How do debt resolution programs seek to lower my bills?

Debt resolution is different from settlements in that it primarily uses a lawyer to do the heavy lifting. Settlement comes into play when the debtor is in collections, either with the original creditor or a collection agency. The law applies the same way to all attempts to collect on debts, giving advantage to hiring an attorney.

What a Lawyer Does for Debt Resolution

The Fair Debt Collection Practices Act allows for utilization of an attorney by the debtor. This offers a greater protection of rights than trying to deal with the collectors on one's own. One of the things that can be done legally is stopping or minimizing the collection calls. FDCPA has a provision wherein the debtor can refer the collector to their attorney. Once they have been referred, they cannot contact the debtor or anyone else except the attorney. Certainly there are those who will ignore this directive, but a simple "talk to my lawyer" will end the conversation.

What may be the ultimate service that is provided is the fact that the attorney will keep their client out of court. A collector does what they can to get their money. The mere fact that there is a lawyer on the case means that the collector will have to fight that much harder to get paid. Settlement is that much easier.

It simply is in the debtor's best interest to hire a lawyer for debt resolution. Doing it without one is just that much more difficult, with a high likelihood that the creditor will go to court to obtain a judgment.