Debt Collection

If the issue is one of a civil suit, the lawsuit will continue without the defendant responding. In such cases the plaintiff is awarded a default judgment and can execute that judgment in the manner allowed by the debtor's state.

Indirectly, typically the estate has the responsibility to settle the medical bills, not the spouse. The insurance agreement may say otherwise.

Well, it depends.....................

The debt may be your responsibility, everything is shared on a joint account. Even if you weren't the one who incurred the debt, if for some reason the other party can't meet their obligations (financial hardship, disappeared overseas, or died, for example) then you'll be liable for it instead.

For Pennsylvania the estate has the responsibility to settle the medical bills, not the children. Once that is done, the remainder can be distributed.

The estate has the responsibility to settle all debts including funeral costs in Ohio. Once that is done, the remainder can be distributed.

You call them 'The person I owe money to'

The banks send your information to the major credit reporting agencies. In order to freeze your bank account the creditor must obtain a court order to collect on a debt from you. With that court order they can get your account information from the bank to process the freeze/collection.

No - they will have notified you in reminder letters that they may do that if you continue to default on payments. When they actually instigate the action, they don't have to tell you they have done so - the collection agency will simply write to you - and tell you they've taken over the case, and all communication with the medical company must now stop, as you're now dealing solely with the collection agency.

Absolutely not, and keep your settled in full letters. Make sure you get one too!!

The exception to what I just said though, is most agencies will (legally) 1099-C you for the unpaid amount. This means you need to pay taxes like you would on earned income, on the remaining amount.

Experience: I own a collection agency.

No. The age of the children is not relevant unless they are adults who entered into a financial agreement with the parents. For example joint holders of a credit card account.

The estate of deceased person(s) is responsible for paying any debts in the manner prescribed by the probate laws of the state where the person lived at the time of their death.

depends on who you owe and how much. OR unless the bank already owns "your" property

Yes, with a judgment, but if you're head of the household, no.

Experience: I own a collection agency.

You usually have around 20 days to file and answer with the courts and then you'll go to court. Make sure you do, or it will be a default judgment in favor of the plaintiff. Remember, when you go to court, the judgment isn't based on your ability to pay or the circumstances to cause you to default (the judge doesn't care) - only on your contractual obligation (if you signed for the debt). There's so many sources online that say if you challenge it, you won't get a judgment. That's bs. A judgment is imposed 98% of the time. All the agency or creditor needs is proof you signed for the debt. Try to settle it out of court as a judgment will hurt your finances even more and severely hurt your credit.

Experience: I own a collection agency.

No you can not

The bank should notify the account holder that the account has been levied by a judgment holder. Also, the account holder/judgment debtor should have received a final notice of judgment citing the action the judgment creditor is taking.

Yes you can and make sure to get the dates when these debts occur and all of the contact numbers so that you can communicate about the matter. Sometimes 3rd parties get there hands on it and may not have complete and accurate info. Keep in mind to be kind because you never know if the debt is accurate and you may need to negotiate a few things down the road.

Only the estate is responsible, not the children or the spouse. However, if you signed any of the paperwork, you may have become the guarantor of the debt. And the estate must pay off any debts before they can distribute any funds.

The estate is responsible for all the debts of the deceased. That means before the estate can be settled, all debts have to be cleared. If there is not enough in the estate to cover them, there are some people who will not get paid.

You can't.

Yes, they can. It would not be appropriate for them to phone your employer and talk to them about it. But they can phone your personal work phone.

The answer may vary somewhat from state to state. There are exemptions from attachment that may protect some or all of the money up to a certain amount. You can put it into other things that are exempt up to a certain amount.

Generally, the only way to protect money that cannot be exempted from judgment is to put it into a trust, keeping in mind that if you establish the trust with your money and you are the trustee and the beneficiary, ti will usually not protect you. You have to give up some control over the money for it to be protected.

Consult a local lawyer.

No. Disability benefits are exempt from judgment creditor action.

However, if the benefits are commingled with monies that are not exempted an bank account can be frozen by court order until it is determined the amount of funds that are exempted from seizure.

They should not be calling repeatedly during the day, nor at unreasonable times. If they keep calling in one single day, then it's a form of creditor harassment, you should keep notes of the time of each call and who you spoke to, and complain to the creditor or a professional body.

There's many variables in your question. But assuming they have a judgment (again with the variables) - it depends on your state. MA for instant, is 20 years. And with all states you're responsible for post judgment interest, court fees, attorney fees and any post judgment remedies like wage garnishment. So rather than worrying about not paying it back, do the right thing and payback the debt your signed for.

Experience: I own a collection agency.