Sued by Citi bank will class action law suit Hoffman vs Citi Bank lawsuit help??

[lko6465]

I'm being sued by Citi Bank for credit card debt. Does anyone know if the class action Hoffman vs Citi Bank could effect someone being sued by them. The lawsuit is based on claims that city raised rates without notifying customers.

Could this at least delay the credit card debt law suit? Also will they settle for less than owed if so what is the percentage they usually settle for?

Any advise appreciated.

[catleg]

I seriously doubt it will have any effect, other than allowing you to present a defense that you dispute the balance on account of interest rate overcharges.

[lko6465]

Thinking it will at least buy some time and allow me to save money to pay it off while disputing the interest rate. Do you know if they will negociate the balance?

I seriously doubt it will have any effect, other than allowing you to present a defense that you dispute the balance on account of interest rate overcharges.

[catleg]

If they already filed suit it's really too late to negotiate, the lawyers will want to win a judgment for 100% of what they claim to be owed, and it's a tough fight. Once they get a judgment, collecting it is another story, especially since Texas is a debtor friendly state (no wage garnishment, and homestead protections). Then you might be able to work them down, especially if you can convince them you're considering filing for BK. (or just file and the heck with it).

[MSbklawyer]

Why are you trying to save money to pay it off? If you are planning to file bk, (and your post doesn't say as much, I'm just drawing that inference from the fact that you are posting in on a bankruptcy forum) why would you save money to pay off an unsecured creditor instead of discharging it in your bk?

[lko6465]

I'm new to this forum so may have posted in wrong area.... I was not thinking of filing bk but wanting to see if I would have to pay off the whole amount or if they would negociate.
To me why would they not try to get some money instead of 0 if I file bk??

[DebtEnder]

Because many creditors try to instill in people that BK is the end of your life and will push hard to squeeze everything they can until you have no choice but to go BK. They are hoping that you never do bk them and tell them to pound sand as many never do.

[catleg]

Sure the will negotiate but the deals only come based on inflated balances with interest and penalties.
The best deals tend to be payoff over 5 years with 0% added interest.
You'll have to be several months late to get such an offer. (I got one from Chase.)

[DebtHater]

To me why would they not try to get some money instead of 0 if I file bk??

For you and me that is a reasonable presumption. On the downside, there is no reasoning with some of these companies. The rep's are not paid to think. In fact I've heard rumors that when these rep's get to work, there is a big box near the entrance to the building to leave their brain so there is no danger of using it.

[ryan]

Once the creditors file suit, they tend to think they're in the drivers seat. The negotiations I've been witness to are not very favorable to the defendant at all. ...and as Catleg mentioned these guys try to work from the highest balance they have for your acct. It will include every charge, fee, penalty, possible. One of my smaller accts has increased the balance almost 50% since I stopped using the card - almost a year ago. So the big discounts are not that meaningful anyways.

[lovemybugs10]

I was able to get Discover to settle for 40% after they had already filed.