How do I get an accurate list of my debts?

[jensantos16]

I will be filing bk very soon. I did not save my credit card statements and most if not all of my debts have been transferred to a collection agency/law firm. How can I obtain past statements to be used for to the trustee? What I have mostly are collection letters.

Thanks!

[chicagoannie]

In my Ch 7, the trustee did not look at any statements - just my schedules. Most of my debts were quite old; I got most of my account info, collection agency activity, etc, from my 3 credit reports. Your credit reports should list primary account numbers from original creditors, as well as those assigned by collection agencies. (I can't remember if the credit report listed the entire account number or just the last 4 numbers but having only the last 4 numbers is fine - those are what will be put on your schedules.) I also requested my information from chexsystems. All the other debts I listed were from memory. I included any possible creditors I could think of, whether or not I could list account numbers. For those account balances, I put "unknown."

[jensantos16]

Thank you very much. That gave me a bit of relief.

[jensantos16]

Follow up question.

What happens if say I listed an account as currently being collected by COLLECTION AGENCY XYZ but unbeknown to to me it was transferred or bought by COLLECTION AGENCY ABC?

[frogger]

Follow up question.

What happens if say I listed an account as currently being collected by COLLECTION AGENCY XYZ but unbeknown to to me it was transferred or bought by COLLECTION AGENCY ABC?

You really need to list the original creditor and then list every collection agency known to mankind that has touched the debt.

[nceguyfromne]

The only risk in not having this information is that you could potentially miss listing a creditor on your schedules. Even if that happens, though, you can (for a small fee) amend them to your petition. I suggest obtaining a copy of your credit report and using that to help you. If you have an attorney, he/she will do that for you. The collection agency letters are actually a good place to obtain your current balances because you can be sure you will be listing the full amount they are claiming you owe, including any and all inflated interest/fees/penalties, on your schedules. Don't worry about debts being transferred to other collection agencies after the fact. The original creditor is still the one with the claim against you. You will of course want to include all collection agencies you are aware of when you file, so they can be served notice and leave you alone, but your creditors will not be able to sidestep the discharge by shuffling your debt among collection agencies. If a new collection agency enters the fray after you file, simply inform them of your bankruptcy and give them your case number and (if you have one) attorney's information so they, too, can leave you alone.

My 341 meeting literally lasted 60 seconds. The only documentation you should expect to be asked for at the hearing are a driver's license and social security card to establish your identity.