hey my phone bill has reached an amount which has torn the sky limit, i am very tensed i have heard of bill settlements but when i spoke to their officials they say its not allowed. i want to know is settlement a consumer right if not is there any other way to come out of this debt :roll:
Is the bill at the original creditor yet? If they won't work with you then you will have to pay it. You can change your provider and maybe get a better rate. How long have you been with this company? I would let them know your situation and tell them there is no way that you can afford this, and that the account will end up in collections if you can not afford to pay it, that is the reality of the situation right? They may consider working with you then.
Since it is your current phone bill, it is always better that you pay it off. Bill settlements are allowed only when your debt has become delinquent and the creditor has either sold it off to the collection agency or has reported the debt as charged off to the credit bureaus. The current bills are not generally taken into account for settlement plans. Mostly current credit card bills are allowed for repayment plans and not utility bills.
I think that Mary is right. If you have the option of paying off the phone bills through credit cards, it is better to do it. You can also take a cash advance from your employer or your friends and pay off the outstanding bill amount. This is because if the bill goes delinquent, it may get listed in your credit report by the utility company and it would remain there for seven years lowering your credit score. Moreover, if the utility company charges off the debt, it may lower your credit score by as much as 100 points. You should note that settlement is not a consumer right. It is just a provision that the creditors provide to assist you to repay back the loan.