Beware of Credit Card Debt Elimination Scams
Posted: Sunday, September 27, 2009
by Jim Anderson
Weddings That Last
When I was struggling with credit card debt, I felt helpless. I can empathize with those who are struggling today because of the oppressive fees and interest that make it seem hopeless to ever pay the accounts off. I was in this situation in the early 2000s. In my despair I turned to credit card debt elimination service.
The promise from this service was that you would be educated on the legal issues surrounding the unconstitutionality of how money is issued and why you should be able to deny that you owe the debt because money was created in your name and should belong to you. It is a constitutional argument that would have worked about 150 years ago, but has a weak legal foundation in today's legal system. This is because the constitutional argument is blunted by old Supreme Court decisions that are now de facto law and override the constitutional principles in question.
When you were served with a lawsuit, the debt elimination firm would then help you defend yourself pro se by providing the pleadings you needed. These pleadings made the money protest case and demanded proof that the money was created legally according to the constitution and demanded the accounting records. The problem is that successful cases were always won on technical issues, not on the merits of the case. The real agenda was to try to trip up the prosecuting attorney on the rules of the court. Sometimes it worked, but the judgment allowed the collector to come back later and try again. If you were determined to be a money protestor by the judge he or she would cut to the chase and get the defendant to admit owing the debt and pass judgment without hearing further arguments. These cases have likely stopped working for the money protestors altogether.
There is a tactic to use that I talk about in my article "How To Stop A Third Party Collector In His Tracks" that can be used to delay legal action to buy you time to come up with money to settle. However, protesting the way money is created is not something that will help your situation. These debt elimination firms that use this legal tactic charge thousands of dollars, which they'll put on the credit card you want to dispute, and have an extremely poor record of success based on their strategy. You are lucky if you don't get sued. These companies could be considered scams because they are basing their promises on a weak legal argument. In principle they may be right about what the constitution says, but from a practical standpoint the courts don't see it as simply a constitutional issue. If you want to pursue this issue, it is better to do it through legislation, since the history of the case law on this issue is strongly against you. Congressman Ron Paul is doing just that, even though it is unlikely to pass anytime soon. However, if you owe debts you can't pay there is a better way to handle your situation. Ultimately, you have to pay the debts. The best way is to settle with a lump sum payment for a fraction of the balance.
For further discussion about how to eliminate your credit debt see my website.
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Top-level comments on this article: (4 total)Good article Jim. I always wondered how those companies professed to get you account settled for pennies on the dollar. I, too, considered trying one once, I'm glad now I didn't. Thanks for sharing this with us.Please log in to respond to this comment.Thanks for your comment. You made a wise choice by not using them. You can always do better yourself if you are educated and willing to put you knowledge into practice.Please log in to respond to this comment.
Good heavens... Thanks for writing this eye opening article! MarijoPlease log in to respond to this comment.Thanks for reading.Please log in to respond to this comment.
Yes, Jim, those commercials sound too good to be true.Thanks for some good advice.Please log in to respond to this comment.Thanks for reading. They are too good to be true.Please log in to respond to this comment.
Excellent Jim, this is exactly the reason I stir clients in another direction. I never recommend debt reduction services. You a wealth of information. Thank you for sharing your experience to help others. You are a great asset to Searchwarp! Blessings to you! TeresaPlease log in to respond to this comment.Thanks Teresa. That is very complimentary. I appreciate your encouragement.Please log in to respond to this comment.
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