Life Credit Cards

Posts Tagged ‘commercial collection’

I sit at my desk completely frustrated with Advanta. I opened up a business credit card with them 3 years ago and made a purchase of $6500 to help build my business credit for Rapid Recovery Solution, my Collection Agency. I have paid more then the minimum every month, on time. Three months ago I noticed that my interest rate seemed a little high. No where on my statement did it say the actual interest rate so I called the company. After 10 min or so I get a live rep on the line and they tell me it is 36.1%. Are they kidding, this must be a mistake. I have over a 750 score and never missed a payment. They said they sent me a notice in Aug that they are doing this due to a change in there lending methods. It turns out this is the second time this year they did this. I went from 8.99% in Jan 08 to 18.99 in Feb 08 to 36.1% in Aug 08.

From 1999 to 2009, premium costs for family insurance have risen by one hundred and thirty one percent. That’s easily over three times the rate at which working wages rose during this time. In this period of economic hardship, millions of jobs have been lost, putting workers who have just lost their jobs at risk of living without health insurance also. For those who remain employed, employers are pushing more of the costs of health insurance onto their employees as they struggle with economic uncertainty. Then there are blue collar and retail workers, waitresses and the like who are paid less, work harder and are not offered health insurance plans at their jobs. No wonder that Americans are struggling to pay their medical bills.

U.S. Bankruptcy Code imposes something called an automatic stay the moment that a petition for bankruptcy is filed. The automatic stay will typically prevent the enforcement, commencement, or appeal of actions and judgments against a debtor from the creditors they owe money to who are trying to collect these debts incurred prior to the bankruptcy petition. The automatic stay also protects property of the bankruptcy estate itself from collection actions and proceedings.

If a creditor violates the automatic stay their actions are voided out. Any violation of the stay might cause the violating party to have damages assessed to them. But, like every complicated law, there are exceptions. A creditor might be allowed to take their collateral if they obtain permission from the court first. They’ll get this by filing a motion for relief from the automatic stay.

In a nutshell, bankruptcy cases are voluntary or involuntary. The vast majority of cases will be voluntary. In these, debtors (the people who owe money) petition the bankruptcy court. With involuntary bankruptcy creditors (the people who you money to) file the petition in bankruptcy. Involuntary petitions are typically rare and are sometimes used in business situations in order to force a company into bankruptcy so the creditors can enforce their rights.

The beginning of a bankruptcy case starts with an estate. An estate is what the creditors scope out to see if there is anything they want. The estate is made up of all of the debtor’s property interests at the time that the fillings are commenced. Not all property will be up for grabs. Some of it is subject to certain exclusions and exemptions.

Would you be mortified if a man in a tuxedo and a top hat followed you into a restaurant and silently joined your lunch date? How about a trio of men with more to love dressed like superheroes asking your neighbors for donations to assist you in your financial situation?

In Madrid, make sure that your bills are paid or you might be visited by one of these crazy characters. The recession has slammed Spain. Official figures show that the unemployment rate has sky rocketed, reaching 19.3 percent. That’s one of the highest rates in Europe. About four million people aren’t working. That’s the same number of jobless people as France and Italy combined. One business is flourishing however, that business is debt collection.