Can they garnish unemployment benefits from NYS Department of Labor?
I'm currently receiving unemployment benefits through NYS Department of Labor and just got served with papers for an old credit card debt. The debt collector is threatening to garnish my wages but I'm not working right now - just getting UI payments. Can they actually garnish my unemployment benefits? I'm really worried because this is all the income I have right now and I can't afford to lose any of it.
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Daniel Washington
Generally speaking, unemployment benefits are protected from most types of garnishment in New York. Regular creditors like credit card companies, medical debt collectors, and personal loan companies cannot garnish your NYS Department of Labor unemployment payments. However, there are some exceptions - child support, taxes, and student loans can sometimes still be garnished even from unemployment benefits.
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Lauren Zeb
•Thank you! This is just a credit card debt so sounds like I should be okay. Do I need to notify the debt collector that these are unemployment benefits or does NYS Department of Labor automatically protect them?
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Aurora Lacasse
You should contact the debt collector and inform them that your only income is unemployment benefits which are exempt from garnishment under New York law. Send this notice in writing and keep copies. Also make sure your bank account is clearly labeled as receiving unemployment benefits - some banks will automatically protect accounts that only receive exempt income like UI payments.
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Anthony Young
•wait how do you label your bank account for unemployment? my bank never asked about this when i set up direct deposit for my weekly claims
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Aurora Lacasse
•Contact your bank directly and tell them the account only receives exempt income (unemployment benefits). They can add a notation to prevent automatic freezing if a garnishment order comes through.
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Charlotte White
I went through this exact situation last year! Had a medical debt collector trying to garnish my unemployment. I was freaking out trying to call NYS Department of Labor but could never get through. Someone here recommended using Claimyr (claimyr.com) to actually reach an agent - they have a video demo at https://youtu.be/qyftW-mnTNI that shows how it works. The agent confirmed my benefits were protected and helped me understand what documentation I needed.
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Lauren Zeb
•That's really helpful! I've been trying to call for days but keep getting the busy signal. How quickly were you able to reach someone through that service?
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Admin_Masters
ugh the whole system is messed up, why do we even have to worry about this when were already struggling?? like isnt it bad enough we lost our jobs without having to deal with debt collectors too. the protections should be automatic not something we have to fight for
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Matthew Sanchez
•I totally understand the frustration but the protections actually are automatic under New York law. The problem is that debt collectors often don't know or don't care about these protections, so people receiving UI benefits have to be proactive about asserting their rights.
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Ella Thompson
same thing happened to my neighbor, she just ignored it and nothing happened to her unemployment
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Daniel Washington
•While unemployment benefits are protected, it's not a good idea to ignore legal papers. It's better to respond and assert your rights properly to avoid complications down the road.
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Ethan Anderson
I'd also recommend documenting everything - keep copies of all the legal papers you received, any correspondence with the debt collector, and your unemployment benefit statements. If you do need to go to court, having this documentation will help prove that your only income is protected unemployment benefits. Also, if the debt collector continues to harass you after you've informed them about the exempt status of your benefits, that could be a violation of debt collection laws and you might want to consult with a consumer rights attorney.
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Samantha Howard
•This is really solid advice about documentation! I'm definitely going to start keeping better records of everything. Quick question - when you say "unemployment benefit statements," do you mean the weekly payment confirmations I get from NYS DOL, or is there a different type of statement I should be requesting? I want to make sure I have the right paperwork if I need to prove my benefits are protected.
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