Asking this for my SIL. Her grandma got hit with a $10k debt, and it looks like a family member took advantage of her finances. She didn’t even realize she owed so much until she got a letter saying they want to garnish her wages.
She wants to offer them $2k just to stop the letters, but here’s the thing… she has no job, no assets in her name, and lives off Social Security.
Her house is in her son’s name.
Her car is in her daughter’s name.
She has no wages to garnish.
Are her kids on the hook for this? Can they go after them? We’re in Minnesota if that helps. Just trying to figure out what options she has.
I work in collections, and when we get accounts where the person only has Social Security, we don’t even bother going after them. There’s nothing to take, so it’s not worth the effort.
Rebel said:
I work in collections, and when we get accounts where the person only has Social Security, we don’t even bother going after them. There’s nothing to take, so it’s not worth the effort.
That’s really helpful to know. Would it be worth calling them to explain she has nothing they can take, or would that just make things worse?
@Zion
If you contact them, it might just keep them on her case longer because they think she’s open to negotiating. If she doesn’t owe anything valuable, they’ll probably drop it eventually.
Quin said:
Before doing anything, make sure this is real and not some scam. Debt collectors send fake letters all the time hoping people panic and pay.
That’s a good point! We know a family member actually used her name for credit, so it’s real. But could the debt have been sold off to someone shady?
Zion said: @Will
That’s what I keep telling them, but they don’t want to report it because ‘it’s family.’ It’s so frustrating. Thank you for the advice!
I get that, but honestly, most cases of financial abuse are done by family. If she reports it, the debt might not even be hers to deal with anymore.
She’s what they call ‘judgment-proof.’ No job, no assets, nothing to take. She shouldn’t sign anything, especially if it gives them access to a bank account.
Also, if we’re sharing old sayings, tell them to ‘go pound sand.’
@Olin
I was looking through the paperwork, and it’s basically asking her to fill out her info—income, assets, bank accounts, etc. Glad she never sent anything back.
Also, ‘go pound sand’ is definitely going into my collection of favorite phrases
Sloan said:
Who actually racked up this $10k? You didn’t say how she ended up owing so much if she doesn’t even have a job.
The debt is in her name, but a family member took the money and disappeared. No idea how they even got approved, but apparently banks will hand out credit like candy sometimes.
