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How to Respond to a Court Summons for Credit Card Debt

The first important step is to actually respond to the court summons.  Out of guilt, too many people mistakenly defeat themselves by ignoring a summons for credit card debt.  They then lose by default and the collection attorney has his way with them.

The answer to a court summons is only the beginning of the case.  Two to three pages is quite sufficient.  The consumer needs to use this answer to put the collection attorney on notice that he is going to have to work hard to prove his case.  The key to this is making the collection attorney document the debt, according to the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide.

Courts usually recognize the consumer’s demand for proper documentation.
Collection attorneys cannot produce a signed contract because most credit card agreements do not have one.  They also have trouble accounting for the exact amount of money they say is owed.   If the collection attorney represents a debt buyer, he will also have trouble documenting the transfer of the account from the bank to the debt buyer.

The rules of civil procedure for the consumer’s local court dictate the proper service of the summons to the consumer and of the answer to the plaintiff.  They also tell the consumer how much time he has to respond to the summons before going into default.  Most importantly the local rules of civil procedure dictate the legal language that needs to be in the answer to the summons.

Legal defenses that pertain to defending against a credit card debt should be worded carefully so that they comply with the local rules of civil procedure. As a start a resource like the Credit Card Debt Survival Guide will give the consumer a generically worded answer.  Then, the consumer can ask a local attorney to comment on the wording of their answer for a small fee, if the consumer cannot afford to pay him to do more.

In some parts of the country, collection attorneys are known to send out summonses for credit card debt in large quantities.  They know by experience that most consumers will not respond with an answer.  If they get a few responses, they will withdraw those claims and focus on the non-responders going into default.

Answering a civil summons for credit card debt is not as daunting as it seems, and it alone can put a stop to the civil action and eliminate credit card debt.

This content is not intended as a substitute for legal advice. If you need an attorney in your local area, please contact a licensed attorney in your state.