Credit card debt relief is a burgeoning business and credit card debt relief companies are throwing a lifeline for those battling with insurmountable credit card debts. You may do your own credit card debt settlement if you have the time and energy to do all the planning and the credit card debt negotiation. If not, get a professional to do the grunt work.

Getting professional help from a credit card debt relief company may cost, but you no longer have to worry about haggling and negotiating with credit card companies. A credit card debt settlement expert does the job effectively since their company has a working relationship with credit card companies and has insider information on the industry's trade secrets.

What You Should Know

But before you eagerly knock on the doors of credit card debt relief companies, know what you are putting up with because not all credit card debt settlement companies are going to reveal their dirty secrets. Here are the shocking truths:

You will pay hundreds of dollars to set up an account and a monthly fee. Where does the money go? Not to your creditors. Your money goes to a trust fund put up by the credit card debt relief agency while your credit payment is put on hold.

Nothing goes to the payment of your credit card debts until the fourth month. All along, you will be depositing money the bank to pay off your credit card debts in one big lump sum and at the same time pay a monthly fee to the debt settlement company!

The credit card debt relief group will not stop the companies from leveling interest rates on your existing credit account. Imagine how much interest rates can accrue until you have "saved" enough money to pay your debts. You will be worse off than before.

You can still be sued by credit card companies because while the credit card debt negotiation is on, interests rates will continue to accrue, and some companies won't be waiting three years to see your money.

If you opt out of the credit card debt negotiation program, you will not be getting back the sign up fee or administrative fee; that is money down the drain already.

When signing up with a credit card debt relief program, do not hesitate to check the company's record with the Better Business Bureau. Question the credit card debt relief company upfront and if you suspect you are not getting clear answers, back off.

Questions to Ask

To protect yourself against fraudulent credit card debt relief practices, ask the right question. These examples may guide you:

Ask the credit card debt relief company if during the negotiations, the credit card companies will immediately stop charging interests on your account.

Ask how long the creditors are willing to wait and calculate your monthly payments to the trust account. You will get an idea how much is pocketed by the credit debt card relief company.

When it comes to selecting a credit card debt relief company, be alert to the things they will not tell you.