The question of the ability of a collection agency to garnish wages is one that comes up very often. Some may tell you that it's an area filled with shades of grey, and although it's surely not black and white, neither is it very complex. Collection agencies are notorius for breaking the rules, and that is particularly true when it comes to the most important guidelines which are laid out in the FDCPA (Fair Debt Collections Practices Act).
If you are not familiar with the FDCPA, although you can find recaps of it on many websites, the only truly authoritative information can be found at the Federal Trade Commisson website, FTC.gov where you will find a copy of the law along with very clearly written explanations of its many facets.
Now, to the focus of this article, can a collection agency garnish your wages? The short answer is yes they can. However, they must first go through a series of steps, all of which will provide the debtor with an opportunity to prevent it. As a consumer, you have a myriad of rights that can protect you from these types of actions. The sad truth is that the vast majority of consumers, when faced with a law suit, choose to do nothing.
Although you have legal rights in such an event, it's up to you to exercise them. Many people mistakenly believe that it's up to the court to protect them from those that violate their consumer rights. That is not the case, and it's critical to your financial well being that you understand this right away. The court is an impartial body, charged with hearing the facts of a case, and making a decision based on those facts.
When it involves a case in which a collection agency is suing you for a debt, you have the legal right to appear in court to present an affirmative defense. This type of defense can take on many different positions. The two that are most common are proving that this debt is not yours, or that the collection agency does not have legal standing to collect the debt.
Very often, in fact the majority of the time, people ignore a summons because they feel they owe the debt and it would be time consuming and pointless to appear in court. This inaction on the part of the defendant is very foolish and usually will result in the worst possible outcome. If you are employed, it is very likely that your wages will be garnished.
However, there are other factors to take into consideration about wage garnishment. Some states do not allow wages to be garnished, while others allow certain percentages.
Making an appearance in court is wise because you may be able to work out a comfortable repayment plan. Most courts are very flexible about this type of arrangement and will allow it. It may also be to your advantage to contact the collectors prior to court and see it arrangements for payments and/or settlement is possible. It will save you court costs and other fees when the court is involved.
David Miller is a freelance writer and marketing consultant. He has written extensively about bankruptcy, debt settlement, debt consolidation, credit and credit cards, collection agency abuse, consumer law, credit card defense, FDCPA guidelines and complaints, loan modification scams, and foreclosure.
He contributes regularly to financial and real estate blogs.
He currently edits several websites and is a contributing author to many of them including http://lawfirmslongisland.com/
His articles about foreclosure, debt discharge, student loan debt and many other topics in the area of bankruptcy, credit and can be found at http://lawfirmslongisland.com/ along with links to other resources which he has been a contributing author.
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