how to stop credit card offers to learning disabled son ?

I have a relative who is similarly limited in his abilities.

Unless your friend has some sort of legal authority over this young man, and/or a court has already declared him unable to legally consent to a contract, then the law will expect him to make the payments.

With my relative, "we" have been stuck with him making some terrible financial mistakes, and suffering not a few financial losses. Another relative has bailed him out to some extent, including giving him a low interest loan, and explaining to him how he'd have to pay monthly. On the upside, my "limited" relative has learned somewhat from these experiences. He's not as reckless as he once was. God willing he'll never be mugged again. He's a lot more careful and doesn't trust just anyone anymore.

Is there any chance to make this a lesson for this young man? Maybe force him to "pay" in some way for his mistake, explaining (and it might take a few attempts) what he's done and how "mom" will give him a loan, but he will pay her off at 1 point below the going rate of interest for it.

It's good that he can hold a job. It's the same for my relative, though he struggles.

wrote

If you go to

Best regards, Bob

I ran a retail store as a youth. I sold a stereo system to a guy who I knew as a cook at one of the eating establishments that I visited. He paid in cash. About 2 weeks later, him mom came in an returned the stereo and demanded her money back. The stereo was used and abused, and not able to be resold. She had a letter from her attorney that stated that the young man was mentally incompetent and not able to enter into agreements or buy stuff on his own. That was news to me since the guy appeared normal in every respect. My attorney said I had no choice in the matter, I had to repay them.

Perhaps you can get something similar for this kid where he doesn't have to take responsiblity for things that he doesn't understand.

-john-

Why not have him file for bankruptcy? If he's old enough to enter into a contract, his mom should not be responsible for the debt. That would probably keep them from sending him any offers for at least seven to ten years.

Leigh

I just went through this as a result of several computers being stolen from the local VA hospital, one of which had 3,000 names and SSNs on it including mine.

If you go to the Web site of any one of the three credit reporting agencies (Transunion, Equifax and Experian) you can immediately put a 90 day fraud watch on the account. You can also remove the person from the list that credit card companies use for solicitation. You only have to do this at one site. It will propagate to the other two almost instantly. The fraud watch will alert any lender who checks the credit report to contact you before issuing credit.

If you do not have Internet access you can call one of the following numbers and do the same by phone.

Equifax: 800-525-6285 Experian: 888-397-3742 TransUnion: 800-680-7289

If you are the victim of identity theft or other special circumstances you can also requiest a form that will allow you to get a 7 year fraud alert put on the credit record. They might do this in the case of someone who is impaired. I do not know.

Actually, there are credit companies that prey on people who have filed for bankruptcy. Once you file, you cannot file again for 7 years, so they know that if they grant someone credit after bankruptcy, they will not be able to file bankruptcy again right away.

-john-

Assuming the mother has not been appointed legal guardian in some way of her son, then he'll have to do this himself, right?

I'd be surprised if Equifax, Experian, or TransUnion, or any credit card company believed statements (on face value) and then took directions from one adult claiming to act on behalf of another adult. That's fraudulent activity in and of itself.

"Bill" wrote

Fortunately or unfortunately, no. The whole process is automated whether you do it by Web or by phone. They attempt to verify who you are by asking a series of questions that require you to enter personal information that they have on file. If you have the right answers you can put a 90 fraud alert on anyone's account.

Please note that I am commenting on the mechanics, not the ethics or legality.