Harassment after discharge
Hi, I have been discharged from bankruptcy over two years now. Since then I have been trying to do everything possible to repair my credit, paying all my bills on time and even obtaining a credit card, which I use responsibly. Recently, I received a letter in the mail from a lawyer of one of the creditors involved stating that they want payment plus interest for the amount I charged during the last month before filing, claiming fraudulent usage (article 178). Basically their argument is that by filing for bankruptcy it proves that I knew I was in financial trouble but used the card anyways. This is absolutely untrue as it was the most difficult decision I ever had to make, one that I made with the advice of a credit counsellor who felt it was my only option! During the course of the 9 month period of bankruptcy I did everything I was supposed to
do, and in the end it proved to very costly both financially and emotionally, but I looked towards a brighter future. Recently though, I get this letter and it feels like 3 years ago all over again. If this creditor had any issue over how the card was used in the last month why didn’t they state their case before my discharge? Why wait all this time and now look for the money plus interest and put this incredible stress back on me? I have talked to my trustee and they say to ignore the letter as a possib do, and in the end it proved to very costly both financially and emotionally, but I looked towards a brighter future. Recently though, I get this letter and it feels like 3 years ago all over again. If this creditor had any issue over how the card was used in the last month why didn’t they state their case before my discharge? Why wait all this time and now look for the money plus interest and put this incredible stress back on me? I have talked to my trustee and they say to ignore the letter as a possible scare tactic to get me to pay. I just received another call from the lawyer and the trustee is now sending me a letter on what to do if this continues….obviously my mind is far from at ease because I am sending this email. Can you give me any advice here on what I feel is nothing more than unjust harassment? Thanks.
I agree with your trustee, however, if you want to be more proactive you can consider contacting an insolvency lawyer in your area and perhaps they can make these troubles go away more quickly.