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What Questions Should You Ask Any Debt Relief Firm Before You Sign?

Ask every firm the same fifteen questions, in writing, and keep the answers. A legitimate firm answers all fifteen without hesitation, and the ones it cannot answer cleanly tell you more than the ones it can. Here are the questions, why each matters, what a good answer sounds like, and how Anchor Resolve answers each one, including where our honest answer is a limit.

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Why in writing: the patterns that hurt owners in this industry are documented in Better Business Bureau complaint records for MCA debt relief firms from 2025 to 2026, and nearly every one began with a verbal promise. A written answer can be held up later. A phone answer cannot.

Each question below uses the same structure: why it matters, what a good answer sounds like, and Anchor Resolve’s answer in a shaded box.

01 / Questions one to five

The first five decide whether you keep talking.

Law firm status, fees on paper, who works your file, and where any money sits.

01In writing

Are you a law firm, and if not, what happens when my case needs a licensed attorney?

Why it matters. Only a law firm can defend a lawsuit, respond to a judgment, or give you legal advice. A firm that lets you believe it can do those things when it cannot is showing you the largest red flag in the industry.

What a good answer sounds like. “No, we are not a law firm. If you are served or a judgment is entered, that part of your case belongs with a licensed attorney of your choosing, and we will tell you the moment we see it.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. We are not a law firm and do not provide legal advice or representation. When your case needs a licensed attorney, we say so on the first call and point you to one of your choosing. We can work alongside a licensed attorney you hire, on the negotiation side. We do not select, control, or pay for a licensed attorney you hire. A lien or a judgment does not put your business outside what we do; what changes is the order of operations and who else has to be involved.

02In writing

What are your fees, and can I have them in writing before I decide anything?

Why it matters. Business debt relief sits largely outside the FTC rule that bars advance fees for consumer debt relief, per the Federal Trade Commission, 2010, so nothing in the law forces a firm to put its fees in front of you. Only your insistence does.

What a good answer sounds like. “Yes. Here is the fee document. Take it home. Nothing is due and nothing is signed until you have read it.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. The consultation and the position review are free and commit you to nothing. Anchor Resolve charges a fee for its services, and every fee is set out in the program documents you review and sign before any work begins. There is no separate fee agreement. We do not publish a fee schedule on the site because every case is scoped individually.

03In writing

Do you charge anything before I have seen those fee terms?

Why it matters. A fee collected before you have read the fee terms is the pattern behind the worst complaints in this industry: money paid, contracts never reviewed, funders never contacted.

What a good answer sounds like. “No. You will have our fee terms in writing before any charge of any kind.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. No. Every fee appears in the program documents before you sign them, and the consultation and position review that come first are free.

04In writing

Who will actually work on my case, by name?

Why it matters. A rotating call-center script cannot know your funders, your deposits, or what was said last week. A named person can be asked a direct question.

What a good answer sounds like. “This person. Here is their name and how to reach them. They will know your file.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. A real person whose name you will know. Our About page describes each role, and it never shows an invented name or a stock photo. You will never be handed to a stranger without being told.

05In writing

Where does any money I set aside sit, and in whose name?

Why it matters. Some plans set money aside while talks run. Federal rules for consumer debt relief allow a dedicated account only if the customer owns the funds, can withdraw them at any time without penalty, the provider does not own or control the company administering the account, and the provider does not split fees with it, per the Federal Trade Commission, 2010. Business debt sits largely outside that rule, and Better Business Bureau complaint records for MCA debt relief firms, 2025 to 2026, show what happens without it.

What a good answer sounds like. “In a dedicated account in your name, under your control. Money leaves it only under a written agreement you approved.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. In a dedicated account opened in your name and under your control, never in our operating accounts. Money moves only under a written agreement you approved, every time. If any firm, including us, ever asks you to wire program funds into its own accounts, treat that as the red flag it is.

The middle five are about risk and paper.

What the funders can still do, what goes in writing, and what happens when one says no.

06In writing

What can my funders still do to me while you are negotiating?

Why it matters. Negotiation does not pause a funder’s contract rights. A firm that implies otherwise is setting you up for the frozen account or the lawsuit you did not expect.

What a good answer sounds like. “Everything their contract allows: collect, file a UCC notice, draw on the personal guarantee, sue. We cannot prevent any of it. Here is how we plan around it.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. A funder can keep collecting, send lien notices, draw on a personal guarantee, and sue while balances are being renegotiated. We cannot stop any of that, and we will never pretend to. We tell you the risks before the plan, in writing.

07In writing

Will you ever tell me to stop paying, and if so, what will you put in writing first?

Why it matters. “Just stop paying, you are protected” is the sentence that precedes most of the lawsuits in the complaint records. Missing a draft can be a default under most contracts, with acceleration and default fees following.

What a good answer sounds like. “Never as a tactic on its own. If a plan accepts that risk, you will see the risk in writing first and the decision will be yours.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. We never tell you to stop paying without explaining the legal risk first, in plain words, in writing. Some plans accept those risks with open eyes, after they have been explained. That is a decision you make after hearing them, never before.

08In writing

What is your business’s legal name, address, and state registration?

Why it matters. A firm you cannot find on a public registry is a firm you cannot hold to anything. Every state publishes a business registry showing a company’s legal name, registered agent, filing date, and status.

What a good answer sounds like. “Here is our legal name as registered, our street address, and the link to the registration.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. Our office address is published on our facts page, and our legal name and state registration details are available on request and are added there as they are published, alongside every public profile as it is created.

