Hi everyone! I'm so stressed out I can't type. I just got served from a creditor for a medical place that says I owe them $$ but I paid them off in January. It's now September and they haven't talked to me at all since then. Then out of the blue I get a summons delivered to me at work and now I'm scared they're going to throw me in jail and I have two little kids I just dont know what I need to do. I googled and you guys seem like you know what you're doing so if any of you can help me I would appreciate it. I think from reading I have to respond to the court. I called the clerk and asked if I need to have a lawyer (that I cant afford) make up some big worded letter and he said no, i can just write english and send it and it'll be fine. So I wrote out a letter and this is what it says so far: Dear Court This is about case number CS ----- and it's about COMPANY vs ME. This account was paid in full in January and no other contact has been made by the company since then except this summons 9 months later. I also haven't been back to get new medical charges either so there can't be anything new added to my bill. In short, this is a suit over a paid debt. Thank you, me Address phone Is that enough? Do I need to get more technical? I'm scared to death right now.
Ok, a little calmer - I called and tracked and backtracked everything I could think of and I sent the payment to the wrong company (the difference is the last name in the company name, like "Bob's Gyconolical clinic" vs "Bob's Gynocological Office") so I'm out the money for now and the suit continues. I called the original place and asked if they'd settle and the collection company said they have to talk to each other and see what they want to do. So now I'm in limbo.
Well it seems they want to continue with the suit so I'm back to panic mode. What do I do now? Any ideas?
Ok, I made a new letter - I didnt send the old one so this is what I'll send tomorrow at mail time: Dear Court, This is regarding SleazyCreditCompany vs Me Case number CS-2010-**** The account referenced in this suit was paid in full on 1/22/2010 and no other correspondence or phone contact has been received since that time to indicate otherwise. We have also not used HOSPITAL NAME since that time so there should be no new charges having to do with our account. In short, this is a suit over a debt that has already been paid. We request an itemized bill or list of charges along with signatures of the person validating the charges and any contents of our file. Thank you! Name,Address, Phone Does that sound OK? I added the part about asking for validation and signatures and put the exact date it was supposedly paid off, which it wasn't (see post above) but I still want an itemized bill.
If you've been served for a trial, you need to respond to the summons through the court in accordance with the rules of the court. When it gets to this level, you need to be formal and follow the procedure described in the court rules. You might want to file for summary dismissal and provide some evidence, but you have to do it in accordance with the rules.
