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Sued by Department Stores National Bank — What to Do

Chloe Meltzer | January 15, 2025

Chloe-Meltzer
Legal Expert
Chloe Meltzer, MA

Chloe Meltzer is an experienced content writer specializing in legal content creation. She holds a degree in English Literature from Arizona State University, complemented by a Master’s in Marketing from California Polytechnic State University-San Luis Obispo.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Hannah Locklear
Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Summary: Is Department Stores National Bank suing you for a past-due balance? You can settle the debt out of court, but first, you should file a written Answer with the court to prevent a judgment. This will give you more time to work with Department Stores National Bank to settle without having to go to court. Solo can help you streamline the settlement negotiation process.

Department Stores National Bank pursues consumers owed to specific department stores. You will likely hear from the bank if you are late on your Macy’s or Bloomingdale’s. Defaulted accounts attract collection calls, negative entries on your credit report, and sometimes, lawsuits.

While the initial shock is understandable, you must act to resolve the debt. Answering the lawsuit is crucial to prevent losing by default. Even at this stage, debt collectors are often willing to work with consumers facing financial hardship. You just need to know how to approach them.

This article will discuss how to handle a debt collection lawsuit. But first, let’s learn who Department Store National Bank is.

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Who is Department Stores National Bank?

Department Stores National Bank (DSNB) is the issuer of several department store credit cards, including Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s. Because these are retail stores, DSNB handles the credit card operations and collects past-due debts. The bank belongs to Citigroup and also issues the American Express card.

Some consumers do not realize that opting in for a Macy’s card at checkout is, in effect, applying for a credit card for which their credit will experience a hard inquiry. Once you’ve used the card, you must make monthly payments. Delayed payments lead to collections, which can further affect your credit.

DSNB appears in your credit report as AMEX/DSNB, which stands for American Express Department Stores National Bank.

DSNB does not have physical locations. For queries, call the number on the back of your card to speak with customer care.

Who does DSNB collect for?

As mentioned, DSNB collects past-due debts on credit cards for Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s. The cards include the following:

  • Bloomingdale’s Credit Card
  • Bloomingdale’s American Express® Card
  • Macy’s Credit Card
  • Macy’s American Express® Card

Calls from DSNB may be confusing as they do not appear on your credit cards. It is always advisable to regularly check your credit report for accounts you do not recognize and figure out who they are before they ruin your score.

Read Department Stores National Bank reviews online to learn more about them.

You will not find much information about DSNB online. Most consumers leave their reviews of the bank on Macy’s and Bloomingdale’s profiles.

Read the review on the following platforms:

Talking to customer care can make resolving your debt more manageable. DSNB may be willing to settle the debt for less if they establish that you are experiencing financial hardship.

What should I do if DSNB sues me for debt?

Millions of American consumers face debt collection lawsuits each year. Many do not respond because they think it is too late or do not know what to do. Studies have shown that your reaction to debt collection and lawsuits directly affects the case results.

Below is a table outlining the possible outcomes:

Options if Sued by DSNB
Do Nothing Respond
You do not respond to debt collectors; they take you to court You ask for debt validation: You buy yourself time to verify the debt and raise money to pay it off
You ignore debt collection lawsuit Summons; the judge issues a default judgment in the collector’s favor Respond to the lawsuit and win, or buy time to negotiate a settlement with the collector
You initiate settlement negotiations before a lawsuit is filed You avoid the stress and hassle of a lawsuit and may be able to settle the debt for less than you owe.

The collector may go to court if debt collection calls and letters are unsuccessful. They hope to get a judgment to make you pay the debt. If you cannot pay the full amount, you may convince DSNB to settle out-of-court. But you must respond to the lawsuit. Otherwise, you may lose without the judge hearing your side of the story.

You will typically receive a Summons and Complaint Document informing you of the lawsuit and DSNB’s accusations. The debt collector is the plaintiff, and you are the defendant. You must send your reply to the court within the specified time. The deadline differs in each state, so you should read your Summons carefully to see how much time you have to file. The following section discusses how to respond to the lawsuit.

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How to respond if sued by Department Stores National Bank

Gather information on the debt and debt collector

Often, third-party debt collectors sue consumers. However, if DSNB is suing you, they are likely the original creditor. They own the credit cards for which they collect.

Review your records and any information you receive from the debt collector. You should have received a validation letter, and this can determine the following:

  • If the debt is yours
  • Who the creditor is
  • If the amount is correct
  • If the debt is past the statute of limitations:

Note: The statute of limitations is a law that time-bars legal action on debts.

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Respond to the lawsuit

You must respond to a debt collection lawsuit by the date specified in your Summons. You typically have 14 to 30 days from being served to file a response to the lawsuit. If you do not respond, you put your bank account, wages, or property at risk. You may then also lose the ability to fight the lawsuit.

Take the following steps to respond to the lawsuit:

  1. Carefully read the Complaints document
  2. Write your response to each complaint: You can deny if a claim is incorrect, agree if it is valid, or deny because you do not understand the complaint.
  3. Assert your affirmative defenses
  4. File the Answer with the court and with DSNB’s lawyer
  5. Keep a personal copy of the Answer document

SoloSuit can help you create the Answer in minutes.

You should ensure your document meets the court format “style.” An easy alternative to doing this yourself is using SoloSuit to daft your personalized Answer and get help filing it with the court.

Note that filing an Answer will not settle the debt. It will prevent a default judgment, but if you fail to show up at any scheduled hearings or trials, you will likely lose the case. Instead, you should contact Department Stores National Bank before your court date to discuss settlement options. In many cases, you can settle the debt for less before the scheduled court date.

How to settle a debt collection lawsuit with Department Stores National Bank

No one opens a credit account hoping to default on them. However, unforeseen financial hardship can cause you to be so deep in debt that, despite your best efforts, paying in full is impossible. If this is your situation, there is still a way out.

Debt settlement can work. DSNB is not under obligation to forgive unpaid debts, but it is also not looking to lose everything by spending too much money on a lawsuit that it will receive nothing from despite winning.

Settling a debt requires you to take action:

  • Evaluate your finances
  • Determine how much you can afford to pay
  • Approach DSNB with your proposal
  • Negotiate the best settlement amount
  • Prepare a Debt Settlement Agreement
  • Pay DSNB the settlement amount

If the process seems daunting, do not despair. SoloSettle helps you through each step.

Watch the video below to learn how to settle debt for good.

Know what to present at the hearing

Going to your hearing is another essential step. In this case, you will need to decide what you want to pay or can pay, and it is also time to make your defense or work out a deal. If you owe the debt you can attempt to settle the debt for less than you owe. This is called a settlement. Another option is to set up a payment plan to make paying off the debt easier.

If you do not think that you should be required to pay then you will need to make your case. In the case of a Department Store credit card, the only reasons you should not be required to pay would be if you return the items, you signed the original credit agreement based on falsehoods, or the items were delivered to you defectively when ordered by mail. Most often these will not cut it, and you will need to explore other avenues.

Other avenues might include asking the company to sue you to prove the debt, and the other avenue would be to look at the statute of limitations. If it has expired then the debt lawsuit will be lifted, and you can figure out another way to pay off the debt, or ignore it and allow it to negatively affect your credit.

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