If you are a frequent driver within the Chicago metropolitan area, you are likely more than aware of the opportunities for tickets to be issued from simply driving through the city. If you try to squeak through a light right as it turns red, you run the risk of a red light camera ticket. Park in an unmarked parking spot for just a few minutes to run into the bank, and you also run the risk of getting a parking ticket – or even worse, having your car booted. If you are on a tight budget, as many of us are these days, you may feel like you never have the extra money to pay the tickets when so much of your extra income goes towards life's necessities.
Sometimes, it may seem like the easiest option is to just throw the unpaid tickets in your glove box and hope for the best, but it is important to know that if within a one year time you accrue three unpaid tickets, you automatically become “boot eligible”. Once you find yourself with a boot on your vehicle, you are also looking at a $60 boot fee, $150 tow fee, and a $20/day (for the first five days) and $35/day thereafter storage fee which all needs to be paid prior to you getting back in behind the wheel.
Having more than three unpaid tickets also can lead to having your driver's license suspended, as well as the establishment of a wage garnishment. This means that not only will your driver's license be suspended which makes it nearly impossible to get to work, but once you get to work your employer will have no choice but to comply with the city and garner your wages until your unpaid tickets and fees are paid.
While getting the initial tickets may have seemed like a minor annoyance, you are now faced with a staggering amount of unpaid tickets, fines, no driver's license, and a wage garnishment to top it all off. Before you get ready to throw up your hands out of frustration, there are several options available to help you sort out your financial road map.
If you find yourself unable to agree to a repayment plan offered by the city of Chicago or Joliet, you may decide to look into filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy. By filing a Chapter 13 Bankruptcy, you are able to roll all the associated tickets and fees into a re-payment plan which usually lasts for 3-5 years. Over the life of the repayment plan, you will be able to pay back the total amount you owe a little bit at a time until the entire amount is paid off. One of the biggest benefits is that it will allow you to have your driver's license back (in most cases, this happens the day you file your Bankruptcy) and also allows you to avoid wage garnishment. That way, you will still be able to get to work and make the money that is needed in order to keep payments current under the Chapter 13 repayment plan. A knowledgeable attorney can walk you through the ins and outs of filing a Chapter 13 bankruptcy in Joliet or Chicago, will explain your options to you, and will file all the paperwork needed to get your Chapter 13 bankruptcy started.