Consumer Alert: Be cautious when seeking help to pay off debt or repair your credit

OTTAWA, ONTARIO: The Financial Consumer Agency of Canada (FCAC) is warning consumers who can no longer keep up with their debt payments to be cautious. 

Some companies are misleading consumers by promising quick and easy solutions to help pay off their debt or repair their credit. In some cases, consumers may end up in a worse financial situation than before they got help.

It’s important to understand that these companies:

• cannot guarantee they will solve your debt problems 
• cannot quickly and easily fix your credit score
• should not encourage you to take out a high-interest loan as a temporary solution until other repayment options are in place

Before signing up for help to repay debt or repair credit, consumers should:

• get advice from different reputable sources such as a financial advisor, an accredited credit counsellor or a licensed insolvency trustee
• ask questions and compare options 
• never unwillingly submit to pressure to sign up on the spot
• read the fine print and understand the terms and conditions before signing a contract or an agreement