If you default on your Bank of America credit card, you could find yourself facing a lawsuit. While a lawsuit isn’t a guarantee, it’s one of the tools creditors have at their disposal to collect outstanding debts. If you’ve been sued by Bank of America or you’re nervous that you might be, here are some things you need to know about the process and your options.
Who is Bank of America?
Overview of Bank of America
Bank of America is the second-largest bank in the United States and the fifth-largest credit card issuer. It was founded in 1904 under the name Bank of America National Trust and Savings Association. Over the following century, it acquired many other banks to become one of the country’s largest financial institutions.
Bank of America serves roughly 69 million customers, including many credit card customers. It offers a variety of popular credit cards, including cash back, travel, and credit-building cards.
Bank of America Reviews and Complaints
As a large financial institution, Bank of America has a lot of customer feedback online. It has an average review of 1.12 out of 5 stars with the Better Business Bureau (BBB) and 1.3 out of 5 stars with Trustpilot. It has a BBB rating of A.
Bank of America has tens of thousands of complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau’s complaint database. Many of those complaints are directly related to the company’s credit card offerings and services.
What Happens If You Get Sued by Bank of America
If you’re facing a debt collection lawsuit from Bank of America, it’s important to understand why they may be suing you, what you should do if you receive any communications or are served with papers from Bank of America, and what rights you have.
Reasons Bank of America Might Sue You
Bank of America may sue you for any of your unsecured debt. In most cases, the bank wouldn’t have to resort to a lawsuit for a secured loan like a mortgage or auto loan. Those loan agreements allow the bank to seize the underlying asset. However, they may resort to a lawsuit to collect an unpaid debt on a credit card, personal loan, or personal line of credit.
Understanding How Bank of America Collects Debt
Bank of America has several options for collecting unpaid debts. First, when you initially miss a payment, Bank of America is likely to hit you with late fees, as well as report the missed payment to your credit report.
If you don’t eventually make your loan or credit card payments, Bank of America is likely to use internal collections efforts. However, it may eventually resort to selling your debt to a collections agency. These agencies purchase debt from the original creditor, usually for a fraction of its original value, and then work to collect the unpaid debt.
Finally, Bank of America — or a debt collection agency that Bank of America sells your debt to — can sue you to collect a debt. In this case, they will seek a court judgment requiring you to pay your delinquent credit card debt, possibly through wage garnishment or other means.
What Should I Do If I Receive a Letter or Call from Bank of America?
If you receive a letter or phone call from Bank of America, make sure it’s really the bank contacting you. It’s possible for another party to impersonate Bank of America to try to collect money from you.
You can make sure the letter or phone call is really from them by comparing the contact information to what’s available on Bank of America’s website or by simply calling Bank of America to verify that they contacted you.
Once you’ve verified the communication is legitimate, it’s important to validate the debt itself. The federal government requires lenders and debt buyers to provide written validation of debts when you request them. Once you know the debt is really yours, you’ll have a better idea of how to proceed.
What Should I Do If I Receive a Summons or Judgment Against Me?
If you receive a summons from Bank of America, it’s critical that you respond in a timely manner. Failure to respond to a summons could lead to a default judgment against you, which would likely require you to pay your entire outstanding debt, and could even include wage garnishment or another means of collection.
The summons should state how long you have to respond — it will likely be about 20 or 30 days. You should follow the instructions and prepare to either appear in court or attempt to negotiate a settlement outside of court.
First, read the summons carefully to make sure you understand their claims and what they’re requesting. You may also want to consider hiring a debt relief attorney who can help you navigate the court process (or even avoid court altogether).
Note: If you’ve already received a summons and have had a default judgment issued against you, there may still be time to act. Speak with an experienced consumer debt relief attorney who can review your case and see if you have any standing to have the judgment overturned.
Handling Communications from Bank of America
Make sure to keep a copy of all your communications with Bank of America, including copies of any letters or emails and detailed notes about any phone calls. This information will be helpful when addressing your debt. It will also be invaluable if Bank of America ends up taking legal action against you to collect an unpaid debt.
Knowing Your Rights Against Bank of America
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act (FDCPA) is the federal law that protects consumers from harmful debt collection practices by lenders. Originally passed in 1977, the FDCPA places limits on certain debt collection efforts. Here are some elements of the FDCPA:
- Attorney representation: You have the right to have an attorney represent you regarding your unpaid debt, and if you retain an attorney, the lender must channel all communication through your attorney.
- Time and place restrictions: Debt collectors can only contact you between certain hours (usually 8 a.m. and 9 p.m. in your time zone), can’t contact you at a time they know to be inconvenient to you, and can’t contact you at your place of employment if your employer prohibits that type of communication during work.
- Communication with third parties: A debt collector can only contact you or your attorney about your debt. A lender may contact other third parties if they can’t get a hold of you, but they can only contact them once and can’t discuss your debt with them.
