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Accredited Debt Relief is a debt relief company known for its financial support for customers looking for debt resolution. The company’s financial experts help consumers enroll in a debt settlement plan to get their debts paid off faster.
Top Debt Relief Options
With more than a decade in the industry, Accredited Debt Relief understands that each financial situation is unique and, therefore, tailors each debt relief solution to its customers’ needs.
Company Overview
Accredited Debt Relief employs professional debt arbitrators who are skilled debt settlement and debt consolidation negotiators. Every customer gets a personalized debt relief program customized to their financial situation so that they don’t feel overwhelmed when making each monthly payment. With helpful resources along the way, Accredited Debt Relief guides consumers on how to get out of debt in a financially savvy way.
Pros
- Extended customer service hours
- Free consultation
- A+ BBB rating paired with overwhelmingly positive reviews
- Helpful debt management resources
Cons
- Won’t accept all debt
- At least $10,000 in debt required
- Debt consolidation may require an origination fee
- Not available in 20 states
Year Founded: 2011
BBB Rating: A+
Areas Served: 30 states plus Washington, D.C.
Fees: 15% to 25%
Customer Service Hours: 8 a.m. to 11 p.m. EST Monday to Friday; 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. EST Saturday and Sunday
How Accredited Debt Relief Works
Before enrolling in Accredited Debt Relief’s debt settlement service, a customer consults with a debt consolidation expert first by calling the company or filling out an online form.
Consultation
The consultant discusses the customer’s total debt, the amount they’re interested in enrolling in the program, and their goals for financial freedom. They’ll also explain how Accredited Debt Relief’s debt relief service works, how much the customer can expect to pay each month, and how quickly they can expect to be debt-free. All quotes provided by Accredited Debt Relief are free.
Enrollment
Once enrolled, the company begins its debt relief services by using your monthly payment to negotiate with each creditor and pay off your debt based on the terms you agreed to. In most cases, a customer can expect to pay off their enrolled debt within 24-48 months using Accredited Debt Relief.
Types of Debt Accredited Debt Relief Accepts
Although a customer may have several types of debt to pay off, Accredited Debt Relief doesn’t include all types of debt in an enrolled debt amount.
Accredited Debt Relief accepts any form of unsecured debt, including the following, if you have a total of $10,000 of enrollable debt or more.
Medical Bills
Nearly one-quarter of Americans have some form of medical debt, like bills for specialist care for an ongoing condition or bills for an unexpected trip to the emergency room. Even if your medical debt is for a dependent you’re responsible for, Accredited Debt Relief may be able to help you pay it off.
Credit Card Debt
Credit card debt is a leading form of debt in the United States. Because credit cards typically have high interest rates compared to personal loans, credit card debt can snowball quickly into $10,000 or more.
Payday Loans
A payday loan is a short-term loan that a consumer borrows until they receive their next paycheck. Once they get paid, the money borrowed for the loan plus interest gets paid back to the company. However, some people get into debt with payday loans when they aren’t able to pay the entire loan back quickly and, instead, get stuck in a cycle of compounding interest.
Personal Loans
Banks and credit unions give personal loans for consumers to use for various reasons, like paying for home repairs, financing their college tuition, or helping them get through a few months of being unemployed. However, they can come with high interest rates for people with average or low credit, and some people may find it difficult to keep up with their monthly payments.
Unacceptable Forms of Debt
Accredited Debt Relief does not enroll secured debt, which is any debt that has something attached to it, like a loan to pay off a car or a mortgage loan for a home. This is because the companies providing the loan typically won’t settle for a lower amount, as they want to protect their investments, hence the security on the loan. Accredited Debt Relief can also not help with federal student loans but may be able to help students with private student loans.
Services Provided by Accredited Debt Relief
Accredited debt relief offers a few services related to debt management, each with the goal of helping consumers get out of debt and build their credit. Here’s what you can expect when you sign up with Accredited Debt Relief.
Debt Relief
Debt relief is the overarching service of Accredited Debt Relief. This debt settlement company works with its customers to chip away at their debt by enrolling their debt, negotiating and settling debt with creditors, and setting up a monthly payment plan that gets customers closer to their debt settlement goals.
In most cases, customers can be free from debt within 48 months and potentially in as little as 24 months, depending on their enrolled debt amount and how much they pay monthly for their debt settlement program.
Debt Consolidation
Debt consolidation is the act of combining several debts into one, usually for the purpose of paying debt off faster with one monthly payment. This is the primary way that Accredited Debt Relief helps its customers. Once you enroll your debt amount into the program, Accredited Debt Relief uses your monthly payment toward your debts, so you only need to worry about making one payment while taking care of all enrolled debt.
However, it’s important to note that Accredited Debt Relief doesn’t offer actual debt consolidation loans, which pay off your former debt by putting it into one loan that you focus on paying off. Instead, your debt still exists to each creditor, but you can just focus on making one payment for all of them instead of a payment to each creditor.
