subject: Get The Debt Relief You Need Yourself [print this page] Unfortunately, due to the financial recession that we have been facing as Americans for quite some time, thousands of consumers have been dealing with personal financial hardships. Because the average American has at least a couple thousand dollars in charge card account debt, this is the point where for several people, credit card debt can become overwhelming. However, with so thousands of fraudulent companies out there these days, a great deal of consumers want to take care of their debts themselves. The good news is that with the information in this article, people will be able to handle their debts on their own in most cases.
First off, before Americans can make a plan to bring their debts down, they have to know what debts they have. With debt relief, as with anything else, preparation is key! Consumers should make a list of their credit card accounts starting with the highest interest rate and ending with the lowest annual percentage rate charge card account. The list should include the name of the bank issuing the charge card, the balances, the APRs, the account numbers, and the minimum payment accepted by the issuer. Once people have this list, it is time to start working on getting rid of these debts.
The next thing people should do is call the bank that issues the charge card account with the highest APR. At first, with most banks Americans will have to navigate through the automated system to get to a live representative. Once with a live representative, the consumer should say Hi, I was looking over my charge card statements and I noticed that this account has the highest interest rate out of all of my accounts. I like the charge card accounts and rewards that come with it but I can't see paying this high of an APR, is there anything you can do to help me with getting the rate lowered?. After asking this question, the representative will usually place the consumer on hold.
When the representative comes back, there will be one of 3 answers:
Answer #1: Congratulations, your charge card qualifies for a lower APR of ___. I will go ahead and put this into affect today. Is there anything else I can help you with?. If Americans receive this answer, it's time to hang up the phone and move on to the next account.
Answer #2: Thank you for holding but, it seems like this is not my department, I will go ahead and get you to a representative that can help you with that.. If consumers receive this answer, simply hold for the next representative and restart the process.
Answer #3: Unfortunately, your account does not qualify for a lower annual percentage rate at this time because ____. If consumers receive this answer, it is important to take a note of the answer and do what it takes to fix the problem that is stopping them from getting lower interest rates.
After the first call, Americans scratch the charge card account off of the list that reduced the annual percentage rate for them. This will leave the charge cards that still have high interest rates. It is time to place another, well, more humbling call. At this point, consumer should call the remaining banks and say Hi, I am calling because I am facing a financial hardship but would like to work out a way that I can pay you back what I owe you. Unfortunately, I can't afford the payments anymore because _____. Can you help me with this?.
After this is said, people will be transferred to the financial hardship department. The financial hardship department is going to gauge the level of financial hardship and help the consumer with the best probable outcome.
