Legal Question in Credit and Debt Law in Pennsylvania

Re: mothers debt

You asked about collection matters regarding an aged parent.

You should consult with an attorney that specializes in elder law to have your entire situation reviewed. That attorney can help not only to manage the current situation but a number of others that will arise in the future.

As to the current situation. If the person calls while your mother is there then simply have her tell the person to deal with you. Then follow the instructions that are widely available on the web for dealing with collections agencies.

Depending on the size of the debt she has various options, including bankruptcy (which can be done pretty easily for little money using available resources). It's easy to stop the collections activity but is more difficult to get rid of the underlying debt. An elder law attorney can help you flush out the situation. One of the first steps is to get a credit report from each of the national consumer reporting agencies. Go to the Federal Trade Commission's site and follow the link to get FREE credit reports. It is better to request those reports by written, certified mail, return reciept requested rather than to order them online.

Call me if you would like to follow up.

Regards,

Roger Traversa