Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in California

I apologize as it is a bit difficult at times to follow your post. First, I am not clear how they were violating the fair debt collection practices act - I guess it depends upon how they told you they were going to garnish wages and levy your bank account. They have the right to do that, but only after they get a judgment. Again, depending upon how they phrased their threat, it might be an impermissible threat, or it might have just been a statement of fact that if you did not pay, they were going to get judgment and these are the things they will do to collect the judgment.

As for your statement that they "received a lot of money on the repossession," they are entitled to collect the full amount of the car loan, unless you have a legal defense to their claim. After deducting the sales proceeds from the total loan amount then due, they are entitled to collect that difference plus interest, fees and other costs you agreed to in the finance contract. Now that you have been sued, you need to file some sort of response to the lawsuit before 30 days pass from the date you were served. The response can take one of several different forms including an answer with affirmative defenses, a demurrer, etc... Irrespective, you must get something on file before the 30 days elapse, or Chrysler can obtain a default judgment. Once you have a response on file, you need to attempt to settle this with their attorneys. You stated that you tried to work something out, but they wouldn't work with you - I think that may have something to do with the threat of FDCPA violations. Frankly, the only way you will get a settlement with them is to be a bit more contrite, explain your situation and try to work out some sort of repayment plan. Your other option is to look at filing bankruptcy if you have other debt that is creating a problem given your lack of income.

If this goes to a judgment, you can, to a degree, protect money in a bank account if your SSI and/or Social Security are direct-deposited into your account. Bank accounts into which Social Security or SSI benefits are electronically deposited are protected up to a certain amount (you'll have to look up the current amount on the Judicial Council's website - www.courtinfo.ca.gov) depending on a couple of factors. They cannot directly garnish your SSI or Social Security. They can, however, seek an order forcing you to turn over or for them to sell other non-exempt assets. You can only exempt one vehicle, and even then, it is a very small amount of equity that can be protected. I would suggest that if you cannot negotiate the debt, and bankruptcy is not an option, consult with a local attorney out there about what he or she might charge to help you negotiate a settlement. Sometimes attorneys are better able to negotiate with creditors like this.

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