Consumer Law

Student Loan Garnishment - Without A Judgment

By M. Stan Herring

One threat that is often made against Alabama consumers is that their wages will be garnished. This violates the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) when there has been no judgment as it is a false statement which is a classic way in which collectors violate the FDCPA.

The Michigan Collection Law Blog reminds us, however, that there is one time in which a collector can make this statement without violating the FDCPA - when certain types of student loans are being collected. As Gary Nitzkin puts it:

I learned about the Administrative Wage Garnishment for the first time today. I understand that since this law was passed in 2003, it has been a huge success in recouping defaulted student loans. Well why shouldn't it? After all, a collector simply has to locate a debtor's place of employment and whammo.....he can garnish the debtor's wages without a judgment.

But just because the debt collector may be able to legitimately threaten garnishment without a judgment, other violations of the FDCPA can still form the basis of a legitimate lawsuit to stop abusive collectors.

Please feel free to contact us if you have any questions about a debt collector's conduct towards you.

Full post as published by Alabama Consumer Blog on April 26, 2008 (boomark / email).