To most people it sounds pretty farfetched that anyone would use a casino ATM to withdraw money to try and win enough money to get back on track financially.  This scenario plays out in casinos more times than you would expect.  People could resort to this strategy out of desperation, addiction, or any number of reasons.  Most of the time participants in the great gamble don’t end up in a situation that they would prefer.  Lucky for them, bankruptcy might still be an option.  The book, Bankruptcy for Dummies, says that credit card debts that are the result of gambling may possibly be dischargeable.

The book says:

“If your only hope of paying your debts was to hit the jackpot, you may be looking at an allegation of credit-card abuse.  But, the criteria employed by most judges is not an objective analysis of whether your dream of hitting the big one made sense but rather is a subjective analysis of whether that scenario made sense to you.  Your case would be even stronger if, in the past, you used winnings to pay debts.

Bottom line: Even if you used credit cards for gambling, most courts would still allow you to wipe out the charges provided that you honestly believed that you would win enough to repay the charges.”

Now of course do not go out and run up gambling debts now that you read this, but if you have already tried this route in the past and have lost, you might still have a chance to get the debts wiped out.

If you are struggling financially, you need to contact a bankruptcy attorney as soon as possible.  Don’t waste your time and money spinning your wheels.  A bankruptcy attorney will be able to tell you what to do right now to get your financial situation headed in the right direction.  You’ll be able to wipe out debts and get back on track.