Guilt From Debt
For those who struggle with guilt from the debt they cannot afford to pay.
Feeling Guilty About Not Being Able to Afford Your Debt
The law defines “guilt” as moral culpability for an intentionally committed or premeditated act. Hopefully, our choices are guided by principles beyond the law, but it is good to recognize the intent of this concept. Life does not always wind its way around the path of our intentions. The great recession of 2008 forced many senior citizens to lose jobs and retire early. Carefully planned retirement funds evaporated. Home values, a seeming bedrock of financial security, dropped until equity was lost and forgotten.
Today, more than 17 million American senior citizens — about one in three — live at or below 200 percent of the poverty line. The death of a spouse, illness or any other unexpected calamity can push through this financial cushion pretty quickly, leaving seniors with a series of unpleasant decisions. Add old debt to this mix, and the choices between paying for basic needs and repaying old debt get increasingly difficult.
The good news is that Americans do not want the elderly to suffer. Elected lawmakers on federal and state levels have repeatedly passed legislation protecting the income resources of senior citizens. Courts have ruled in favor of cases affirming the protected natures of senior citizens’ income. Furthermore, passages regarding the forgiveness of debt riddle the Old Testament. “Open thy mouth and plead the cause of the poor and needy,” reads Proverbs 31, verse 9.
A senior citizen is not a “bad person” because he or she cannot afford their debt
A senior citizen is not a “bad person” because he or she cannot afford to repay old debt. Lenders are businesses. Lenders know there may be circumstances when debtors cannot repay loans. When lenders loan money or give credit to consumers, they attach an interest rate to the loan. This interest rate exists not only to generate revenue for the business, but also to protect lenders from possible risks. While many lenders seek to capitalize on guilt to persuade repayment, loans are contracts made with the implied understanding that performance – repayment of the loan – is objectively possible. Failure to repay outstanding credit or old debt is never a crime. Enforcement of these loans may be sought only through the civil courts. When the debtor is a senior citizen with minimal and/or exempt assets who has protected retirement income, any court judgment for collection of money owed is effectively powerless.
What you can do about the calls
However, debt collectors will never inform senior citizens about the laws protecting their incomes. Harassment does happen. Some collectors will say just about anything to intimidate and terrify senior citizens into depleting their limited resources. Phone calls and letters from collectors can feel like the gnashing teeth of a hungry predator, but the law affords senior citizens some weapons for self-defense.
The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act limits the measures a debt collector can take. It also requires a termination of all written or phone contact once the debtor sends a “cease and desist letter.” A template cease and desist letter can be downloaded for free from the internet, including from our website.
Forgiving yourself
The guilt over unpaid debt is an understandable struggle. Many of us have a hard time affording ourselves the same compassion we would grant to others. Some things, however, are objectively impossible. Even if they were offered a million dollars to run a marathon tomorrow, most people couldn’t do it. The humility gained by recognizing that not everything is within our control can become an invaluable tool for self-forgiveness. As Helen Keller said, “failures become victories if they make us wise-hearted.”