By Doug Aldeen – ERISA Healthcare Attorney and General Counsel
“Mama’s don’t let your sons grow up to be cowboys but a medical debt collector in the state of Texas is perfectly acceptable………”
“…Texas doesn’t allow people’s wages to be garnished to pay off debts unless it is to collect child support. By law, however, courts can designate special officers, known as turnover receivers, to force payments by freezing or seizing bank accounts.
The legal process became popular in Harris County but has been used all over the state more commonly in recent years, officials say.
“This is the only real way a debt collector can hurt you,” said Craig Noack, a creditor’s attorney in San Antonio who also serves as a court-appointed receiver in Texas.
At issue, though, is whether courts have adequate oversight to ensure a fair process.
Each year, tens of thousands of Texans are subject to a bank seizure as a result of a default judgment that was declared against them because they didn’t show up in court to fight a lawsuit over a debt.
But here’s the dilemma: Most debtors don’t know that they can have their bank accounts cleaned when a debt collector wins a default judgment against them unless they claim exemptions for certain sources of funds, such as child support, Social Security, unemployment benefits and retirement funds. Alvarez had child support payments in her accounts when they were seized.”
Texans’ bank accounts may be quietly emptied by debt collectors (houstonchronicle.com)
