Cut-off Your Liabilities with the Debt Management Plans

The financial institutions that advertise credit counseling often arrange for consumers to pay debts through a debt management plan. In a debt management plan, you deposit money each month with the organizations that perform credit counseling. These organizations use the deposits to pay your credit card bills, student loans, medical bills, or other unsecured debts according to a payment schedule they’ve worked out with you and your financiers. The creditors may agree to lower interest rates or waive certain fees if you are repaying through a debt management plan.

The Building Societies of UK has found that some organizations that offer such plans have deceived and defrauded consumers, and recommends that consumers check their bills to make sure that the organizations fulfill their commitments. If you are also paying off your debts through a debt management company then contact your creditors and confirm that they have accepted the proposed plan before you send any payments to the organization handling your plans related to the management of your debts. If the creditors have accepted your plan then it is important that you:

*Always make timely and regular payments.
*Never forget to read your monthly statements promptly to make sure your creditors are getting paid according to the plan.
*Immediately contact the organization responsible for the management of your debts if you are unable to make a scheduled payment, or if you discover that creditors are not being paid.

Also, you need to be aware that if payments to your debt managers and creditors are not made on time, you could lose the progress you’ve made on paying down your debt, or the benefits of being in such plans, including lower interest rates and the waivers of fee. If, in any case, you fall behind on your payments, you may not be able to have your accounts “re-aged” again, even if you start a new plan with a new advisor. It simply means your credit report will have “late” marks and you will rack up late fees, which in turn, will lead to more debt that could take longer to be repaid.