Setup Fee: 10%
Monthly Fee: $39.95
Settlement Fee: 10%
TASC Members: No
BBB Complaints: 15 (since January 2006)
Debt Consultants of America has been running a large radio campaign lately. Their program charges fees all the way around. They have a 10% setup fee, a 10% settlement fee and they also charge a $39.95 monthly fee, which is the highest we have seen. Debt Consultants of America has been in business since January of 2006, in which time they have received 15 Better Business Bureau complaints.
Debt Consultants of America is not a member of TASC. It does appear that they are a member of USOBA.
{ 14 comments… read them below or add one }
This company causes people that are already in debt to go deeper in debt with all their fees. They advised my daughter to get a month behind in her payments because they can’t “NEGOTIATE” with the creditors until then. So she decided not to participate in their program and now they want her to pay $299.00 to cancel. Now how is that helping someone already in debt.
Hi Dawn,
Maybe the program was not fully explained to your daughter when she signed up but for a settlement program to work, you must fall behind on the accounts. Otherwise, the creditors have no reason to negotiate.
I’m sorry to hear they are trying to charge her a fee to cancel. Most reputable companies will not charge any cancellation fee.
If they are so crooked as these complaints say they are, why don’t all these dissatisfied consumers notify the BBB and have them closed down for false advertising???
If NO ONE signs up for this gimmick then they will have no customers and therefore be foreced to close their doors, right?
Remember consumers: IF IT SOUNDS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE, THEN IT IS TOO GOOD TO BE TRUE!!!!!! COMMON SENSE, PEOPLE! NO ONE IS FORCING YOU TO GO ALONG WITH THESE SCAMS! DUH!
Now they’re trying to say she owes 1,180.00 for Admin and Maintenance fees. She was enrolled in the program for 8 days. She was never even contacted by them until after she called to cancel. This is a complete scam and ripoff.
I have reported them to several different sites. I will keep reporting them until something is done.
This company is a rip off, Please do not get involved with this company, My son has been in this debt consultants since may 05/05/08, they have not settled any thing on his accounts he has creditors calling all the time, My son is serving in the army right now he is having problems due to the fact he got involed with someone in Tocoma WA they had a child and this girl got him in debt. When I heard this ad for this company I took the number down I called them and then I had my son call them. And they told him to write a hard ship letter and they said he had a good case. Well since my son is in the army I signed the papers which really is not legal. These people have no scrupils. They do not care about anyone. They knew I signed the papers
my son has contacted them to tell them they can talk to me and they will not, Thats funny I signed the pappers. These people need to be shut down by the goverment.They are taking advantage of one of are service men. Plus everyone else. So please take my advise do not go to this Debt consultant company.
Dawn of Wabash, In
I should have read this before signing up. I signed up in August 08 and paid them approximately $1200.00. In December due to holiday expenses they stated that only the administrative fee’s were going to be debited out of my account, at my request, and I changed my monthly withdrawal date. Well, they withdrew my regular payment on the wrong date and the funds were not available in my account at the time. They had the nerves to charge me extra for their mistakes. I called several times to settle the matter; after several conversations and getting nowhere with them..and frustrated…already skeptical about this..I asked for a refund, (well their policy is no refunds), they haven’t done anything with my accounts and I am more in debt now than I was before. My financial situation has become worse than before. I could have paid-off one of my creditors instead of paying them. Lesson learned..Do not trust companies that ask for a large amount of up front fee’s without seeing some positive results first.
I also join Debt Consultants of America, have been in for 6 months now. None of my creditors have been contacted and I am finding out through reading all of this that the over $3000 I have had debited from my account are all fees. I should have read closer, that’s my fault. I am having serious second thoughts and thinking I need to pull out of this program and handle the debit myself.
I felt like I researched this very well but am now finding they have a rating of an F with the BBB and alot of other sites have horror stories as well.
I was current on all my payments before this now everything is late and way past due and the phone just rings constantly. I can’t take it.
This company is a rip/off, I know off hand, people that sign up with this company please beware. This company has now opened up under Debt Professionals of America, because of so many complaints under Debt Consultants of America. Please beware!!! Run from this company FAST!!!!
This company is the biggest scammers in Dallas, TX. thay have been under investigation by FTC for their nonsence and they managed some how to come up clean. They are currently under new name Debt Professionals of America, Do not be fulled! same scandalous owner and management. Most of the employees do drugs not to metion they take after the company owner.
I just checked my statement 5 months into the program after foregoing all the payments to Chase. This month Chase offered a settlement to me of 45% of my total debt (not even KNOWING about DCA). When I called DCA to find out how much was in my account they never returned my calls. I had faxed them the settlement offer as well but still nothing (probably nothing because they saw it and panicked??). I was originally told that my $8000 would be settled by 16 months from now but when I saw the amount available to me of $432 from my total payments so far of over $1400…WOW! They already took $1000 in fees in the first 5 months! EVERYONE STAY OUT OF THIS COMPANY!! These days creditors are willing to negotiate. I didn’t have a credit problem until I got into their program. I just didn’t want to pay Chase’s 30% interest rate for having missed the due date a couple times (not even 30 days late)…so I figured I would be able to pay it off for good, trusting DCA. The rep, Gabriel Cheney, was on my side or so I thought. I guess he has to eat too huh?…even if he’s unethical! I like him as a person but the business sales tactics are lies!!
Can’t we rate a 0??? Yes, it’s true, read ALL the fine print beforehand. I hope all debt consulting companies are not like this. I am going to be settled on all my accounts hopefully by year end, after over 2 years with DCOA. I finally sat down and did all the math and in the end, I think I might’ve said only a couple thousand dollars – and this is after I let all my accounts fall behind and get harrassed by collection agencies and attorney’s offices. The monthly fee will get you – DON’T be fooled! I actually felt I saved more than I did, until I looked at all the figures!
You’re better off negotiating with your creditors yourself!
THEY ARE DEBT PROFESSIONALS OF AMERICA now. They lie and screw you over. I used to work there.
It’s all true been there I learned my lesson. I’m negotiating myself, they lie to me and let THE FTC KNOW ABOUT THIS!!!!