Too many, in fact most consumers do not respond to a court summons for credit card debt. Collection attorneys have become accustomed to filing a summons, winning be default and collecting money with the court’s help.
Answering a court summons for credit card debt is actually not that intimidating. It only takes a two or three page document. To defeat the collection attorney, the consumer’s answer needs to demand he properly document the debt, according to the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide.
The court will usually support the consumer’s demand for documentation. Collection attorney’s frequently have trouble producing original credit card agreements and statements totaling the amount claimed as owed. They are used to consumers defaulting. In addition attorneys for debt buyers have trouble documenting ownership of credit card debt from the bank that sold it to them in a large batch of accounts.
Answers to summonses for credit card debt are answered differently in different state courts. The local rules of civil procedure provide the guidelines for acceptable answers. They also dictate the proper method of summons and answer service, as well as the amount of time the consumer has to answer before going into default.
Most importantly, the rules dictate the wording of the affirmative defenses the consumer uses in the answer. As a start, the consumer can find a generically worded answer in a resource like the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide. Then, the consumer needs to get the advice of a local attorney on the answer’s exact wording per the local rules of civil procedure.
It is a common practice for collection attorneys to “fish” for defaulting consumers with a batch of court summons. Most credit card debtors do not answer these summonses. For the few that do, the attorney simply withdraws the claim focusing on the easy money from the defaulters he has netted.
For the few that answer them, civil summonses for credit card debt can be defeated.
This content is not intended as a substitute for legal advice. If you need an attorney in your local area, please contact a licensed attorney in your state.