Beware of Debt Settlement Companies

The average American is drowning in their credit card debt, and this has lead many people to seek assistance with their bills. There are quite a few debt consolidation and settlement companies available out there, but the majority of them do little more than take your money and run. Hundreds of companies have been investigated and closed down over the past few years for such practices, but it seems every time one closes two more pop up.

The sad truth is many settlement companies have learned how to work the system and are able to drain millions of dollars from unsuspecting clients and then basically disappear. The setup of many of these debt settlement companies is to advertise that you pay a small fee to do business with their company. You then supply them with your creditor's information and the amount of money you owe and they will work with your creditors in order to achieve a small monthly payment for you. You will then pay the company and they will pay out to your creditors. The only problem is that the majority of these companies never actually pay the creditors. Eventually the clients will catch on and when they file complaints or sue the company files Chapter 7 and moves on leaving the client with more debt than they started with.

It is quite devastating for the clients to discover that they have been duped into believing they were working out their finances. Not only do the majority of their debts still hold true, but most of them will be greater than when they originally started with the settlement company and they will have less money to pay them because they will have lost all of the money that was paid to the debt settlement company.

Debt settlement companies are extremely clever, and it is rather difficult to figure out which ones offer a legitimate service. The majority of people are unable to tell if their company is doing right by them until they discover they have been scammed and it is too late to retrieve the money they have paid into the false program.

There is one sure fire way to prevent being scammed by a one of these companies. Only seek advice and assistance from a certified debt settlement attorney. Not only will they be able to provide all of the services that a settlement company promises, but they will be in a better position to deal with your creditors legally.