Freedom Debt Relief – How good a company is it?

You guys who state that FDR never helped you, quick question - did they not return your calls? Did they not answer your questions? Did they not do their part?

I just finished and I have to honestly say that they are so nice and so helpful, it is like a totally different story than my experience. They settled my debts, they helped me by holding my hand through the process and they were nice.

Really? Were you in the same program I was in?

This site seems weird and not like what I experienced. Are you guys lying to people?

I work for Citi in their bankcards division. debt settlement company's, including Freedom debt relief really upset me. They misinform so many clients. While you are with a settlement company your accounts still accrue interest and fees. If you don't settle before the account is 6 months past due, the account charges off and goes to an outside agency or attorney. Also, they can promise you less than 50%, but we, or anyone else that buys the debt, are under no obligation to accept the settlement. Not to mention until a power of attorney is received, you still receive collection calls. Do your self a favor and choose a non profit debt consolidation company. debt free in 5 years or less with no charge offs.

FDR is on its way out.

I am personally using FDR right now and all of the information mentioned above was explained to me up front. I fully understood this would hit my credit, I understood they cannot negotiate any settlement until I have built up enough in my account for them to work with. I also understood that I could be issued a 1099 for charged off debt. They did address all of my concerns up front. I think whether this company is good for you or not depends on your circumstances. If I only had 20k in debt I would try to work with the company directly or cut corners and make big payments on it. My husband and I have over 100k in debt and a failed business. Bankruptcy is a reality for us if we cannot make the debt settlement work. My personal issue now is affording the monthly payment to the program and being so strapped. I want it to work and don't want a bankruptcy on my credit but I'm having second thoughts. I'm worried some of my creditors will sue me before I can get enough built up to offer a settlement and I wonder if the bankruptcy protection might be the only option for us. FDR did tell me if one of my creditors got to that point that they may negotiate to have me pay them a reduced amount directly each month but I guess I can either wait and see if that happens or just bail out now and file bankruptcy so I have that protection. If anyone had advice I'd love to hear it.

I have just started FDR. They explained everything in detail and always talk to me regarding my fears. I know they have some bad issues going on but I don't know a settlement company that doesn't because they are working with the people not the credit card agencies. Hopefully this will work otherwise I am doing bankruptcy. It is always up to the credit cards whether they will deal or not. It will take me a couple years and I hopefully won't get sued but I would think the credit card companies would want something rather than someone going through bankruptcy and they would not get a thing since I would most definately be doing Chpt. 7.

We are pulling out of our FDR agreement because they have not helped us at all. They DID NOT SETTLE ANY ACCOUNTS. We have been taken to court twice. They did not even notice that we had enough money in our account to offer a settlement with a company. They have been completely negligent and misrepresented their services. My husband and I are two intelligent people, and we were tricked by their claims, even though we researched it ahead of time. All of our accounts (4) went to law firms, which they claim never happens. We subsequently received specific percentages from them about the accounts that go to law firms, the ones they settle (and for how much), and the ones that go to litigation. DO NOT BE FOOLED. The numbers they quote you when they are trying to sell you their services are not the actual numbers. Plus, the way they compute their numbers actually distorts the true figures (we saw very specific evidence of this with our account). The best thing about this company is their marketing and sales force. If I had the money, which I clearly don't or I wouldn't be using them, I would sue them for misrepresentation.

Commercials!!! Commercials!!! Commercials!!!.....LOL.

This is what they resort to. What a shame.

disgruntled you did the right thing.

To CT above, I am not with FDR, but yes, lawsuits are a danger with any settlement program. EVEN WHEN YOU ARE SETTLING ON YOUR OWN, you may have impatient creditors that don't want to wait. I have been sued twice in my first year of the settlement process. In each case, when the summons was received, a settlement was negotiated and the lawsuits dismissed. Receiving a summons isn't the end of the world; often, it's just the collector trying to force a settlement. If you don't have enough available through your program, you can still do it on your own; sometimes the creditor will offer a payment plan that extends several months. In that case, your company should remove that account and their share of the fee for it from your program so your monthly cost will be less, freeing up some extra money to pay the settlement on your own.

We used this company. I don't recommend them! We had $100 K in debt. But they tell you to quit making payments etc. Which increases your debt substantially. Then by the time they settle, it is for a amount not much less that you originally owed. And then the kicker! You receive 1099's for 2 - 3 years on the debts that they "settled". You then owe several thousand dollars in taxes. We actually ended up paying more when all was said and done.
Run!

For those wondering about Freedom debt relief.....

Freedom Debt Relief Complaints - Lawsuit
Review all Freedom Debt Relief complaints
Freedom Debt Relief
Posted: 2008-12-04 by Batfang [send email]



Lawsuit

Complaint Rating:
Company information:
Freedom Debt Relief - Freedom Financial Network
San Mateo, California
United States
Phone: 650.393.6210
freedomdebtrelief.com

From: The Daily Journal

Debt company sued for misleading customers
By Michelle Durand

Many customers of Freedom Debt Relief actually incurred greater debt through late fees and collection lawsuits because the San Mateo-based financial services company purposely misled consumers to get their business, according to San Mateo County prosecutors.

