Hi Everyone. I currently have two outstanding credit card debts, one with BOA and one with Chase. The Chase account has gone through arbitration and was "awarded" in their favor.. BOA is now talking arbitration... I have tried to get a home equity loan but the ratio is a little too high. I have no idea how to pay this.. I've read everything I can find and I can not find a solution. I'm not looking to scam or get anything off my report. I'm worried about these Arbitrations since I don't totally understand them and I don't want to end up in a worse spot than I am in already. If anything I'd like to hold up to my end and pay this stuff off. I just don't know how to come up with the lump sums they want. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.. Thanks in advance.
Did you attend the arbitration for the first? Have you offered any settlement plan? Your best bet right now is straightforward negotiation; do the homework for what you can realistically pay, and make that offer. Even if they take the arbitration "win" to secure a judgement, the court will demand a garnish on your wages until paid. Garnishment amount will depend upon your total financial circumstances. But, offer up the best plan for repayment, that you know you can stick to. Better to "underpromise and overdeliver"
I did not attend the arbitration. My experience so far has been that they will not accept any type of payments other than all in full or broken up in to four payments. I can not afford to make either... I'm frustrated and dont know what to do..
The best thing to do right now is start gathering information for the "worst case scenario". I would got to your local court house and start inquiring about the maximum amounts for wage garnishment. At least this way you'll know the worst that can happen. If you cannot pay the arbitration award per their payment options, then they will have to take the award to your local court, and seek a judgment to garnish your income. They will also look to place a lien on any real estate you may own, or other property. Since they have "won" the arbitration case, the judgement would be easy to secure. Hence, you need to find out what the worst is the court would grant them. You may need to look for loan possibilities, perhaps from family and friends. You should look around to see if there is anything you possess that you can sell. If you have a 401K/IRA you should look at borrowing against it. If the situation is this dire, you should seriously consider personal bankruptcy. You are a prime candidate right now. I would investigate the possibility now. Not to add worry to your situation, but be prepared to receive a "1099-Misc" that files this written amount off as "income". Just be prepared....
Don't worry. There's a 99-44/100% chance that it wouldn't have made any difference. The arbitration clauses I've seen say that if one or the other parties want to go to arbitration that the dispute will be settled in arbitration and NOT be settled in court. Of course the arbiter may only be one chosen from a group of arbiters that are supported by the bank. So, in essence, what you're agreeing to is that all disputes will be settled by the bank's Cousin Vinnie and then be made binding as a judgement in the local court. So you get all the enforcement power of a judgement but none of the legal due process. Great deal (for them), isn't it?!
