**Disclaimer – Debtprison.net does not administer legal or financial advice. The contents of this website are my opinions on collection agencies and how to deal with them. Nothing on this website should be interpreted as legal advice or council. No opinions on this website should be used to replace the advice of your financial advisor or your legal council.

A Debt Prison reader contacted me two months ago in regards to the desperate financial crisis she was facing in the UAE with outstanding debt. She began calling her creditors daily to convince them that negotiation was in their best interest as well as hers. With persistence and daily phone calls she convinced the creditors that they must agree to a workable payment plan. For Iara, the key to success against the UAE collectors was to keep the lines of communication open and contact them daily until a favorable solution is gained. The same can often be said about collectors here in the U.S..

Without the valuable real-life experiences of my readers this blog would not serve as a reliable source of information for debtors. My thanks to each and every one who has taken the time to share their experiences with collection agencies! Here’s the comment Iara posted about winning against her debtors in the UAE. 

Dear Barry,

You asked me to come back to you, so I came back to tell you what happened to me after that disastrous affairs with credit cards in UAE. I mentioned to you how helpless I felt, and I wanted to run for my life and go back to Philippines, my home country. Well, the end was quite the opposite. “FIGHT OR FLIGHT”, I’ve chosen to fight. I am not a criminal to run away.

I started my personal struggle by reading your articles, and it really inspired me, and it taught me the things I need to know: the lies & intimidation of the collections department and how to deal with it. It hasn’t been an easy journey. I decided to tackle my Royal Bank of Scotland credit card first because it was smaller & easier to kill (only AED 6600). I spent almost two months calling them every single day. I’ve gotten to know all the people working there in Collections Department, from the several agents to the Team Leader and then finally the overall Manager.

I was turned down many times or was being referred to various, different people. They kept on telling me that someone will call me back, but nobody ever did. But I never gave up, I called the customer service and I asked for their help. I told them how unhelpful the agents of Collection Department were and if they could just give me the Manager’s number and name. Surprisingly, I got the information, and I talked to the Manager and recounted to him that I’m willing to pay but nobody’s helping me. I told him that I am planning to leave the country for good, and if nobody will arrange my account, I will just leave without paying it. After 30 minutes somebody called me back, they told me to pay the AED 1640.00 and for the succeeding 5 months, I will pay only AED 1000, INTEREST FROZEN (CREDIT CARD SETTLEMENT).

My other credit card started calling me, but I followed your advice. I didn’t talk to them, they would just make me depressed, and there was nothing I could do, having no money to pay the AED 5000 they wanted. So I just dropped AED 200 or AED 500 monthly to that said bank, and I was continuously charged the OVER LIMIT FEE & LATE PAYMENT FEE & ALL THE INTEREST (which is shockingly more than AED 850 per month)!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Weeks crept on. Then few days ago, I received an email from FGB offering me an Easy Payment Plan that has no other fees but only the 1% per month (so that’s only 12% per annum), and payable for 36 months . . . I was really happy when I received it. Imagine, I am charged more than AED 800 per month for the penalties and interest alone, but with this plan, I am actually paying only AED 238 interest per month with my outstanding divided to 36 months.

I signed the offer, and now I cannot imagine the relief I feel for having a debt-free life. ALMOST.

I hope that my story will serve as an inspiration to those desperate souls out there.

6 months ago, I thought about ending my life because of debt.

Now, I am sooo good. I lost a lot of money, but I earned an experience and I learned a lesson.

Grateful,

iara