Credit Counseling
Accredited Debt Relief provides credit counseling resources through its Consolidation Specialists. These experts understand various debt situations and know how to guide customers to their best debt relief option. If you have any questions throughout your debt settlement program with Accredited Debt Relief, like how much is left of your debt balance or how you can start building your credit score while enrolled in the program, your Consolidation Specialist can help.
Consolidation Specialists with Accredited Debt Relief also work on your behalf to reduce the amount of debt you owe with each debt collector, effectively contributing toward your overall goal of financial freedom.
Credit Card Consolidation
Each credit card you have has its own interest rate, which can be as high as 29% or more for some consumers. Consolidating credit card debt into another type of debt with a lower interest rate can help you avoid extraneous interest payments and pay less over time.
Essentially, Accredited Debt Relief’s service does this for consumers. If you enroll credit card debt with debt relief companies like Accredited Debt Relief, your Consolidation Specialist will work to reduce your interest rate and negotiate your debt amount and fees to reduce the amount you’ll need to pay.
Bankruptcy Alternatives
Bankruptcy can take a serious toll on your credit and financial health, sometimes staying on your credit report for several years. But if you’re stuck in a never-ending cycle of debt, it can feel impossible to avoid.
However, Accredited Debt Relief offers bankruptcy alternatives for people who need help with their personal finances. Its debt management plans build a bridge between you and your creditors to help you pay off debt faster and reach your goal of financial freedom without harming your credit in the process.
Simplified Payments
When you have multiple debts with various creditors, it can be challenging to keep track of them all, making consolidation a helpful step for many people who are in debt and finding it difficult to climb out. Accredited Debt Relief makes it easier to keep tabs on your debt while also paying it down by providing you with just one simple monthly payment that its Consolidation Specialists put toward your debt for you.
This way, you don’t have to pay $100 to this creditor and $50 to another while skipping a payment to another creditor because you forgot about it. Once you make your payment to Accredited Debt Relief, your payment goes directly where it needs to go.
How Much Does Accredited Debt Relief Cost?
Accredited Debt Relief typically charges between 15% and 25% of the total debt amount you enroll in a program. So, if you enroll $10,000 of debt, you could pay a fee of $1,500 to $2,500 to Accredited Debt Relief for its services.
However, this fee gets charged with your monthly payment, so you won’t need to pay anything upfront. Also, if Accredited Debt Relief helps you save, say, $5,000 by negotiating with your creditors, you still save money while paying down your debt.
How to Get Started with Accredited Debt Relief
Start a free quote on the Accredited Debt Relief website to learn how much you can expect your monthly payment to be, how quickly you can have your debt paid off, and how much you might be able to save with a debt management plan. If you accept your quote, you can connect with a Consolidation Specialist to enroll in its debt settlement service. Your specialist will explain how everything works, get more information about your debt and creditors, and help you sign up.
How To Cancel
You can cancel your debt management plan with Accredited Debt Relief at any time if you feel like it’s not right for you. Just contact the specialist you’ve been working with by phone to cancel your plan and get any money in your dedicated account back to you.
Customer Service
Accredited Debt Relief has customer service hours available every day of the week until 10 PM on weekends and 11 PM on weekdays, making it easy to get a hold of someone when you have a question or concern. Currently enrolled clients can email customerservice@acrelief.com at any time or call 800-497-1965 during open customer service hours to speak with a specialist.
FAQs
Is Accredited Debt Relief legit?
Yes. Accredited Debt Relief has several years of experience in the debt settlement companies industry and is one of the most prominent names in the business, like National Debt Relief and Freedom Debt Relief.
Will debt relief hurt my credit score?
Your credit score may decline at first after enrolling in a debt relief plan because you stop making payments directly to creditors while your specialist negotiates on your behalf. However, as your debt gets paid, you should notice a rise in your credit score.
How much can Accredited Debt Relief help me save?
Accredited Debt Relief typically cuts debt by as much as 50%, depending on how much you enrolled and how successful the company is at negotiating your debt for you. On average, expect to save 25% to 50% of your debt.
How soon can I pay off my debt with Accredited Debt Relief?
In most cases, clients have their enrolled debts completely paid off within 48 months after enrolling. In some situations, Accredited Debt Relief can help you pay your debt off in just 24 months.
What if I miss a monthly payment with Accredited Debt Relief?
If you miss a monthly payment with Accredited Debt Relief, you may be charged additional fees. Also, the company won’t be able to put money toward your debt for you if you miss a scheduled payment, which could affect potential debt negotiations to lower your debt.
Is Accredited Debt Relief Right for Me?
Accredited Debt Relief is known for being one of the best debt forgiveness companies in the industry, but debt forgiveness isn’t one-size-fits-all. It’s essential to make sure the company you work with suits your financial needs and goals.
To decide if that company is Accredited Debt Relief, speak with a specialist before signing up. Ask questions about your monthly payment amount, how they work with creditors for negotiations, and what support they can give you through the process.
Be aware that Accredited Debt Relief doesn’t operate in some states, so it may be off the table for you completely based on where you live. You can find out whether it’s available to you by filling out the free online quote form.
