All About Debts

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Debt Help by Armando Duke

This represents the average time taken by customers of the company (Trade Debtors) in settling their invoices for goods and services supplied on credit.

Counseling Debt The FTC has settled charges against three debt-counseling companies in a debtor scheme that bilked consumers with poor credit out of more than $100 million.If you would like to receive late breaking business news covered by AXcess News then you need to subscribe. Membership is free.

Credit card and even more so Store card interest are set at exorbitant rates for one reason alone, companies make their money from the consumer’s inability to settle their card balances. Credit card debt is unsecured, whereas other debt like your mortgage is secured (your home acts as security against your debt). With credit card debt, there is no backing security, which means that credit card debt is high risk for banks and hence the high interest rates

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Collecting an unsecured debt is usually more difficult than collecting a secured debt. The first step to the collections process is to try to collect the debt yourself through reminder invoices and demand letters. Should the debt remain unpaid you can then hire a collection agency. If the collection agency fails, your last option is to file a lawsuit against the debtor.

Debt Settlement March 30, 2005 (AXcess News) Washington - The FTC has settled charges against three debt-counseling companies in a debtor scheme that bilked consumers with poor credit out of more than $100 million. A scam the FTC said was becoming increasingly common.

g) All legal notices may be served on Credit Health (Pty) Ltd, Block A, Dunkeld Court, 16 North Road, Dunkeld West, Johannesburg; h) Credit Health assists debtors to settle their debts by offering a credit check ( 1 Credit Report), credit monitor and credit management services together with the Debt Settlement Plan ( whereby " sum", " off" settlements are negotiated and facilitated for clients);

Debt Free The Federal Trade Commission said the debt-counseling companies promised consumer they would help with their debt, but instead made problems even worse. While consumers paid the three debt-counseling companies thousands of dollars to keep debtors satisfied, instead they saw their interest rates and late fees increase as the three companies, National Consumer Council, Debt Management Foundation Services Inc. and Better Budget Financial Services Inc. did little to actually help them, the FTC said.

Consolidation Debt Service When some consumers were told to stop paying their bills by the three companies some had to declare bankruptcy as the debt-counseling businesses did not negotiate their debts on their behalf as promised.

Company Consolidation Debt Lydia Parnes, head of the FTC's consumer protection division, commented on the settlements with the three debt-counseling companies saying that all three companies lied about who they were, what they charged and what they could do for consumers laden with debt.Parnes said that the terms of the settlement called for the three companies to give back $25 million each to the consumers they had bilked and that two of them are in the process of being shut down.

Consolidation Debt Online The FTC case brings to light the issues related to credit counseling as Congress has before it a new bill that would require consumers to seek credit counseling before filing for bankruptcy.

Consolidation Debt Free "While many credit counseling businesses are legitimate, credit counseling schemes like those perpetrated by these three companies are becoming more common, Parnes said.

Debt Problem Two of the credit counseling businesses used loopholes in the law to use telemarketing schemes to bilk consumers.

Credit Debt National Consumer Council, a nonprofit California company, solicited thousands of consumers over the telephone, promising consumer credit counseling only to refer them to other companies that charged thousands of dollars in fees but rarely helped consumers.National Consumer Council has paid $24 million of the $84 million it swindled out of the hands of consumers and its three officers have paid back $3.9 million. National is in the process of being shut down.Debt Management Foundation Services of Florida used telemarketing, charging consumers as much as $1,000 in fees. The FTC said the company is in the process of being liquidated and the owners were required to pay back $250,000 and give up their ownership in the company.Better Budget Financial Services of Massachusetts was the debt counseling business that told consumers to stop paying their bills. The company has agreed to pay back $1.3 million to consumers and its owners must post a $2 million bond before operating the business again.A fourth credit-counseling business that operated out of Maryland, AmeriDebt, Inc. was ordered to shut down entirely.

Advice Debt The FTC said consumers should avoid credit counseling businesses that require high monthly fees and guarantee that they can get rid of debts. Consumers are encouraged to visit the Federal Communications Commission website for more information on credit counseling at www.ftc.gov.AXcess News will be reporting on any new market trends related to this story. Members should watch their in-box for late breaking business news. If you're not a member, consider joining now.

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