When you have suffered financial setbacks and can no longer afford to pay your credit card bills, your first instinct will most likely be to try to avoid your credit card company. This is a mistake. Your credit card company can tell by your payment history when you’ve fallen on hard times. Most times, they will be sympathetic to your problems. Almost all of them will work with you to alleviate the stress and help you make your payments. When you are overwhelmed, however, there are other alternatives.

Credit debt management: Usually, you will hire an accountant or other representative to help you with this. They will budget your finances and assume responsibility of bill payment for their fee.

Credit card debt consolidation: Often you may qualify for a personal loan or a home equity line of credit and consolidate all your loans. You borrow the total amount you owe to creditors and pay them from the loan. This leaves you with a single lower payment in most cases. The trap to this option is that many people start accruing credit card debt again almost immediately.

Credit card debt reduction: If life circumstances diminish, your ability to repay your credit card debt you can negotiate to lower your interest rate and reduce your monthly payment.

Credit card debt settlement: This is when your credit card company offers you a lower total amount due for immediate repayment. They most often do this when they fear you will be declaring bankruptcy in the near future.

Credit card counseling: This is the last option before bankruptcy. An agency agrees to negotiate on your behalf with your credit card companies. You will pay the agency a single payment every month and they will distribute the funds. You will not be able to acquire new debt while in counseling and many agencies will require you to take debt management classes. These classes are usually free of charge as are the services of the agency, though most request a modest donation. In this effort, it is important to choose a reputable agency with a good relationship with your credit card companies.