Care One Credit Counseling A Scam?

During today’s economic crisis, many people are looking for some type of debt solution with many turning to credit counseling. As consumers search for the best credit counseling company, many ask “Is Care One Credit Counseling a Scam?”. This question can only be answered by each individual or client of Care One and what he or she believes in.

Care One Credit is considered by many people to be a reputable service. Some clients state they have had positive experiences and continue to make new payment plans with them. There are some people who are not as happy with the company and complaints can be seen of rip-off reports today. The website of Care One Credit looks professional and includes a community forum with a good amount of activity within it.

Care One Credit Counseling claims to have helped more than 4.5 million people become free of their debt and successfully doing this without lending money for any debt consolidation loan. Debt management solutions are provided and not loans. Care One also claims to have established 249,000 relationships with creditors.

Each of Care One Credit’s member companies meets professional standards and has around-the-clock access to account data. Excellent customer service along with making monthly statements available to clients are just two of the many things the member companies within Care Once Credit abide by.

Care One Credit was created in 2002 and is a group of five credit counseling companies that provides credit counseling. Three of these groups include American Financial Solutions, Clarion Credit Management and Debt Management Group. Just as other debt negotiation agencies, Care One does not operate in every state. For clients who are living in a state where Care One does not operate, the company will offer their referral service to another law firm.

Care One Credit became a BBB Accredited business in June 2004. Their BBB rating is A+ on a scale running from A+ to F. The Better Business Bureau has processed 88 complaints with Care One Credit in the last three years and 32 of those complaints were closed within the last year. This means that Care One Credit supports the services of the BBB that are given to the public and also meets the BBB Accreditation standards.

Care One complaints filed with the BBB concern:
1. 24 collection or billing issues
2. Contract issues
3. Customer service issues
4. Delivery issues
5. Warranty issues
6. Exchange or refund issues
7. Sales practice issues
8. Service issues

Of the complaints that were filed against Care One Credit and closed, 71 were resolved regarding collection or billing issues. The company either resolved the complaint and the consumer accepted or the company addressed the issue and the consumer did not acknowledge the acceptance.

Care One Credit offers consumers two basic services: CCCS (credit card counseling services) and debt negotiation. Care One’s CCCS is referred to as a Debt Management Plan (DMP) where a consumer makes one payment to the agency each month. The agency takes out its fees from this payment and then distributes payments to creditors. A DMP typically aims at repaying an entire debt plus accrued interest within a total of five years.

Debt negotiation is called a ‘Settlement Plan’ by Care One Credit. It is usually seen as an aggressive choice made by consumers. It can be a more risky option, but the possible savings are greater. The agency works with creditors to lower a client’s principal balance and because the principal debt is negotiated and not the interest rate, consumers have debts solved within three years time.