09In writing

Can you show me a written agreement before any money moves to a funder?

Why it matters. A verbal deal with a funder is not a deal. Balances have been “resolved” in conversation and then pursued in full.

What a good answer sounds like. “Yes. Nothing is paid to any funder until the terms are signed by the funder and approved by you.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. Yes. Every term with every funder is in writing before money moves, and nothing moves without your signature.

10In writing

What do you do when a funder refuses to negotiate?

Why it matters. Nothing requires a funder to negotiate. A firm with no answer for a refusal has never faced one, or is not telling you.

What a good answer sounds like. “It happens. We tell you early, and we lay out the alternatives, including the ones we do not sell.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. We tell you early, and we lay out the alternatives honestly, including a licensed attorney, a bank refinance, and bankruptcy, none of which we sell. Many funders would rather resolve a balance than chase a closing business through the courts, but a refusal is always possible. Results vary.

The last five are where honesty shows.

Limits, updates, outcomes without promises, and what happens if the firm is the wrong fit.

11In writing

What will you not do for me?

Why it matters. A firm that claims it can do everything is describing a service that does not exist. The list of what it will not do is where its honesty shows.

What a good answer sounds like. A specific list, given without prompting.

Anchor Resolve’s answer. We will not represent you in court, give legal or tax advice, lend, broker, refinance, sell you a new advance, guarantee any reduction, force any funder to negotiate, or stop a funder from acting while we talk. We will not cold call you, and we will not share your information with anyone who sells advances.

12In writing

How will I hear from you, and how often?

Why it matters. The most common non-fraud complaint in the industry is silence: months without an update, balances unchanged.

What a good answer sounds like. “Every time a funder responds, and on a set cadence in between, by the channel you choose.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. You hear from us when a funder responds, not when you call to ask, by phone or text as you prefer, with everything material in writing.

13In writing

What is a realistic outcome for a business like mine, and why can you not promise it?

Why it matters. Any firm that answers this with a number before reading your contracts has answered it with the same number for everyone. Industry-reported ranges exist, but they describe other firms’ clients, not you.

What a good answer sounds like. “We cannot promise an outcome, and we will not quote one before we have read your contracts and talked to your funders. What we can tell you is how each path tends to work and what its risks are.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. We never quote a reduction percentage before reading your contracts and talking to your funders. Any firm that quotes one before that work has quoted the same number to everyone. Results vary, and no outcome is guaranteed.

14In writing

Can I see your reviews, complaints, and track record, and what should I make of them?

Why it matters. Ratings can be bought and badges can be faked. Complaint records, court records, and answered reviews cannot.

What a good answer sounds like. “Here are our profiles. Read the complaints and our written responses. Here is what we can and cannot substantiate about results.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. What you can check is what Anchor Resolve puts in writing: our office address, our registration details on request, the program documents you review before signing, and a written answer to any complaint you raise. We will not print an outcome, a count, or a rating unless it is real and typical, because results vary. Our facts page lists each public profile as it is created, and nothing before.

15In writing

What happens if you decide you cannot help me?

Why it matters. A firm paid to sign you has no reason to tell you it is the wrong fit. The answer to this question reveals whether it will.

What a good answer sounds like. “We tell you on the first call, and we tell you where to go instead.”

Anchor Resolve’s answer. We say so on the first call, and we name the better door: a bank refinance if you still qualify, a licensed attorney if a court is already involved, a bankruptcy attorney if the business cannot survive even with lower payments, or nonprofit credit counseling if the debt is personal.

Print this list, take it to every conversation, and score the answers with the ten-criterion rubric on our page about how to choose an MCA debt relief company. Then compare each path, including the ones we do not sell, on the comparison page.

Anchor Resolve is not a law firm and does not provide legal advice. Results vary; no outcome is guaranteed.

Sources

  • Federal Trade Commission, Debt Relief Services and the Telemarketing Sales Rule: A Guide for Business, 2010.
  • Better Business Bureau complaint records for MCA debt relief firms, 2025 to 2026.

Where to go next

Five more questions about the list itself.

Should you ask a debt relief firm these questions in writing or by phone?

In writing, or by phone with a written follow-up you send yourself summarizing what was said. A written answer can be compared across firms and held up later; a phone answer cannot. Any firm comfortable with its answers will confirm them by email without being pushed.

What if a firm refuses to answer one of these questions?

Treat the refusal as the answer. Every question on this list is one a legitimate firm answers on the first call. The ones most often dodged are fees in writing, where set-aside money sits, and what the firm will not do, and those are the three that protect you most.

Do these questions apply to a law firm as well as a debt relief company?

Yes, all fifteen. A law firm answers the first one differently, and its fee structure is usually hourly or a retainer rather than tied to enrolled debt, but the questions about account control, risk disclosure, written agreements, updates, and what it will not do apply to anyone touching your bank account.

Why would a legitimate firm answer a question with “it depends”?

Because on outcomes, timelines, and what a funder will accept, the truthful answer depends on your contracts, your deposits, and each funder’s behavior, none of which the firm has seen yet. “It depends, and here is what it depends on” is a good answer. “It depends” followed by a number is not.

Can you bring this list to a consultation with Anchor Resolve?

Yes, and we would prefer it. Our answers are already printed on this page; the consultation is where you test them. The call is free and ends with options rather than paperwork.

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