Question:
Can a garnishee order be put on one's salary without any notification?

Is there a way that I can pay all my outstanding instalments with one payment? For example, if I have three accounts, is it possible for me to pay those three accounts with one payment that is then split up to pay all three?

I would like to consolidate my debt.

Answer:
If you fall behind on a payment an agency representing the creditor will usually go to a number of lengths to contact you.

They will try to get you to commit to a firm payment schedule. The new payment schedule will now, however, include collection costs.

If you avoid the debt collector you would normally receive a letter of demand. If you ignore this the collection agent will arrange for a summons to be issued, which gives you five days to get ready for an appearance in court to defend your actions.

If you have a truly understandable reason why you have been unable to make payments to your creditors, you will be given the opportunity to explain this to the magistrate.

If you do not turn up in court you will get a default judgment. Once this is issued, your property ownership rights will be substantially compromised.

This legal ruling will be reported to the major credit bureaus that will list the magistrate’s decree on your credit record. If you do not take steps to get this sorted out, the listing will remain on your credit record for the next five years. If you find yourself in this situation try to find the money to offer a repayment and ask a professional debt settlement expert to negotiate a deal which must include the rescission of your judgment. It is extremely important for you to work with a professional at this stage as many debtors who tried to sort out judgments on their own made payment only to then find that the listing has remained on their credit record.

If you did not appear in court to defend the judgment and allow the magistrate to more clearly understand the full extent of your current problems, he or she will have decided how much you can afford to have deducted from your salary. A garnishee order allows your creditor to directly procure a payment from your salary each month. Your employer must administer this process and may charge you five percent of the value as an administration fee.

So the answer is no — for the reasons stated above, the creditor cannot put a garnishee order on your wages without you knowing. However, if you moved from your current residence, changed your cell number and did not provide creditors with your phone number then you may not have received any of the notifications. In this case they can still get the garnishee order. This is why it is so important to notify creditors of your change of address.

Unfortunately you need to have a clear credit record for a bank to consider a consolidation. Your garnishee order will count against you.

Banks will usually only consider consolidation if you are the owner of a property.

If I were you I would concentrate on paying off the debt that is being garnished from your wages. Try and find some cash to do this in your existing budget. The cost of running a garnishee order is very high and you must keep up payments to your other debts while doing this. Ask the administrator for a settlement figure to get an idea of how much you owe and also ask for a complete breakdown of costs as they sometimes overcharge.