Thank you for clarifying your fee structure. I am aware of the two different fee models. I personally am not a fan of the fixed fee model. I know some companies charge the entire fee within 12 or 14 months, so 20 months is better than most of them. However, I feel that it is in the consumers best interests for a company to tie their fees to their performance. That way the client is insured that the company has a financial incentive to work for the best settlement and see the program through to completion.

I am not saying you guys don’t have your client’s best interests in mind. I surely hope you do, as all businesses should. However can you see how it might make your clients more comfortable if you charged a fee based on what you saved them and charged it when the settlement was made? You could make the same amount of money if you wished, but it would allow the client to save more money, settle even faster, and sleep a little better at night knowing that Ram was financially incentivized to do the best job for them?

Perhaps a performance based fee structure could have helped avoid the frustration that Mrs Stewart was feeling.

.-= Damon Day´s last blog ..Debt Settlement Companies – Top 5 ways they can Screw you! =-.

When consumers are looking for a debt settlement service they will find two basic models: a) performance based and b) fixed fee based. If you go with a performance based company, be sure they are credible but ask the all the right questions and even ask for settlements. There are performance based companies with bad ratings. If you go with a fixed fee based company, stay away from companies front loading their fees. Be sure it’s spread out over a good length of time – in RAM Financial’s case we chose the fixed fee model with fees spread out as far as 20 months. What does this mean for the consumer? More savings, faster settlements.

Thank you again for allowing me to clarify on your site. I wish your readers and anyone who reads this who is in trouble all the best and to understand that research is key and sites such as http://www.damonday.com are crucial to separating the bad apples in our industry; unfortunately there are so many of these in the debt industry that companies such as ours who are committed to helping and doing the right thing are affected.

I appreciate you taking the time to explain your side of the story and I certainly want my readers to have as much information as possible, so they can make informed financial decisions. I of course was not privy to the conversations between you and Mrs. Stewart or with the 3 on your side team, so I cannot comment about what was disclosed or not disclosed. I can certainly appreciate that you take the time to explain the program that you offer to all potential clients. That is certainly something that is severely lacking with most companies in this industry.

That being said, and in the interest of full disclosure, my personal opinion is that I do not agree with the amount of money that Ram charges as a fee to consumers, and the structure that those fees are applied with. Of course, as I said, that is my personal opinion, and consumers are free to make up their own mind to decide how much they are willing to pay for a service. I hope that Ram and Mrs. Stewart will be able to come to a resolution that is satisfactory for both parties.

.-= Damon Day´s last blog ..Debt Settlement – 15 Companies under Investigation in New York =-.

We would like to clarify the story by 3 On Your Side Story entitled ‘Debt Settlement Nightmare for Phoenix Woman’.

Sites such as damonday.com, forums, 3-On-Your-Side, and any other Consumer information sites I not only recommend for clients and friends, but personally I use them myself because they are an excellent resource for information.

With regards to the ‘Phoenix Woman’ Rosie Stewart here is what I can tell you. We are a company that tells every client who enters our program how debt settlement really works. We do not paint the sky blue, we tell the truth on what to expect, and the steps that will happen and could happen – and this is done through a triple verification process. If the client do not understand the program or has any hesitations, we do not enroll them. We find if expectations are set from the beginning, then the process is relatively smooth; and we have many satisfied clients who are debt free who can and will attest to our company.

Mrs. Stewart enrolled with full understanding and commended us on numerous occasions. However in Month 7, she demanded she be cancelled from the program and not only requested a 100% full refund, but a 200% refund of her monies. After we could not oblige to her request she contacted ripoffreport.com and Channel 3 On Your Side.

Within hours of the Channel 3 Story, we had several business owners of various industries here in Phoenix, AZ call us because they recognized Mrs. Stewart for doing the exact same thing to their business. These owners contacted Channel 3 to discuss their story with Mrs. Stewart in which we contacted Channel 3 as well – their comment is as follows:

“As for Rosie Stewart, your concerns should probably be directed towards her. As 3 On Your Side discovered, Mrs. Stewart misunderstood how the program worked. However, after 3 On Your Side’s involvement, RAM Financial was able to not only clarify the confusion but even offered a resolution. At this time, we will not be pursuing a second news report regarding Mrs. Stewart and her relationship with RAM Financial.

It has been a pleasure working with you. And again, thank you for looking into Mrs. Stewart’s complaint.” – KTVK/3TV

We have 1 complaint on the Better Business Bureau by Mrs. Stewart. This has been resolved by the BBB.

We thank Damon for the opportunity to tell our side of the story and hope that anyone who reads this understands that we are a company committed to helping people with their unsecured debt. There are lots of scams, there are lots of companies who front load their fees. Our advice is to do your research and due diligence and talk to at least 4-5 companies to get a better idea of different programs and fee structures.

Yes it is really bad out there. Most of these companies are just outright crooks and frauds. I am doing my best to get the education out there along with a good handful of other consumer advocates, but these hucksters spend so much money on advertising that it makes it hard to get in front of consumers. I rely mostly on google and referrals from bloggers and financial professionals to point consumers in my direction.

.-= Damon Day´s last blog ..New Debt Settlement Video is Eye Opening for Consumers =-.

At least with posts like this you are helping to educate people who may be unaware that this stuff even happens.

Karl

Glad to be one of the first with comments!

.-= Mitch´s last blog ..Why Unemployment Numbers Can Be Misleading =-.

I think you meant Scam Debt Settlement Companies. I know they are easy to confuse because there are so many Scam Debt Collection companies as well. You are correct, you always want to look for as much information both positive and negative on any company before deciding to hire them. That pretty much goes without saying across all industries, not just the financial. Thanks for contributing to the blog, a just recently turned the comments on.