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Freedom Debt Relief Debt Settlement Reviews

Dena Standley | January 31, 2023

Dena Standley
Legal Expert, Paralegal
Dena Standley, BA

Dena Standley is a seasoned paralegal with more than 20 years of experience in legal research and writing, having received a certification as a Legal Assistant/Paralegal from Southern Technical College.

Edited by Hannah Locklear

Hannah Locklear
Editor at SoloSuit
Hannah Locklear, BA

Hannah Locklear is SoloSuit’s Marketing and Impact Manager. With an educational background in Linguistics, Spanish, and International Development from Brigham Young University, Hannah has also worked as a legal support specialist for several years.

Freedom Debt Relief might not offer as much relief as they claim...

Summary: It's unfortunate when a consumer signs a debt settlement deal only to find that their debt is still marked unpaid, or the settlement fee is too high. Freedom Debt Relief has been accused of these things. This article will give you more information on Freedom Debt Relief debt settlement reviews.

Freedom Debt Relief (FDR) is the company consumers turn to when they are in deep debt and do not have the financial resources to pay off the debt. They negotiate with your creditors to reduce your debt to a lower amount or at a lowered interest rate.

Freedom Debt Relief is among the largest debt relief companies in America. As of 2023, it has settled over 4 million accounts and over $15 billion in debt. Despite its outstanding record, many consumers have had negative experiences working with them. Today, the SoloSuit team will give you more details on Freedom Debt Relief debt settlement reviews. But before we dive into it, let's discuss how Freedom Debt Relief works.

How Freedom Debt Relief works

Freedom Debt Relief enrolls consumers with unsecured debt into their program to help them settle a debt for less than they owe. However, you must have a debt of at least $7,500 to qualify for Freedom Debt Relief’s program.

Once enrolled, you must deposit money each month into an FDIC-insured account recommended by them. After you’ve accumulated six to twelve months of the agreed amount, Freedom Debt Relief approaches your creditor to ask for a new payment plan.

After you get a settlement deal, you must sign the documents and authorize the payment processing company to send money to the creditor. Once you pay off all the debt (in about 24–48 months), the creditor will report your account as settled in full.

Unfortunately, Freedom Debt Relief doesn't work with all debts. The following table summarizes the debt they accept and those they turn away.

Types of Debt Accepted by Freedom Debt Relief
Can settle with FDR Cannot settle with FDR
Personal loan Secured loans
Credit card Federal student loans
Medical debt Taxes
Payday loans Lawsuits
Private student loans Utilities

Eligible consumers often go to Freedom Debt Relief’s online platform, fill out a questionnaire, enter their estimated debt amount, give their contact information, and wait to hear if they qualify. Those who are extra careful will research and read Freedom Debt Relief’s reviews before signing the papers.

Learn more about debt settlement in this video.

Freedom Debt Relief customer reviews

Freedom Debt Relief has helped thousands of consumers pay off their debts. However, an alarming number of their customer have had bad experiences. Some have given negative reviews or lodged complaints on various platforms. The complaints range from:

  • High debt settlement fees
  • Delays in acceptance of requests to cancel the repayment process
  • Slow to respond to inquiries
  • Refunding less money than the consumer was owed

You will find these reviews on platforms such as Better Business Bureau (BBB), TrustPilot, Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and Consumer Affairs. There are hundreds of customer complaints against Freedom Debt Relief on its BBB profile and the CFPB database. Below is an example:

“I started with Freedom Debt Relief in 2018. I only had XXXX in debt, and they promised to call the creditors, which they never did. They also said my credit score would go up. They were misleading because they never called my creditors. Then they switched me to Consolidation Plus, which is in the same company. I have paid them XXXX a month since 2018, and my credit has never changed. I have called multiple times because I can't afford to pay them anymore. I lost my job during the pandemic. I can't get a job because of my credit score. This company is the worst. Nobody should ever use them.”

