| |
If it looks like you have been using your credit cards even though you know you won’t be able to make payments, then creditors may accuse you of borrowing fraudulently.
Of course, the circumstances of use will make a difference. If you have been regularly using credit cards to pay for groceries, gas, utilities and other basic necessities of life and you continued to do so in the weeks or days prior to consulting with a bankruptcy trustee, it is unlikely that you will be accused of fraud. Once you meet with a trustee and decide to file, you will need to stop using your cards. Remember that you will have money freed up to buy your necessities because you stop making payments as soon as your trustee files on your behalf.
On the other hand, if you used credit to purchase a big ticket item, went to expensive restaurants, bought designer clothes, took trips, etc., just before declaring bankruptcy—it is most likely that your creditors will assume that you did this with no intention of paying them back and they will apply to have this debt excluded from bankruptcy discharge, so you will still have to pay it back, even after your bankruptcy is discharged.

IN THIS SECTION
|
|