- Ending communication: If you request the debt collector to stop contacting you, they must do so right away, except to acknowledge that they’ll stop their collection efforts. However, the debt collector can still resort to other remedies.
- Debt validation: A debt collector must provide written information to validate the debt within five days of their initial communication. They must provide the debt amount, the creditor’s name, and your right to dispute the debt.
- Restrictions on certain collection practices: A debt collector can’t resort to harassing, abusive, false, misleading, or unfair debt collection practices. For example, they can’t threaten or harass you, use obscene language, lie to you, falsely represent themselves or the debt, charge unauthorized interest or fees, or other similar practices.
How to Negotiate with Bank of America
If you’re sued by Bank of America, it may be possible to negotiate a settlement agreement rather than going to court. Here’s what you need to know about negotiating with Bank of America.
Check to Make Sure Bank of America Isn’t a Scam
As we mentioned, it’s important to make sure any communications from Bank of America aren’t a scam. You’ll want to do this before you discuss your debt with anyone, and especially before making any payments to the party contacting you.
Strategies for Negotiating with Bank of America
If you’re sued by Bank of America for your credit card or loan debt, it may be possible to negotiate a settlement rather than going to court. A settlement can benefit both parties — it allows Bank of America to save money on legal expenses and still recoup some of its outstanding debt, and it allows you to settle your debt for less than you owe.
To settle your debt, take a look at your own personal finances to see how much you can afford to pay. You may be able to settle for either one lump-sum payment or a series of installment payments. While every situation is different, some borrowers are able to save upwards of 50% of their debt with the right strategy and mostly by using the right firm to assist in the debt resolution process.
If you don’t feel confident negotiating with Bank of America yourself, consider hiring an experienced debt relief attorney to do so on your behalf. They may be more reputable than the many debt settlement companies on the market, so you can trust their work.
How to Protect Against Bank of America
Steps to Take If You’re Contacted by Bank of America
Here’s a quick recap of what you should do if you’re contacted or sued by Bank of America about a debt you owe:
- Make sure it’s not a scam: While Bank of America is a legitimate company, it’s possible that another party is contacting you pretending to be Bank of America to get you to pay them money. Make sure it’s really Bank of America contacting you.
- Validate the debt: Bank of America is required to validate your debt in writing. Don’t pay or negotiate until you receive this validation and confirm the debt is legitimate.
- Decide on your next steps: You have several options, including paying the debt, negotiating a settlement, or going to trial to put up a defense.
- Consider hiring an attorney: If you don’t feel comfortable handling your debt situation alone, consider hiring an attorney to represent you.
Filing a Complaint Against Bank of America
If you believe Bank of America has violated your rights as a borrower, especially if they have violated the Fair Debt Collection Practices Act, you can file a complaint against the company. First, you can file official legal complaints with the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau, Federal Trade Commission, or your state’s attorney general’s office. You can also file a complaint with the Better Business Bureau.
Bank of America Phone Number and Address
If you need to contact Bank of America about your credit card debt, here are the best ways to do so:
- Log in to your online banking or credit card account
- Call Bank of America at 866-266-0212 for billing inquiries
- Send payments to Bank of America, PO Box 15019, Wilmington, DE 19886
- Visit a local financial center
How Can a Debt Settlement Attorney Help?
Having debt you’re unable to pay is always a stressful ordeal, and it’s made even more stressful when your lender is calling you — or worse, suing you — to try to collect payment. The good news is that you have some options, including settling your debt and hiring a debt relief attorney to help you.
Tayne Law Group has been helping credit card and consumer borrowers like you deal with their debt for more than two decades. We can advise on your debt situation, negotiate with creditors on your behalf, and even represent you in court, if it comes to that. To schedule a free phone consultation, contact our offices at (866) 890-7337 or fill out our short contact form. We never share or sell your information, and all conversations are confidential.
FAQs
Can banks sue for credit card debt?
Yes, a bank can sue you for not paying your credit card debt. They likely won’t sue for all unpaid credit card debt, but may be more likely to do so if you have a large balance and haven’t made a good faith effort to pay down your debt.
What happens if Bank of America sues me?
If Bank of America sues you for your credit card debt, you’ll have to appear in court to present a defense. If you don’t appear in court, you may have a default judgment issued against you. When you appear in court, you may petition to have the lawsuit dismissed if you have a good reason. Otherwise, the judge may issue a judgment requiring you to repay the debt, possibly along with the plaintiff’s attorney fees.
Can you ask Bank of America to forgive credit card debt?
You can ask Bank of America to forgive your credit card debt, but they’re unlikely to do so. You’ll have more luck having a portion of your debt forgiven if you agree to a settlement, meaning you agree to repay at least a portion of your unpaid debt and interest.
How do I get a credit card lawsuit dismissed?
You can get a credit card debt lawsuit dismissed if you have a good reason, such as a statute of limitations, lack of standing, improper service of the summons or complaint, or something else.
