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Is bankruptcy the only answer to credit card dept after facing a hardship such as disability in CA?My fiance recently became completely disabled due to an accident. His only income is Social Security and he has no assets except a car and some recreation items, nothing of great value and items we are trying to sell just to make our monthly living expenses. He has credit card dept of around $10K, far exceeding any assets. He doesn't have any money to file for bankruptcy and he doesn't have money to pay anything toward the debt. Are there other options such as a charge off and how do we get the credit card companies to do it? Can the credit card companies take anything from his Social Security? All credit is with collection agencies now.
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Would his wheelchair be considered an asset? Could they take that from him? Attorney answers (2)
Sorry to hear about your fiance. There are many attorneys charging anywhere between $800 and $2000 for a Chapter 7 bankruptcy. Sometimes family members will help pay this fee to help the debtor get a fresh start.
Social security income is exempt from collections. Make sure to keep that money in a separate bank account, so if the creditors get a levy on his bank, you can claim the social security bank account as completely exempt. LEGAL DISCLAIMER Attorney Brian Pedigo is licensed to practice law in California and is located in Southern California (Orange County, Inland Empire - see www.PedigoLaw.com). His response here does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney / client relationship. The response is in the form of legal education and is intended to provide general information about the matter in question. Many times the questioner may leave out details which would make the reply unsuitable. You are strongly advised to confer with an attorney in your own state to acquire more information about the specifics of your case.
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Answered over 2 years ago.
Bankruptcy Attorney in Carlsbad, CA.
Your fiance is what is known as judgment proof. If he has no assets and his only source of income is social security then there is really nothing creditors can do. Even if they were to sue, they would be unable to garnish his social security income. Bankruptcy would, however provide you with the benefit of stopping all the harassment so if you want to get creditors off your back for piece of mind then he may want to consider filing.
LEGAL DISCLAIMER Mr. Larkin is licensed to practice law in CA and is located in San Diego. His response here does not constitute legal advice and does not create an attorney/ client relationship. The response is in the form of legal education and is intended to provide general information about the matter in question. Many times the questioner may leave out details which would make the reply unsuitable. Mr. Larkin strongly advises the questioner to confer with an attorney in their own state to acquire more information about the specifics of their case. Related Questions3 Attorney answers: 
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