Unfortunately for you, there’s no money tree. That means when you are faced with stacks of unpaid bills, shut off notices, and even worse; unpaid traffic violation tickets and associated court fees, it may seem like a never ending battle trying to decide what to pay and what to push off until another paycheck. However, when dealing with the unpaid traffic and moving violation tickets, there might not be a “later”, as your driver’s license will be suspended until those unpaid tickets are taken care of. What can you do? You can’t simply ignore the tickets and continue to operate your motor vehicle, as that can result in further tickets and additional fees. On the other hand, you can’t skip paying essential bills in order to pay your traffic tickets. When you feel like there’s no way out of your financial hardship situation, filing for Bankruptcy may be your solution.
If you decide you are interested in filing for bankruptcy in Chicago, you undoubtedly have a myriad of questions running through your head. Is this a good choice for me? What can be wiped out, and what do I need to pay back? Is a Chapter 7 or Chapter 13 best for me? Thankfully, when you are filing for bankruptcy, you will not have to figure out all this information on your own. Consulting with a bankruptcy attorney will allow you to investigate the benefits and drawbacks of each of the chapters available under Bankruptcy code, and will allow you to make an informed decision as to which course of action is best for you.
If you decide to file a Chapter 13 bankruptcy, it is important to know that most of your financial debts will be what’s called “wiped out” by your discharge. What this means is that all the moving violations tickets, outstanding doctors and medical visit charges, unpaid utility bills, etc., will be removed from your credit, allowing you to have a fresh start. However, the freedom to start over does come with a price; under a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, a debtor is required to pay back a certain amount of the existing debts under a repayment plan. The benefit of filing a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy is that you can have your moving violation tickets completely wiped from your record, which will allow for your license to be reinstated.
If you are filing for bankruptcy and are interested in filing a Chapter 7 bankruptcy, your moving violations will not be wiped out; however, there is no repayment plan required under Chapter 7 bankruptcy code. You will still be able to start fresh with a clean slate, but will still need to pay the moving violations in order to have your license reinstated. As the individual options vary between both Chapter 7 and Chapter 13, knowing what you hope to get out of filing for Bankruptcy will be an important factor in helping you decide which option is the best for you.