In House Collections tells me I have to make settlement arrangement over the phone?

No collector will negotiate over the phone. It is neither time or cost effective. You do all the negotiating over the phone....once you come to an agreement, have them fax you the agreement in writing.

Okay he is going to call me tomorrow so I will try and negotiate a settlement with him. Any advice? What would be a reasonable amount to offer. The balance is at $6300.

I settled most over the phone. However, 2 accounts were settled start to finish by mail. Phone is far more effective imo.

Even if you settle it over the phone, remember to get a written agreement on the settlement. It is extremely important for you to get the written agreement so that you can use it to prove that the creditor or the collection agency agreed to settle the debt.

Sounds to me like this guy is more than willing to work with you, so why would you not be willing to discuss settlement over the phone? Sure, when we're dealing with an obnoxious collector, we usually fax over a settlement proposal, but if they're friendly and cooperative, a few phone calls spent negotiating is preferred.

The only thing you'll want to be sure is in writing is the final settlement agreement - before you forward funds to the collection agency.

Good luck!

Okay well I talked to the collector this morning and things didn't go as I had hoped. I first started by offering $1'500 and he just shot that right down saying the bank wouldn't settle at that. He came back at me with $4'000 which is well beyond what I can afford. I then ended up offering $2'000 which is the most I actually have. He shot it down, I explained my situation and why I got the loan and then he basically told me to drop out of school to get multiple jobs to pay the debt off. Not really something that's very rational. So yep the phone call ended and now I'm afraid I will end up being taken to court. Not a good negotiation. The original loan was for $5'000

Hi,

I think you should approach a settlement company to negotiate with this creditor as he seems to be quite stubborn and beyond your negotiation capabilities. No settlement companies charge upfront fees these days, hence it shouldn't be too much of a problem for you.

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i think scarlett posts just for the sake of posting.all debt settlement,and consolidation companies do charge a fee.in fact most take their fee before starting negotiations.i would try again later,and remember the names of all you speak with.some will work with you while others will be like this clown.not all reps are the same.remembering who you speak with is key as that is how the process works.

This guy sounds like a real jerk; nothing like we originally assumed. So, try calling again during hours in which he probably will not be there. You may get lucky and talk with an associate who will be more cooperative.

Also, who is this creditor, and are you sure it's in their in-house recovery department? Please let us know who the creditor is so we can further assist you.

Regarding the question of hiring a debt settlement company, depending on the settlement, you may end up paying just as much by the time you figure in the fees. For instance, we just had a gentleman call us because he was having problems with a Chase account. We called the collection agency and negotiated a better settlement, but by the time he paid our fee, he only ended up $500.00 ahead (the collection agency was willing to settle his account for $2900.00; we got them to accept $2,000.00, but our fee was $400.00). In my opinion, one of the key benefits of hiring a company is so that you don't have to deal with nasty collectors. You've already done this, so just keep at it and do your best!

Good luck!

Hi Marie,

The original creditor goes by Med_Choice, which ends up being through World_Financial_Network_National_Bank. I had actually called up Med_Choice one day to get information on my account so I could start the settlement process but was told by the representative that my account had been handed over to their recovery department. She gave me their phone number and told me I would have to contact them to discuss my account. It's been a few weeks now since I talked to them, would it be a good time to try and find someone else who will negotiate with me? He gave me the speech that he would be the last person I would talk to before further action would be taken. He said he recorded that my maximum offer was $2000. Just wondering what usually happens next, or if another person over the phone might be able to try and settle at my number, or REALLY close to it.

Thanks for all the advice so far!

Never ever ever ever offer maximum.

Never ever ever increase your offer by 100%. The first offer should always be considered your maximum. Always start with 20% of the loan. I tried 90% but got hung up on. If they rufuse, say 25% over the cost of 1 year. If they refuse, hang up and wait for them to call you in a week. If they don't call them back, call them back and say 25% over 3 months.

Don't stress about it. Once they know you have 2k, they will double you up on it because they know you have 2k. They won't budge beyond 2k now.

Sit back and be patient for a bit. If you don't hear from them in a few weeks, you can contact their office again, and stick to your guns.

Good luck!