How to Handle Creditors if I Know I Cannot Pay My Bills

How can I handle my creditors if I know I cannot pay my bills? This is a question that comes up all the time. First, let me assure you there are many factors that can just wreck havoc on your ability to pay your bills. So you can have layoffs, maybe health or medical issues, maybe some other unexpected crisis. Those types of situations will definitely and certainly affect your ability to repay. So don’t feel like you are alone. And don’t feel like you’re first person to have to speak with your creditors because you’re going through such a crisis situation.

Call your creditors. Let them know that you cannot pay your bills at this point in time. But also be sure let them know the reason you cannot pay and what it is you’re going to do about it. In other words, let them know what you can pay and when they can expect to receive payment. And then follow through. It is not appropriate for you to tell your creditors one thing and then do something else. They’re counting on you to follow through with what you tell them you would do. Now, if you tell them that you can pay a certain amount, it might be that they’re even acceptable to having you pay that amount on an ongoing basis. If so, you might want to pursue that and make it part of an extension of the loan or debt that you currently have.

Most importantly, you want to be sure and keep your utilities and any secured debts such as your home, your automobiles or something that you have an asset set up against. You want to be sure that you keep the payments current on those items. So far as medical bills, personal loans or credit cards, those would be the ones that you first want to negotiate. However, if you find that your home loan, which is usually your largest loan, if you find that that’s going to be unmanageable for you to make your payments you need to call them first. Call your creditors and let them know what’s going on and what you plan to do with it.