Full Cooperation From Troubled Debtors a Must for Workouts

I read with interest your article on Filene’s report about credit card holders’ ability to repay. (CU Times, July 16, page 8.)

While I wholeheartedly agree with the principle and repayment concepts, there are a few flaws that seriously cast doubt on the overall potential success such a repayment program may have. The first issue would be how such a program would impact the member’s credit score. Unless there is less negative score impact on choosing the repayment program than there would be by filing bankruptcy, many debt-ridden borrowers will choose the “easier” way out by filing and keeping what little cash they may have. The credit score providers would need to build such leniency into their predictive models.