No Upfront Charges. Settlement Risk Free? Now I’m confused. Is that for you or for me?
The ink was not even dry on the new FTC law banning Debt Settlement Companies from charging advance fees before many debt settlement sales people started spinning a new rhyme of risk free debt settlement.
Go ahead and sign up.
You can trust me you see.
We won’t charge you til after.
So for you, it’s risk free.
(Credit my 4 year old)
No Upfront Fee Debt Settlement
Since the passage of the new advance fee ban a few months ago, No Upfront Fee Debt Settlement is suddenly in vogue and debt settlement companies have done 1 of 3 things:
1. Closed up shop and gone elsewhere to likely bilk consumers out of their money with a different product. To those companies I say don’t let the door hit your a** on the way out.
2. Have been busy finding loopholes to continue bilking consumers out of their money while providing in most cases a mediocre service. To those companies I say, I hope the FTC hits you with the door on your way out.
3. Decided to comply with the new law and make a go of it. To those companies I say as long as you are doing right by your clients than I am with you, to those that aren’t please reference number 2 above.
Today I want to talk about many of the companies that have chosen option 3. Granted there are some very good companies out there that focus on providing a good service to their clients, but I want to address something that I find a little disturbing as of late. That of course is the sales line that I am now hearing all too often. “With no upfront fee debt settlement, you have no risk because we don’t charge our fees upfront.” Is that really true?
1. What about the risk that by rushing into a contract with one settlement company you didn’t do the research you should have and might have found another company that would have done the same or better job for much less money?
2. What about the risk that once you start missing payments you lose out on other potential options that may be a better solution for you and should be explored first?
3. What about the risk that you don’t really have the right circumstances to settle all of your debt and will likely waste money on fees settling some of your debt only to wind up filing bankruptcy anyway? That money may be better spent paying off taxes or student loans that might not be dis-chargeable in a BK.
4. What about all of the normal risks associated with debt settlement like creditor harassment and potential lawsuits?
So you can see there certainly are several risks that go above and beyond simply paying fees to a debt settlement program.
No Upfront Fee Debt Settlement should be one of the first things you look for in a settlement company, but certainly not the only thing.
Debt help is out there. But make sure you know who. You just might be speaking. With Thing 1 or Thing 2!
When a debt settlement sales person tells you to hurry up and sign up into his/her program because there is no risk, that might not actually be true, but hey, what kind of advice did you expect to receive on a free consultation with a sales person? What they really meant was that there was no risk for them, but there certainly are risks for you.
There are no emergencies.
Please take your time.
research all options.
and you will surely be fine.
*Urban Dictionary – Home Slice – Definition – Friend or Buddy
“Money back guarantee” was a gimmick to blind consumers of the fine print in the contract (non-refundable fee). Be careful with “No upfront fee” there might be another trick lurking behind those promising words.
Hello Maria,
Yes, I always say that you cannot regulate moral character. So if some company was looking for ways to bilk consumers for money before the new FTC law, rest assured, they will continue to look for ways to bilk consumers after the law.
However, now it just might not be as obvious as it was before.
There are many tricks and loopholes in this business…one has to be careful and make sure they have written proof of everything they are promised.