In contrast, there are positive Freedom Debt Relief debt settlement reviews. For instance, they have a 4.36-star rating in their BBB profile. Most of these reviews state that FDR helped them manage and repay their debt.

Take action if Freedom Debt Relief violates your rights

In 2017, CFPB sued Freedom Debt Relief for charging fees without settling debt as promised in the contract. This malpractice led to consumers negotiating their settlement deals for fear of creditors taking action against them. In 2020, FDR settled the lawsuit by paying $20 million to pay the affected consumers and $5 million as a penalty.

If Freedom Debt Relief has violated your consumer rights, report them to CFPB and the Fair Trade Commission (FTC). You can also write a complaint on their BBB profile. Do not let them get away with bad business practices.

You can avoid such issues when you settle your debts by yourself with SoloSettle’s help. Here’s how.

Settle debt on your own with SoloSettle

You can take matters into your own hands and settle your debts by yourself with the help of SoloSettle.

SoloSettle, powered by SoloSuit, is different from traditional debt settlement companies. Here’s how:

  • You can settle the debt on your own with SoloSettle.
  • You have legal defense built in with SoloSuit. You can respond to a debt lawsuit and fight off collectors in court while working on the settlement.
  • You don’t have to make any payments until you’ve reached a debt settlement agreement.
  • You can settle a debt of any size with SoloSettle. Many debt settlement companies require you to have a large debt of $15,000 or more to enroll.
  • You stay updated with each step of the settlement process until an offer is accepted by your creditor or collector.

Let’s take a look at an example of how to use SoloSettle to settle a debt for good.

Example: Brian is being sued by Midland Credit Managements for an old credit card debt of $8,000. He uses SoloSuit to draft and file an Answer to the case, giving himself time to investigate debt settlement as an option. After analyzing his budget, Brian decides he has enough money to pay off 70% of the debt right now, or $5,600. He uses SoloSettle to send a settlement offer, starting lower at $3,200 (40%) to give himself room to negotiate. Midland Credit Management sends a counteroffer, and after a few rounds of negotiating, they come to an agreement at 60% of the debt, or $4,800. Brian saves thousands, avoids going to court, and gets a financial restart.


Still not convinced? Check out this review from a real SoloSettle customer:

“I'm very thankful for SoloSettle. Having a third party negotiate the settlement was instrumental in resolving this case and saved me from two giant headaches: 1) I didn't have to deal with the plaintiff's lawyer and 2) I didn't have to go to court. I also love that the payment was processed through SoloSettle. I was nervous about sharing my personal financial data with the other side, but SoloSettle protected that for me. I hope I never get sued again, but if I do, I would use SoloSettle again in a heartbeat.

SoloSettle really saved me a ton of time and heartburn and kept me from having to be my own lawyer in court.”

Check out this video to learn more:

Respond to a debt lawsuit with SoloSuit in minutes.

What is Solo?

Solo makes it easy to resolve debt with debt collectors.

You can use SoloSuit to respond to a debt lawsuit, to send letters to collectors, and even to settle a debt. SoloSuit's Answer service is a step-by-step web-app that asks you all the necessary questions to complete your Answer. Upon completion, we'll have an attorney review your document and we'll file it for you.

SoloSettle can help you contact your debt collector or creditor and negotiate the debt to settle for less, all online. It simplifies and streamlines the process to settling your debt.

No matter where you find yourself in the debt collection process, Solo is here to help you resolve your debt.

Respond with SoloSuit

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>>Read the FastCompany article: Debt Lawsuits Are Complicated: This Website Makes Them Simpler To Navigate

>>Read the NPR story on SoloSuit. (We can help you in all 50 states.)

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It only takes 15 minutes.

And 50% of our customers' cases have been dismissed in the past.


"Finding yourself on the wrong side of the law unexpectedly is kinda scary. I started researching on YouTube and found SoloSuit's channel. The videos were so helpful, easy to understand and encouraging. When I reached out to SoloSuit they were on it. Very professional, impeccably prompt. Thanks for the service!" - Heather



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