Four Bankruptcy Stories
Many people never have to consider declaring bankruptcy, however, those that do struggle with understanding the process, and most importantly with learning of someone who was in a similar situation and bankruptcy gave them a chance at a new start. The following stories have been altered to maintain our clients’ identities confidential.
Medical Debt Bankruptcy
This is by far the most common bankruptcy reason, nearly two-thirds of all bankruptcies are filed at least in part because of medical debt. We have had a bankruptcy client from Ft. Pierce who we will call Mr. Clive. Mr. Clive had been in a disastrous car accident some 10 years back in which he was seriously injured – close to death – and injured the other driver as well, though not as badly. A court found that the accident had been Mr. Clive’s fault and he was responsible for thousands of dollars in debt, moreover he did not enough car insurance nor health insurance to help cushion the costs.
He had an extended medical stay that left him unable to work, and after a couple of weeks in the hospital he lost his job. The injuries left him with permanent injuries which restricted him to what he could and could not do. Mr. Clive could no longer work in physically demanding environments, but since he had entered the workforce after high school, he struggled to find a job. A few months prior to the accident Mr. Clive had begun paying off his mortgage, but now without a job, with a court judgement against him, and with permanent injuries, he could no longer pay his mortgage and pay his basic necessities.
Overwhelmed by all of this, he turned to us. We worked closely with him to file for bankruptcy in Ft. Pierce, Lee County, Florida and was able to start again. Thanks to filing for Bankruptcy Mr. Clive was able to find a job and get a much-needed break.
Consumer Debt
Consumer debt is what is colloquially referred to as credit card debt, though it encompasses more than simply credit cards. Credit card debt, some types of loans, and mortgages are all types of consumer debt. People are often driven to borrow more money than they can afford to repay for a variety of reasons.
We had a client that came to us from Naples, we will call her Ms. Jacinta, with overwhelming amounts of consumer debt. Ms. Jacinta had slowly accumulated it thinking she would be able to repay it until she realized she could no longer do so. She would receive a dozen collection calls a day, some twenty payment past due letters – she felt cornered and felt that bankruptcy was the only way to get a fresh start. We helped her file and discharge her debt, stopped the harassing calls and letters altogether – even debt that had been sold to collection agencies. Bankruptcy allowed Ms. Jacinta to feel like she could live her life again.
Bankruptcy after Abrupt Change
Often changes happen around us that are beyond our control. Be it the death of a loved one, disability, or divorce, they often throw a wrench into the works. These are often unpredictable and cause drastic changes in the home dynamic.
We had a client from Broward County, Ms. Wanda who had been very successful in her field. She had a six-figure income, she was married and her husband who was also successful, and they lived accordingly. They never believed they would get divorced, however, they did. This completely changed the dynamics of Ms. Wanda’s economics. She alone could not afford the mortgage, car payments, and private school amongst many other expenses. The divorce also made her depressed and led to her losing her job, and despite finding another one fairly quickly, she was only making about 60% of her previous salary. This drove Ms. Wanda to accrue increasingly large balances in her credit cards and take out lines of credit to the point she could no longer pay them back.
She turned to us and to file for bankruptcy in Broward County, discharged some debts, refinanced some others, and she was able to continue living her life, slowly getting over the abrupt changes her life took.
Business Failure Bankruptcy
Lastly, many people achieve the American dream and become private business owners. Oftentimes, in order to start these businesses or to expand them, owners mix the business entity with their personal one when taking out loans in their names or which they personally guarantee, applying for credit cards, etc. This was the case of our client, Mr. Vega in Miami.
Mr. Vega had started a trucking business by driving the first truck and fielding calls from companies and dispatchers. Over the course of a few years the business grew to employ some 30 drivers who would be driving for months on end through faraway states all over the United States. Then the company collapsed. Mr. Vega could not have seen this coming; he did not want it to happen, but there was nothing he could do. He thought he was safe as the business had defaulted on its loans and credit lines, however, he had personally guaranteed almost all of the company’s accounts, and when the company collapsed, banks and other creditors went after Mr. Vega personally to collect.
The only way out was to declare bankruptcy and start anew. He contacted us and we managed to file for bankruptcy in Miami on his behalf.
Bankruptcy is not something anyone is excited to declare, for the most part it is something that individuals try to avoid, but sometimes, like with our clients above, the only way out is to file for bankruptcy in hopes of starting anew. If you feel that your situation could be helped by declaring bankruptcy, please do not hesitate to contact us or fill out the contact form for a free consult.
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