(George from North Carolina)
I have just discovered approximately 14 credit cards taken out in my name by whom I suspect to be a loved one. The total debt comes to approximately $30,000. I certainly can not afford to pay these off nor make the scheduled payments. All are in default at this point, some sold to collection agencies and some still held by the original companies. Is there anything I can do to correct my credit. I do not want loved one arrested.
Dear George:
Unfortunately you have few options. If you choose not to file a police report against your loved one, then you are 100% responsible for the debts that they rang up in your name. It is assumed that they had your permission and now you will have to manage repayment of the debt.
It is at the very least highly recommended that you place a fraud alert on all three of your credit bureau profiles. A more permanent credit freeze will prevent additional fraud.
You may also want to pressure your loved one into repaying you for the debts. However, this option rarely comes to fruition even if you threaten jail time.
If the debts are still with the original creditors, then you may want to consider a debt management program to help managing debts outside of your normal budget. For debts that have already been charged off and turned over to collections, then a self-guided settlement approach might be best.
These situations are never easy. However, it is your loved one who put you into this situation. They have a lot of explaining to do and they owe you big time. Not only have they stolen $30,000 from you, they have also wrecked your credit. Your future borrowing costs will increase as a result.
Keep in mind that repayment by your loved one is extremely unlikely. Consider that they already stole from you because they could not manage their bills before. They certainly won’t have any surplus income to pay you back now.
