month they cannot sue you. Sorry, but this is NOT true. Once you default on a loan or contract, you can be sued at any time.
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