Credit Counseling

Credit Counseling

Whattodowhenyou thinkcreditcounseling isrightforyou...

AreTheyLicensed?

CreditCounselingincludes: ? Debtmanagement ? Debtsettlement/negotiation ? Creditrepair Peopleofferingorprovidingcreditcounselingservices toSouthCarolinaconsumersmustbelicensedwith theSCDepartmentofConsumerAffairs(SCDCA).The lawappliestobothin-stateandout-of-state companies.Toseeifacreditcounselorislicensed, contactSCDCAorvisit.

DoYourResearch!

Inadditiontomakingsureacompanyislicensed withSCDCA,beforeyouhireacreditcounselor, followthesestepstoprotectyourself:

? CheckwithSCDCAandtheBetterBusiness Bureautoseeiftheyhaveanycomplaints.

? Researchthequalificationsofthecompany anditsemployees.

? Determinewhatservicesareofferedtomake sureitmeetsyourneeds.

? Findoutwhattheservicescost.

KnowYourRights!

? Creditcounselingorganizationsmustprovide youafinancialeducationprogram.

? Beforeprovidingcreditcounseling,counselors mustanalyzeyourbudgettomakesuretheir programisrightforyou.

? Youmustbegivenacopyofthecontract. ? Youmaycancelyourcontractatanytimeby

giving10dayswrittennoticetothe organization. ? Ifthecreditcounselorispayingyourcreditors, theymustsendyouanaccountstatementevery 3months.

CreditCounselors& OrganizationsCannot:

? Askyouforavoluntarycontribution. ? Chargeyoumorethanwhatthelawallows.Call

orvisitSCDCA'swebsitetofindoutthecurrent feecaps. ? Haveyousignacontractthathasblankspaces.It mustbecompletelyfilledin. ? Actinafalseormisleadingwaywhenadvertising orprovidingservicestoyou.

HelpfulTips!

? Bewareofcreditcounselorsthatmake guaranteesorpromises.

? Avoidcompaniesaskingforup-frontfees. ? Reviewmonthlycreditcardstatementstomake

surecreditorsarereceivingyourpayments. ? ReportsuspiciousbusinessestoSCDCA.

South Carolina Department of Consumer Affairs

Toll-free at 1.800.922.1594 or 803.734.4200

Online at

 ................
................

In order to avoid copyright disputes, this page is only a partial summary.

Google Online Preview   Download