Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Illinois

Hi,

When I was in college, my mother had a BP Amoco account. She added me to the account so that I could get back and forth to school and work w/o spending all my money on gas throughout the week. Throughout the years my side of the account has been paid off and re-used many times. Well, there came a time when my mom was experiencing some problems w/her bills, so she took out a home loan and paid off all her account balances. At the time, my gas card had a zero balance as well. Therefore, my mom instructed BP to close all accounts and cards.

At the time, I did not realize my mom closed the account. I mean, I knew she paid things off and stuff like that, but I was running back and forth between work and school..... we just didn't have much time to discuss details and things like that. Therefore, I continued to use the BP gas card. Like I said, I wasn't aware that it was closed, nor did I get any "declined" or "closed account" messages. It wasn't until I became pregnant almost four years ago and lost my job that we both got on the same page - We both found out things we didn't know!

You see, in losing my job, I wasn't able to pay off the account balance I had accrued. So, BP started going after my mom to pay the bill, even though she explained that she had closed the account years ago. She didn't know that I was allowed to continue purchasing after that closure. In any case, they are now asking for more than I even charged for products or services. They want late and over-limit fees that have accrued for a while now.

I cannot possibly pay for this, as I am unemployed w/o any income whatsoever and my mother is 70 yrs. old on a fixed income, which she cannot pay either. The company is now sueing my mother. She has been summoned to appear in court on Mar. 31st. What can we do and how can we get this resolved?

If this isn't something that can be resolved w/o my mom going to court, can the total balance be reduced to the proper "amt. used" w/o all the fees the card company imposed?

Whatever advice you can give, I would truly appreciate. Thanking you in advance for your time and help!

Regards,

Jacolyn


Asked on 3/23/10, 9:07 am

2 Answers from Attorneys
David Labovitz Labovitz Law Firm, P.A.

Hi. If they have already sued your mother, the only alternative you really have is to call the attorney for BP who filed suit and see if you can negotiate a settlement. If you have a lump sum available to offer, companies are usually pretty willing to settle without spending time litigating. If you don't have money to offer, you can attempt to negotiate a payment plan that will be acceptable to them.

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Answered on 3/28/10, 9:35 am
Frank Vosholler Law Office of Frank L. Vosholler III

Also, if your mother is on fixed income making less than I believe $460 a week she may be judgment proof and by showing up in court proving this they cannot do anything to her. Make sure you also bring bank statements showing money is directly deposited into her accounts so they cannot freeze her account either.

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Answered on 3/29/10, 6:40 am


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