How To Fill Out The Paperwork For A Payment Plan In Small Claims

Posted on: 20 October 2014

When you cause a fender bender or damage someone's property, odds are, someone will come after you for money. Depending on the extent of the damage, the other party might want to go through small claims court instead of going through the insurance company. Or they may choose to go through small claims court to get even more money in addition to the insurance payout.

When this occurs, you'll have to go through a trial in front of a judge:

After the Verdict

If the judge finds that you are guilty and orders you to pay, you have two options:

You can either pay the balance due that day, or you can ask for a payment plan.

In this case, you'll have to fill out a form known as the "Judgment Debtor's Statement of Assets." As long as you know how to fill out the form beforehand and what information is on it, it shouldn't take you that long. But you should have 30 days to get it back to the court.

Employment Information

Make sure you have all of your employer's information on you. The very first section of the "Judgment Debtor's Statement of Assets" form will ask you to provide your job details, employer's name and employer's address. You'll also have to be specific about how much you get paid each pay period. Fully disclose all dollar amounts -- they will verify this information.

Cash on Hand

The next section will have you list all of the money you currently have in your possession. You'll have to be specific as to how much money you have on your person at that moment. However, you'll also have to list your bank accounts and how much money is in each one. Be sure to make it known if any of the accounts are joint with someone else.

Property Details

The courts want to get a solid picture as to how much you're worth. So on the second page, you'll need to list any homes, boats or cars you own and whether or not you own them with someone else. Include dollar values of all of your property. The bottom part of this section requires you to list any other personal property you have that's worth something -- list jewelry, for example, but not clothing, appliances or furniture.

Amount of Payments

Right before you sign the form, you can put down the exact dollar amount that you can afford to pay each month and the date you will pay it. It isn't guaranteed that your request will be granted. However, the courts will look through your assets and see if you can afford that amount or possibly more. When you receive your judgment payment schedule, make sure you follow it to avoid any late fees or penalties.

If you have any other questions, try contacting a company like Smallclaim Com Inc. to learn more.

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Auto Insurance Claim Challenges: When The Other Driver Is Arrested

I always thought insurance claims for accidents were pretty straightforward until I was rear-ended by a driver who was intoxicated. Since he was arrested for driving under the influence, I had a hard time filing the claim with his insurance company. They couldn't talk to him while he was in jail, so the whole process became much more complex. I realized that there wasn't a lot of information out there about what to expect in these types of situations, so I decided to create this site to help others see what I went through and how the situation was finally resolved. I hope that it helps you if you're ever in an accident like mine and the at-fault driver is difficult to reach.

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