The Consumer and Environmental Unit of the District Attorney’s Office joined with the California Department of Corporation to sue Freedom Debt Relief, LLC, Freedom Financial network, LLC and company owners Andrew Housser and Brad Stroh. The lawsuit filed Oct. 30 in San Mateo County Superior Court claims the defendants engaged in unlawful business practices, including making false or misleading statements to consumers via the Internet and telephone to induce them to buy debt reduction services. The suit also claims the company violated the state financial code by operating without a business license from the Department of Corporation.

The business, located at 1875 S. Grant St. in San Mateo, advertised having approximately $1 billion in debt under management throughout the United States. The company advertised being able to negotiate a 40 percent to 60 percent reduction in debt to unsecured creditors but, according to prosecutors, instead made some customers’ situations worse.

“Instead of their debts being settled or reduced, many of the defendants’ customers suffered increased debt because of late fees imposed by creditors, referral to collection agencies or collection lawsuits. Some customers ended up in bankruptcy, ” according to the suit.

Prosecutors want an injunction ordering the company to follow the law, pay restitution and pay civil penalties between $2, 500 and $10, 000 for each violation.

The company’s goal, according to its Web site, is to eliminate rather than simply lower debt. The plan for those who qualify, the site explains, is a “debt reduction program” which involves “affordable monthly savings obligations” to get consumers out of debt “in as little as 2 to 3 years.”

The founders have been profiled by numerous news organizations and were finalists for the 2006 Ernst & Young Northern California Entrepreneur of the Year award.

Consumers who believe they have been victimized should file a complaint with the District Attorney’s Consumer and Environmental Unit at (650) 363-4651.


Michelle Durand can be reached by e-mail: michelle@smdailyjournal.com or by phone: (650) 344-5200 ext. 102.

Everyone is always misinformed and has bad info. And THEIR conspiracy theories of the BBB and consumers are always the truth. Their truth does not make any sense at all if you think about it. Everyone is always out to get the dept settlement companies. Maybe there is a good reason for that. Excuse, Excuse, Excuse on top of Excuse.

I'm SO sick of the lying and fallacies Perpetrated by these people. I like to clown around in this site while helping people but right now I'm so PO'ed at the complete disregard for the truth and to do what's right. I try not to take it too seriously but right now I'm in one of my moods and I can't help it.

You guys will get yours.

DO NOT use FDR. I beg you. STAY AWAY. This thread will tell you everything you need to know.

I need to let it go.

I work for FDR and the settlements you speak of are not typical. We are very fortunate that we are able to obtain great settlements for our clients as you can see on our website. There are exceptions sometimes and this may have been the case. We are very committed to settling our clients debts in a short period of time for as little money as possible. If you would like to discuss your account please contact customer service.

FDR's BBB complaints are low in comparison to the size of their company. If you look at the BBB websites, both regional and national, their percentage of complaints is actually lower than the California State Bar Association....... My challenge with the BBB and anyone who has worked with them knows, any person, for what every reason, can simply file a complaint whether it is legit or not. I do like the fact that I see resolutions on the BBB website which means they still try to keep people happy. FDR has 20,000 plus clients and less then 200 complaints nationally, that is less then 1% complaint rate...... I am curious, I have blogged her before and made similar comments yet they always seem to be deleted....Is this a biased website or a competitor of FDR running this site?

"I am curious, I have blogged her before and made similar comments yet they always seem to be deleted....Is this a biased website or a competitor of FDR running this site?"

Because YOU are BIAS kmac. Hope that answers your question.

I would say that if you worked with a settlement company and they did not save you that much money you went through the wrong company. I was very pleased as to the results of my settlement company.

it took about 7-8 months for my first settlement by the end of that first year i cleared out 5 of my debts all in a row. they saved me more than 50% of the debts on all accounts except for 1. 1 that i decided on my own for them to stop the process I had enough money in my account and wanted it done.

Even after paying the companies, paying the settlement company, and the irs, I still was above and beyond better than what I would have origionally paid. It makes me angry to see posts like th one above stating that consolidation is the only way to go that is worth it. That is a lie and if your company doesnt work well, you chose a bad company.

The company i used got a % of what they saved me meaning they had to work harder for me. Im sure they were dissappointed my last account they recieved very little because i just wanted it to be over, but they respected my wishes.

Also I knew up front and forward about what could happend during settlement. ie, lawsuit, credit damage, harrassing calls(even though they will be reduced), etc.

And last of all getting a summons isnt as bad as you think. It is very scary the first time it happens but its not as bad as you think.

I think its awesome y'al are doing your research. I did the same thing and came across Rise Above Debt Relief. It was the only full diclosure company I came across and I could'nt find any complaints about them anywhere. In business for 5 years, thats pretty good. The guy I talked to really knew his stuff and I felt no pressure