The credit card industry does it all it can to get people hooked on unsupportable debt.
To be sure, the bad economy is often a factor. You may have lost your job or had your hours cut.
There may be other financial pressures, too, such as medical bills. So it can be tempting to begin relying on credit cards when your income isn’t quite enough to make ends meet.
When you get too deeply in debt, and the credit card companies start trying to collect, bankruptcy can be good option for resolving your debts and moving forward.
Regardless of whether you choose to file bankruptcy, it’s important to be aware that the credit card industry does not always have its ducks in a row when it comes to the debt collection process. Recently, concerns have come to light about the flawed paperwork involved in collection practices of many big credit card companies.
These concerns contain a disturbing echo of the flawed foreclosure practices many large banks and loan servicers have used in recent years. Banks used so-called “robosigners” to mass produce foreclosure documents without properly reviewing them. This often included attesting to facts they had no knowledge of – frequently because the paperwork was missing.
The exposure of this practice two years ago eventually led to a large national settlement between the nation’s five largest banks and attorneys general from 49 states. The banks agreed to stop the practice of robo-signing and respect the proper legal process.
Now, with similar robo-signing concerns surfacing about credit card debt, it seems like déjà vu all over again.
Source: “Problems Riddle Moves to Collect Credit Card Debt,” Jessica Silver-Greenberg, New York Times, 8-12-12
Our firm handles situation similar to those discussed in this post. To learn more about our practice, please visit our San Antonio credit card debt relief page.