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5 debt relief red flags to know
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Debt can be challenging and the idea of debt relief can be an attractive one. After all, if you’re struggling to make your payments each month and someone offers you a way out, it makes sense to listen to what they have to say.
And, while there are plenty of legitimate debt relief services, it’s also important to be cognizant of the potential for scams. After all, those looking for debt relief may be eager to get help, making them easy targets for scammers.
But what if you’re struggling to make your payments every month? Well, you don’t have to avoid debt relief solutions altogether — but it is a good idea to be aware of the red flags that signal a scam.
Compare your top debt relief options now.
5 debt relief red flags to know
A quality debt relief solution can help you eliminate your debt faster and more affordably than you otherwise could. But a scam could put you in a worse position than you are today. Here are the red flags you should look for as you compare your options.
They make promises that are too good to be true
“The easiest way to spot a scam is probably if it is too good to be true,” says John N. Wood, Esq., managing attorney at Grant Park Legal Advisors. “For example, if they guarantee or promise a specific result.”
Most legitimate debt management and debt forgiveness programs can’t tell you exactly what the result of their services will be. That’s because much of the savings in time and money they offer are achieved through negotiations.
As such, if a debt relief provider promises something like, “We’ll settle for 50% less than what you owe” before you even sign up for the service, that provider could be stretching the truth or scamming you.
Get in touch with a leading debt relief provider today.
They charge up-front fees
Scammers work hard to get you to part with your money. So, if someone asks you to pay a fee for a debt relief service they haven’t yet provided, it’s a red flag that the person you’re talking to is attempting to scam you.
It’s also against the law to try and collect a debt relief fee before any work has been done. According to the Federal Trade Commission, the advance fee ban dictates that fees for debt relief services may not be collected until:
- The debt relief service successfully settles or changes the terms of at least one of the debts
- There is a settlement agreement, debt management plan or other agreement between the consumer and the creditor that the consumer has agreed to
- The consumer has made at least one payment to the creditor as a result of the agreement negotiated by the debt relief provider
They contact you via an unsolicited phone call
“Another flag may be an unsolicited call,” says Wood. “While they may be legitimate, this should cause the consumer to do a little more research before engaging with the debt company.”
It’s worth noting that some legitimate debt relief services use telemarketing as a way to attract new customers. Still, it’s also a tool used by scammers, so before you sign up for a service via an unsolicited phone call, you should do your research.
They claim to be affiliated with your financial institution
Another red flag to consider is if the debt relief service claims to be affiliated with the financial institution you owe money to. Debt relief companies are third-party service providers and are not typically affiliated with lenders.
Pretending to be affiliated with your financial institution is a common practice scammers use to win trust. In fact, it’s one of the ways that the Federal Trade Commission says that the alleged perpetrators of a debt relief scam stole millions of dollars from people.
They charge fees unrelated to your debt
Legitimate debt relief companies charge fees for the services they provide, and those fees are how they make their money. However, the fees are usually directly related to their success in reducing your debt or changing your payment terms and are easy to understand. On the other hand, scammers will often attempt to charge obscure monthly fees for services that are unrelated to the debt relief services.
The bottom line
If you’re dealing with mounting credit card debt and need relief, there are legitimate debt relief companies to choose from. However, as you compare your options, consider the red flags above to avoid becoming a victim of a debt relief scam.
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Long before comic book characters dominated movie screens, actor Christopher Reeve made the world believes in superheroes with the 1978 classic “Superman.”
Reeve died in 2004, nearly a decade after an accident re-shaped his life. “Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” is using interviews with family and friends and never-before-seen home videos to explore his real-life heroism.
Reeve started his career on the stage, studying at the prestigious Juilliard School and living with comedian Robin Williams. The pair had a friendship that was “more like a brotherhood,” said Reeve’s son Matthew. Reeve was in awe of Williams’ energy and versatility, Matthew Reeve said, but audiences quickly clued into Reeve’s own star power when he took on the role of the Man of Steel.
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To his children, though, he “was just dad,” Matthew Reeve said. The documentary explores how Matthew Reeve and his sister Alexandra Reeve Givens grew up watching their dad take the stage as Superman. “Super/Man” also reveals their heartbreak over their parents’ breakup and the joy they found when Reeve re-married. He tied the knot with Dana Reeve in 1992, and the pair welcomed another child, William Reeve, later that year.
“Dana was sunshine,” Alexandra Reeve Givens recalled. “She just brought joy with her wherever she was and could find it even in the darkest moments.”
Those dark moments came suddenly, when in 1995, a near-fatal horseback riding accident left Reeve paralyzed from the neck down. The documentary allows viewers to see, for the first time, what went on out of the public’s view. Reeve can be heard talking about how he “ruined (his) life and everybody else’s,” but in a touching moment, old friend Robin Williams is seen visiting him in the hospital.
“Robin showed him ‘Hey, you’re still you,'” Alexandra Reeve Givens said. “‘You still have this foundation of friendship and people around you, who adore you. And you’re going to find those fun moments in life again.'”
That support from friends and family re-ignited Reeve’s legacy of activism. He made appearances at the Democratic National Convention and the 68th Academy Awards in 1996, about a year after the accident. Matthew Reeve said watching his father address his industry peers at the Oscars was “one of (his) most proud moments.”
“It was just a production for him to get out of bed every morning, let alone get across the country and go out in public for the first time,” Matthew Reeve said. “It was a big deal. It was a big deal to him, but it was also a big deal to the entire disability community. We stayed up in London till like three in the morning to watch that live. It’s a fond memory.”
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Reeve also went on to launch what would become the Christopher and Dana Reeve Foundation, which is dedicated to advancing research into spiral cord injury and help individuals and families impacted by paralysis. It was his dad’s mission to find a cure, Matthew Reeve said, while his stepmother wanted to focus on improving the lives of paralyzed people and their families. The foundation and Reeve’s platform helped bring unprecedented attention and funding to spinal cord injury research.
Reeve even kept acting and realized his lifelong dream of directing with the 1997 HBO movie “In the Gloaming.” Reeve died in 2004 from heart failure at 52.
“There is a huge amount of great actors and actresses out there, where their filmography might be amazing and what they achieve on a cultural level might be amazing, but have they actually achieved anything really as a human that moves the needle for our society?” said filmmaker Ian Bonhote, who made the documentary with Peter Ettedgui. “And Chris has done both things.”
“Super/Man: The Christopher Reeve Story” will open in theaters on Friday, Oct. 11.
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