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Are you unable to afford your debt and wonder if American Debt Relief is the best option? What are American Debt Relief's reviews? Have you seen this social media ad claiming that this is a debt relief program specifically for healthcare workers?
American Debt Relief markets itself as a debt relief company, but in reality, it seems they mainly offer debt settlement, a specific form of debt relief. At the time of writing this, they seem to specifically promote debt settlement for healthcare workers.
Debt settlement is when a third party (typically a debt relief company) acts as the intermediary between a creditor and a borrower. The goal of debt settlement is to have the creditor agree to accept a lower repayment that will satisfy the full debt amount.
In this case, American Debt Relief acts as the intermediary and negotiates on behalf of the borrower.
Debt settlement companies make money by charging the borrower a percentage of their enrolled debt. For instance, if you owe a creditor $10,000, a debt settlement company could potentially negotiate the debt down to $5,000, saving you $5,000. However, the debt settlement company would then charge the borrower anywhere between 15% and 25%. This means you would potentially owe the debt settlement company anywhere between $1,500 and $2,500 on top of the $5,000 you owe the creditor. While you still save at least $3,750, the additional cost of the debt settlement company decreases the total amount you can save.
With that the cost mind, let's take a look at some of the reviews on American Debt Relief.
American Debt Relief has a shockingly poor rating on BBB. With a 3.04 out of 5-star rating, ADR has a low rating, even for a debt settlement company. However, to be fair, there are only 28 reviews found on the BBB website - 14 of which are rated 1-star. The most in-depth review comes from a woman claiming that ADR charged more than was laid out in her contract.
She also claimed that the customer service she received after signing her contract was terrible and rude. Other reviews simply claimed that ADR was spamming them with calls nonstop. There is a chance that another company with a similar name was the one calling. However, multiple reviews said the same thing about getting incessant calls.
To help better understand the company, let's look at a different review platform.
ADR’s Google Rating is 4.3 out of 5-stars. Similar to BBB, there are a few reviews that claim ADR is spamming the client with calls.
There are also some complaints that the client didn’t realize they would be paying a charge on top of the settlement amount. While this typically points to the client not fully understanding debt settlement, it should definitely be explicitly discussed before signing any contracts. While Google Reviews are abysmally low, there is one platform with glowing reviews.
American Debt Relief has an almost perfect 4.9 out of 5-star rating on TrustPilot and over 6,000 reviews on the platform.
It's obvious that this is the site ADR is directing their clients to send their reviews to. While the reviews are overwhelmingly positive, the content does show something peculiar about the time in which they are written.
Many reviews may be written before any debt settlement service has been rendered. Because of this, we know that the reviews give positive feedback on the initial customer service they receive, not the actual debt settlement process. Keep this in mind while going through the TrustPilot reviews.
Before you begin reading their reviews, it's important to remember a few things about them. Remembering these things will help you better understand American Debt Relief and whether or not it is actually worth considering.
Here are the most important things to consider while reading through reviews:
Some people only read the reviews they want to read. If there is a company they believe they want to work with, it could be easy for them only to consider the reviews that praise the company. Make sure you are reading through a wide gamut of reviews to get the whole picture of the company, not just the reviews that fit how you already see the company.
It's essential to try to discern when the review was written. Often, companies will request clients review their services after the first customer service call (which also happens to be when most companies are on their best behavior). This method of review collection can skew a company's ratings for the better. Be sure to try and find reviews from people who went through the entire debt settlement process with the company, not the ones who had a single phone call.
A company that has thousands of reviews but has only been around for 6 months is still a company you should be wary of. Ultimately, time is one of the most significant determinants of whether or not a company is reliable. Consider how long the company has been around and whether or not that speaks to its reliability.
Overall, it is a bit of a red flag that there doesn't seem to be many reviews that positively paint ADR’s actual debt settlement services. Because of this, you may want to think twice before moving forward with ADR. At the very least, consider calling them, getting specific information, and seeing if you feel comfortable with the company. Better yet, see if you have a friend or acquaintance who has worked with ADR before. A first-hand testimony can be so much more valuable than reviews you can find online.
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