There are thousands of unscrupulous debt settlement companies that claim to seek settlements by any means necessary on behalf of their clients, but in actuality, these extreme debt settlements strategies are rarely effective. Indeed, many credit card companies have stated publicly that they prefer to deal one-on-one with the customer when negotiating a settlement, and a few prominent credit card companies have even enacted policies that bar their employees from dealing with third-party debt settlement companies. According to a growing number of financial experts, honesty is the best policy when it comes to seeking a debt settlement. Gather the financial documents you need to prove that your circumstances dire and that you have little hope of paying your account off in full in the future. Describe your situation and your proposal in the most straightforward way possible, and you just might be able to score a settlement that will help you get your financial situation back on track.