by karen
(cinti ohio)
I got a letter to go to small claims court for $700.00. We do owe the money. Can we call the hospital to make a lower payment or is it too late? If we can pay do we still have to go to court?
Reply from DebtCollectionAnswers.com
Karen - you can certainly try to see if they will settle to keep it out of court, but if you owe the money they may try to proceed so they can get a judgment against you. Give it a try. If they agree be sure to get the details in writing before you pay and make sure it states that they will not proceed with the lawsuit if you meet the terms of the settlement. (And then contact the court to make sure they followed through.)
If you can't get them to settle, make sure you understand what they can do to collect if they get a judgment against you. Read our pages about being sued for a debt.
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