Financial Resource

There are many web articles and stories around saying ‘Please do not use debt management companies that charge fees’ but understanding exactly what is provided for a fee and being happy with the quality of service you receive is paramount…

Always remember that a company should provide you with a no obligation assessment of your financial situation so that they can recommend the most suitable course of action for your needs.

You do not have to pay a penny until you are happy that the debt management solution put to you will help you achieve what is important to you.

There are a number of benefits to working with a Debt Management company which include:
1. Reducing the debt repayment amount you make every month
2. Repaying your debts in as short a time period as possible
3. Not having to deal with creditors

For many people simply reducing the debt repayment amount they make every month is by far the biggest benefit of choosing to have a debt management company manage your debts.  Another reason is that debt management companies can, in most cases, reduce the time period over which you repay your debts; this is because debt management companies will try and negotiate with your creditors so that interest and charges on your debts are stopped. This means that every debt repayment you make goes towards paying off the debt you owe and not just the interest charged by your creditors. This obviously significantly reduces the length of time you will have to continue making repayments.

Not having to deal with creditors is also a fantastic benefit for many people. Any letters and phone calls from creditors can be referred to your debt management company, all you need to do is give each creditor the telephone number for your debt management company and ask the creditors to contact this number in future. Some debt management companies also provide a Personal Account Manager so that you have a one to one contact; a real person you can call on if you have any questions or concerns.

The fees charged by a debt management company are usually in the region of 15 – 20% of your monthly repayment. Some also charge an initial administration fee and this covers the negotiation that takes place with your creditors to try and have interest and charges on your debts stopped.

The ‘Please do not use debt management companies that charge a fee because there are so many that will do it for free’ statement is true – there are companies like the Citizens Advice Bureau that will tell you how to do this absolutely free of charge. However, for many people, actually taking away all this information and fully understanding it is simply not possible for a number of reasons.

Firstly, many people borrow from one creditor to repay another, this leaves multiple creditors to deal with and in itself can be very stressful.

Secondly, a high percentage of partners, husbands and wives are unaware of the debts their loved ones have. A debt management company will always work in strict confidence only with you as the named debtor.

Thirdly, completing an income and expenditure report to show your creditors exactly what you can afford to repay after reasonable living expenses have been accounted for and then using this to negotiate can be a daunting task for some people.  Many people see that having a trained, professional debt adviser work through this with you and then negotiating with creditors as part of a large debt management  company as a benefit worth paying a small fee for.

Is paying 15 to 20% in fees to a debt management company any better or worse than paying a creditor the same in interest payments? Only each individual can truly answer this question…

Ultimately it is up to each individual to decide if they should use a fee charging debtManagement Company. This depends on individual financial and personal circumstances, and also the fees to be charged in comparison to the amount of debt you owe.

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