The Short Answer
When you file bankruptcy, your mortgage and car creditors typically stop sending statements and may cut off your online account access — this is normal and not a sign anything is wrong. It happens because creditors are cautious about violating the automatic stay, which is triggered by your bankruptcy filing and protects you from collection attempts. The most important thing you can do is keep making your payments on any property you want to keep, even without a statement. You can contact the creditor directly to request resumed statements, and many have a form our office can sign giving them permission to send them. Online access is usually restored fairly quickly, and at the latest, once your bankruptcy is discharged.
One of the most common things we hear after someone files a bankruptcy is they are not receiving statements for their mortgage or car creditors and they want to keep these pieces of property. Further, their online access to these accounts is shut off. Don’t worry, this is normal. The most important thing to know is you should continue sending in your payment on the property you want to keep after filing a bankruptcy.
The reason statements stop being sent and online access is shut off is because when you file a bankruptcy, the bankruptcy enacts an automatic stay which is what provides you with “protection” from creditors trying to collect a debt from you while you are in the bankruptcy. The creditors believe that by sending a statement they are violating the automatic stay by trying to get a payment from you. If they violate the automatic stay they could be sanctioned by the federal government. They don’t want that. So what can you do?
There are a few things you can do when this happens. You can contact the creditor, explain you’ve filed bankruptcy but wish to keep making payments on this debt and ask if they can resume sending statements. Most creditors have a form that can be filled out and signed by our office giving the creditor permission to send you statements. Some creditors may just agree to sending statements without the need of a form. However, other creditors may refuse to send statements no matter what you do. Even if you can’t get a statement sent to you, it’s imperative to keep making your monthly payments on any asset you are keeping and keep good records of those payments.
Even if you are not able to have the creditor send you statements right away, don’t worry, you should be able to get online access again not long after filing the bankruptcy. At worst, online access is usually reinstated once you are discharged from the bankruptcy.
Key Takeaways
- Filing bankruptcy triggers the automatic stay, which causes most mortgage and car creditors to stop sending statements out of concern they'll be seen as attempting to collect a debt.
- Keep making your monthly payments on property you want to keep, even if you never receive a statement — missing payments puts that property at risk.
- Many creditors have a permission form that your bankruptcy attorney can sign, authorizing them to resume sending you statements during your case.
- Some creditors will restore statement access with just a phone call; others may refuse entirely regardless of what you do.
- Online account access is often restored relatively soon after filing, and almost always reinstated by the time your bankruptcy discharge is granted.
- Keep detailed records of every payment you make during your bankruptcy — dates, amounts, and confirmation numbers — in case a question arises later.
Attorney Insight
The mistake I see most often is clients assuming that because they stopped getting a statement, they don't owe the payment — or worse, that the creditor is somehow handling it. They fall behind on their mortgage or car loan, and by the time they realize it, they're facing a motion to lift the automatic stay or a vehicle repossession. In nearly 30 years of practice, I've seen people lose homes and cars they fully intended to keep, simply because the absence of a paper statement led them to wait. When in doubt, call the creditor directly or call us — but always make the payment.
