Being sued by Dell

[CDC Mail Guy]

A few months ago, I got served to appear in court in January 2014. It is from the Collection Agency that Dell uses. My FIRST name is mis-spelled on the paperwork (they left the first letter off...not sure if that matters)

I'll be honest and tell you that I stopped paying Dell quite some time ago. I missed the 30 day deadline to file my response. I owe them like $3,000.

What is the WORST scenario if I don't go to court on that date? Warrant for arrest? Just curious. I do not have $3,000 laying around, and can barely get by from month to month...that is why I stopped paying them in the first place.

Other than being served, I have heard nothing from either Dell, or their collection agency in well over 2 years.

 

[highland145]

What state? Garnishments, judgements, .....Jail?


Pay your bills.

 

[AstroManLuca]

What, did you finance a computer through them and fail to make payments?

OPwnage in 3... 2...

 

[mugs]

If you can't pay your debts and are barely getting by, you might consider this option.

 

[Xed]

I'm no lawyer but I assume if you ignore the summons the judge will just automatically rule against you and garnish your wages or whatever he/she feels is appropriate.

If your finances were so dire you should have known better than to take out a loan of over 3k.

 

[OCGuy]

Dell is not suing you, they sold the debt.

It is a civil matter, you don't get arrested.

They will issue a judgment which will show up on your credit. If they wanted to, they could ask the court to garnish your paycheck or seize your checking account, until it is paid.

Or you could BK, which I don't recommend unless it is a large amount.

 

[CDC Mail Guy]

What state? Garnishments, judgements, .....Jail?


Pay your bills.

California. I guess I could start paying them whatever amount I can afford, even if it's only $20-$30/month

 

[Rinaun]

This is exactly why you DONT finance. I feel bad for you not making ends meet monthly, but it sounds like you did this one to yourself.

If you don't show, chances are they will put this on your credit and possible wage garnishing if the judge deems the amount/situation worthy. I just wish you would have contacted them and worked something out instead of now dealing with the credit agency. Dell might of even lowered the owed amount a bit.

 

[CDC Mail Guy]

Dell is not suing you, they sold the debt.

It is a civil matter, you don't get arrested.

They will issue a judgment which will show up on your credit. If they wanted to, they could ask the court to garnish your paycheck or seize your checking account, until it is paid.

Or you could BK, which I don't recommend unless it is a large amount.

Thank you, that's what I thought. Bankruptcy is not an option.

 

[brandonb]

If you don't show up for court, yes you can get a warrant on you. Trust me, the last thing you want to do is blow off the matter and hope it goes away.

Edit: From experience, I know people can go to jail over civil debt. I work for a collection agency that also has a law firm.

 

[GagHalfrunt]

What is the WORST scenario if I don't go to court on that date? Warrant for arrest? Just curious. I do not have $3,000 laying around, and can barely get by from month to month...that is why I stopped paying them in the first place.

The scenario is that you lose. Period. Summary judgement will be issued against you. How bad it might be depends on the mood of the judge and if you blow off the date he won't be inclined to cut you any slack. Expect your wages to be garnished and he won't care if you starve.

The only way this won't be worst case scenario is if you show up and beg for a payment plan that you can handle.

 

[SunnyD]

California. I guess I could start paying them whatever amount I can afford, even if it's only $20-$30/month

It's a little late for that, dontcha think?

 

[OCGuy]

If you don't show up for court, yes you can get a warrant on you. Trust me, the last thing you want to do is blow off the matter and hope it goes away.

Edit: From experience, I know people can go to jail over civil debt. I work for a collection agency that also has a law firm.

No, not here in CA.

 

[Rinaun]

The only way this won't be worst case scenario is if you show up and beg for a payment plan that you can handle.

This. If you don't get on your knee and explain yourself or atleast admit fault, it's going to look terrible and enjoy your wage garnishing. It's super fun having them go to your employer and give them the forms. Someone tried this on my mother's job and yes, the employer grilled her hard. You don't want to be garnished, its just bad.com.

 

[Rinaun]

No, not here in CA.

Yea, I've never heard of anyone go to prison over debt in CA. They just garnish everything you make and if you're still making it by the IRS will check and make sure you aren't illegally earning income.

Source: Someone whose family was garnished as a last resort option. It's a civil/money issues, not a physical/danger issue.

 

[SunnyD]

No, not here in CA.

Failure to appear could get you a bench warrant if the judge is feeling particularly plucky methinks. Odds are it would just get a summary judgement though.

 

[CDC Mail Guy]

I will appear in court on the appointed day then. Thank you all for your input. The LAST thing I need is a Garnishment. Already been there, done that with the IRS a couple years ago They took $300/month from me until it was paid off.

Yeah, I tend to get in over my head...

 

[OCGuy]

Failure to appear could get you a bench warrant if the judge is feeling particularly plucky methinks. Odds are it would just get a summary judgement though.

Civil is not criminal.

Our court system would be screwed if there was not a such thing as a default judgment.

 

[JM Aggie08]

OP, what caused you to get ~$3k in the hole with Dell if you don't mind my asking?

 

[Rinaun]

I will appear in court on the appointed day then. Thank you all for your input. The LAST thing I need is a Garnishment. Already been there, done that with the IRS a couple years ago They took $300/month from me until it was paid off.

Yeah, I tend to get in over my head...

Everyone gets over their head, you just got yourself over your head and past a lot of chances to fix it. What I would suggest is to think about WHY you did what you did, and for WHAT reasons. Think about what the judge will want to know. He really decides your fate; if he's had a bad morning that day, . If you explain yourself sincerely and ACCEPT punishment, he'll be lenient. Just remember that you WILL be punished and do NOT try to act innocent. Admit fault. Judges love when you man up and admit you failed. Just DONT pull a "yea I didnt pay this because I wanted this sweet car....we done here?".

 

[mmntech]

Sell whatever you bought and then pay them with that money. Even if it doesn't cover the balance, it's a start. It's quite clear you couldn't afford it unless you had some sort of unforeseeable circumstances like a job loss or divorce. Tough you didn't mention it OP. You've really screwed yourself over by letting it get this bad, and letting it go on for this long. It will do some serious damage to your credit rating.

What you need to do now is develop a plan to pay it off. As I said, sell the equipment and recoup as much of the balance as you can. Then come up with a concise plan on how you will pay off the balance with interest. I'm hardly a legal expert but if you show effort and a willingness to pay it off, it should keep them from resorting to more drastic measures, like wage garnishment.

 

[BD231]

WTF is up with these jail time for unpaid debt threads? Are you guys really that stupid?

 

[CDC Mail Guy]

OP, what caused you to get ~$3k in the hole with Dell if you don't mind my asking?

Hell, it's been so long I don't even remember what else I bought besides a Desktop for me and a laptop for the wife. After my Divorse, things financially went downhill rapidly

 

[Brian Stirling]

If I could recommend ...


I see from your sig that you're quite proud of you gaming system -- that isn't cheap, now is the time to clamp down on unnecessary purchases and, if possible, work more OT.

Getting into debt is the American way but it does come with drawbacks.


Brian

 

[CDC Mail Guy]

If I could recommend ...


I see from your sig that you're quite proud of you gaming system -- that isn't cheap, now is the time to clamp down on unnecessary purchases and, if possible, work more OT.

Getting into debt is the American way but it does come with drawbacks.


Brian

I doubt I could even get $500 for that system, but I have considered it.