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Your Debt Management Program What is a dept management program? Will CCS accept cash or my personal cheque? After I sign the DMP contract, what happens? What if a creditor doesn't want to work with CCS? Should I ever pay any of my creditors directly? Will I have to pay interest on my accounts now that I'm on a dept management program? Will I still get bills from my creditors? What should I do if I cannot make my monthly deposit on time? What happens if I miss a payment? How can I find out about the status of my DMP account? Where can I get help to learn more about money management? While I'm on the DMP, can I be taken to court by creditors? How can I get a copy of my credit report? How long will it take to pay off all my bills? What happens when I complete my debt management program? Will I be able to get credit again after I've finished my DMP? Congratulations! You are now a CCS client with a Debt Management Program (DMP) designed to specifically address your financial priorities. You can call the CCS at any time for help in working out your credit problems. Your counselor is an expert in teaching people how to make and use budgets, and how to use credit wisely. He or she can also give you a lot of hints about to save money. If you have any questions about budgeting or using credit, please call your counsellor. The
administration of your DMP will be handled by your administrator.
He or she can answer any questions you have about your account,
calls from your creditors, or your creditors’ statements.
A DMP is a contract between you and the CCS. It is a payment plan that will let you get out of debt. With you counsellor’s help, you have decided how much can afford to deposit each month to pay off your debts to your creditors, and which day of the month is the most convenient for you to make your deposit. In the DMP contract, you agree to pay this amount by the planned due date each month. You also agree to destroy all your credit cards, and not to use any further credit while you are on the program. The CCS agrees to negotiate with your creditors on your behalf to get them to accept your payment plan. Then, each month the CCS divides up the money you deposit, and sends it to all of your creditors according to the plan. Your payment is due the same day every month. This date is chosen by you and your counsellor based on your particular financial situation so that it will be convenient for you.
Sorry, your deposit must be made with a money order or certified cheque. Your counsellor will give you advice about the easier and least expensive way to get a money order. Please write your name, address, and client number clearly on your money order each month. Your client number is written at the front of this booklet. Be sure to mail or drop off your deposit to us early enough so that we will receive it by your due date.
After you have given the CCS copies of your most current statements from all your creditors, we will send letters to your creditors to ask them to accept your payment plan. It is important that you give your counsellor any needed information (account numbers, address, etc.) as soon as possible so that we can get your program started. Each creditor decides whether or not to accept your payment plan, and then informs us, and gives us the latest balance outstanding.
The CCS is an accredited agency that is accepted by at least 95% of the creditors you may have. If a creditor refuses your plan and calls you to ask to be paid, do not be intimidated or argue with them. Be courteous, but do not promise to make payments outside the DMP. Contact you counsellor, and we will resolve the problem. Until your creditors receive your first payment, some may continue to call you. Tell them that you have worked out a plan with us, and give them your CCS client number and our telephone number (see front of this booklet). Just ask them to call us. If a creditor calls after the program has been going for a few months, do not discuss your account or negotiate with them. Ask them to call us instead.
Do not send creditors money other than through your Debt Management Program unless you have discussed the situation with your counsellor. If you do, you risk the possibility of jeopardizing the entire plan.
Some of your creditors will continue to add interest, late or service charges. It is important, therefore, that you consider your deposit to the CCS as a minimum payment, and strive to increase it as soon as possible. Please call your counsellor if you think you can handle higher payments. Some creditors may stop or reduce interest on your account while you are on a CCS Debt Management Plan. Your counsellor will be able to tell you what each of your creditors plan to do.
Each creditors make its own decision about weather or not to continue sending you monthly statements. If you receive any, just check that your payments is shown on the statement. If your program has been going for longer than 2 months and a payment is missing, call your CCS administrator. He or she will contact your creditor for you.
It is very important that you contact us as soon as possible if there is a problem in making a deposit by your scheduled date. Do not be afraid to call. We understand that emergencies arise, but we cannot help you unless you contact us.
We are not a collection agency, and we will not function as one. It is your responsibility to let us know if you cannot make a payment. If you are not keeping up with your payment, we will call you to see if there is a problem, but we will not continue to call. We will close the file if your deposits are not made as agreed. If this happens, your DMP plan will be cancelled by your creditors. You may owe all the interest and charges that you would have, just as if you had not been on CCS Debt Management Plan, Your creditors will begin to call you again, and may take legal action against you.
Each month, the CCS updates its computer files to show your payment, and prints a monthly statement. We keep our costs to a minimum by not mailing copies of statements to all our clients every month. However, we will be happy to send you a copy of your latest monthly statement at any time. Just call your CCS administrator to request a copy. Your statement will show your deposit and the payments made to each of your creditors during the month. The CCS keeps a file of every deposit you make and all of the disbursements that we make on your behalf. There may be a small fee.
The CCS offers free money management sessions to help clients. We also have a number of booklets, which provide information about budgeting, credit, and other topics of interested. Please contact your CCS counsellor or administrator if you have any questions. They will help you get the answers you need. You should call your CCS counsellor or administrator if anything about your financial situation changes (change in income, emergency expense, etc.). He or she will help you adjust your budget to fit your new circumstances. Normally, the CCS will only call you once a year to arrange for you to meet with your counsellor for a progress review session. During this meeting, your counsellor will review your financial situation and the progress you have made towards paying off your debts. He or she will also answer any questions you may have about budgeting, money management, or the use of credit.
Yes, your creditors may take legal action even though you are on a DMP with CCS. If this occurs, it is very important that you immediately contact us (see the front of this booklet for names and phone numbers). We will advise you about how to handle the situation.
You can obtain a copy of your credit report from the nearest credit bureau. Your CCS counsellor or administrator can tell you how to do this.
The length of your program depends on how many creditors you have, the total amount of debt, the interest charges to your account, and how much of your income is available to repay debts. Most CCS Debt Management Programs are set up to last approximately 36-48 months. The front of this booklet shows the plan for the approximate number of payments you will make. After your DMP has been accepted by your creditors, we will know if you will have to make any extra payments to cover interest or other costs that will be charged by your creditors during the DMP. Please call your CCS counsellor administrator if you have any questions about your plan.
When all of your deposits have been made, you will get a letter from the CCS congratulating on your achievement. You will have successfully paid off your creditors. You will be able to be proud of yourself for having ‘stayed with it’ even when it seemed you were fighting impossible odds. You will have a new outlook on the use of credit and new budgeting skills which you can use daily to control your spending and saving. You will have discovered new things about yourself and your views about money. Your Debt Management Program will make you a stronger and wiser person who can make competent spending decisions. CCS Debt Management Programs work – and you can prove it!
When we send you your congratulations letter, we will enclose a form for you to fill out to update your credit bureau file. We will provide this information to the credit bureau as soon as we received it from you. We will be very happy to serve as a credit reference for you after you have finished your DMP if you decide to apply for new accounts. |
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