NYT: Pay Garnishments Rise as Debtors Fall Behind [View All]

[flpoljunkie]

Would this be happening if banks did not 'own the place'-the 'place' being Congress.

April 1, 2010

Pay Garnishments Rise as Debtors Fall Behind

By JOHN COLLINS RUDOLF

PHOENIX — When the bank sued Leann Weaver for not paying her credit card balance, her reaction was typical for someone in that situation. Personal and financial setbacks weighed her down, and she knew she owed the $2,470. So she never went to court to defend herself.

She was startled by what happened next. When she swiped her debit card at the grocery store, it was declined. It turned out Capital One Bank had taken $224.25 from her paycheck, a quarter of her wages for two weeks of work at a retail chain, and her bank account was overdrawn.

“They’re kicking somebody who’s already in the dirt,” she said.

One of the worst economic downturns of modern history has produced a big increase in the number of delinquent borrowers, and creditors are suing them by the millions. Concern is mounting in government and among consumer advocates that the debtors are not always getting a fair shake in these cases.

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http://www.nytimes.com/2010/04/02/business/economy/02garnish.html?hp