Will You Be Sued Over Credit Card Debt?

Will You Be Sued Over Credit Card Debt?

Millions of people have accumulated far more credit card debt than they can reasonably expect to repay.  Threats of a lawsuit are often issued by creditors who are having difficulty collecting past due accounts.  A credit card company can file suit against you if they choose, but most will try to avoid this in favor of simply finding a way to get you to pay.  There are a few situations that make you more likely to face a lawsuit from a credit card company if your payments are sixty days or more behind.

The decision by a credit card company to file a lawsuit will only come after you have become more than 60 days delinquent.  If you have a co-signer on your account, the creditor will begin calling the cosigner in an attempt to collect rather than file suit.  If you have been with your current employer for a long period of time, you are less likely to quit your job and change your residence to avoid collection attempts, so you may be a candidate for a lawsuit if you are behind on credit card payments.

If you are under the age of 40, a creditor can reasonably assume that you will be employed and able to make payments at some point, so you will be more likely to be sued than an older individual.  The very things that make you attractive as a customer can also be the very things that make you more likely to be sued by a credit card company.  If you are behind on your credit card payments and the above situations apply to you, it will be in your best interest to work with your credit card company in any way you can to avoid the possibility of a lawsuit.