Avoiding dodgy Debt Consolidation Companies
The best way to be sure of a debt consolidation company is to do some research. When you have gotten your choices down to a few companies then this is when you need to check out how legitimate they are. You can check with your citizens advice Bureau also know as the CAB office, they will be able to let you know if they are aware of any issues with the company or if any issues have previously been brought to their attention about them. Making sure that any company you find online is valid is very important, a good idea is to see if the company is recommended by websites such as MoneySupermarket.com – they most likely would not be affiliated with them if they did not trust them themselves.
If the rates and arrangements that a company on offer seem to be very low and perhaps have interest rates that seem to be lower than their competitors them this might be a signal that the debt management company may not be all it seems.
Watch out for hidden charges. Some debt consolidation companies might unexpectedly ask you to pay service charges or some other fee in the middle of their service. Watch out for these extra fees, they might be offering lower rates because of this. Beware that some companies may charge extra fees on top of the payment to your creditors sometime it can be 10% or more.
Don’t sign a debt consolidation programme straight away, take your time ( but not too much of course ) to decide if what’s on offer is right for you. Think it over, and if necessary get some other advice, perhaps from debt charities or your local CAB office.
