Can a person be sent to jail in the U.S .for not being able to pay their credit card bill?

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kitty fresh & hissin' crew	Yes. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Pobept	YES not paying you bills can cause you to be arrested, tried and jailed Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Jorge R	he could go to jail for not paying it.. credit and credit cards are great for emergencies, however could be a lifelong death trap.... Good Luck... have him plead to the court... Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

lilmisstickletoo	no. You can not go to jail for a debt. With the exception of fines. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Meow the cat	They will make a judgement on him and they can garnish his wages til the judgement is paid off. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Tony M	There is no debtor's prison in the US. However, he must appear in court, otherwise the company will win by default. They may be able to seize some of his assets and/or garnish some of his earnings. But jail is not a possibility, unless there was a deliberate attempt to defraud, which does not seem to apply here. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

dulcie l	don't worry nobody has been sent to jail yet out of credit card mess Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

4999_Basque	No. Debt is a civil matter...not a criminal matter. The worst that can happen is that he can have a judgment filed against him. This will effect his credit negatively, but "Debtors' Prison" does not exist in the United States. Debt is different from fraud. A person CAN be sent to jail for criminal fraud if it can be proved that the intent was to defraud the credit card company...although the chance of that is very, very slim. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

TrueSoul	It is a basic principle in American law that you do not go to jail for unpaid debts, unless the money owed is to the GOVERNMENT. Unless they charge him with running some kind of scam (which does not seem to be the case here) and can prove his intent to defraud the companies, it is a civil case not a criminal one. They can seize his assets, garnish his wages and take a large percentage of his income for the rest of his life until he finishes paying (which will be never given the high interest rates). Given the new bankruptcy laws, it will be very difficult to discharge the debts but your best bet is to consult a bankruptcy lawyers. It might be the best $80-$100 you ever spent! Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

WC	Instead of jail, most likely they will seize your assets to pay for your debt. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

janice h	No he will not be jailed unless he committed fraud to get the credit card. We do not have debtors prison. What will happen is the judge will put a lien on your house and maybe will garnishee part of his paycheck in order to pay the bill off. Be sure to get an attorney so that they don't take too much out of each check. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Yak Rider	Okay, pay attention. 1. No, he can't be sent to jail. 2. He MUST show up in court, if not, they will win by default. In court he should challenge the debt based on the statute of limitations. In many states if the debt is more than three years old, and he's made no payments during the last three years, the debt can no longer be collected. The case will be dismissed. He should also make them PROVE it's his debt. Many times, with old debt, there's no paperwork showing who signed to open the account. If they can't prove it's his the case will be dismissed. If he's an idiot and fails to show up in court none of this matters. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

Barbara	He is going to court on a "judgement". At the judgement, it will be determined how he will pay back the debt. Most of the time there is a lien placed on bank accounts or garnishment of wages. They will ask him what he plans to do and take that into consideration. There will be NO jail time! Next time, don't let it go that far, talk to the creditors. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No

libertyecg	BACON's Rebellion in the Massachusetts during the early part of the United States was the end of "Debtors Prison". Your husband CANNOT go to jail for not paying his debt, but several things could happen. 1) Check the clause's on his credit agreement, these will state what the crediting agency has the right to reposes in case of default payments. 2) The crediting agency can and will place a record of this on his credit report for everyone in the future to see, possibly even future employers. 3) The crediting agency can take him to civil court. If he does not appear, the just will automatically find him guilty. 4) If he appears, and the judge determines that he has enough money to pay the debt, he can order your husband to pay, if he doesn't pay, he can be found in contempt ---- This is the only case in which your husband can actually go to jail, other than if he purgers himself during the trial. -Good Luck, Hooah. Was this answer helpful to you? Yes / No