They will ONLY do this if you have defaulted on the card…and this is a “maybe.” Credit card companies will often settle debt at 50% in lieu of loosing everything if you file for BK or if they have to sell the debt to debt collectors for pennies on the dollar…If you are current, they have no incentive at all to forgive any portion of the debt.

If you are struggling, they sometimes have special programs where you can skip one payment or the interest is reduced…but NOT the debt.

All you can do is ask. They may or may not decide you’ve been such a great customer that they will do that for you–(most of them won’t.)

Truthfully, however, you may not get anywhere with them, especially if you don’t use the card a lot. They like FREQUENT USE customers almost better than those who pay off their debts regularly.

The best way to handle this is contact a company that helps with this kind of thing but look for reviews some are a rip-off. Also listening to shows on financial matters like Dave Ramsey – financial freedom. Suze Orman is also very good listen to their shows get one of their books that deals with these matters, go to their web sites you will be well on your way to getting this taken care of.

Some companies do claim to get some of your debt forgiven. But the best thing is to cut up the cards and communicate with banks who issued them.

Discover cards as the worst with their card holders (by experience) but quite a few credit card banks let you explain your situation and they will drop the interest rate close the card and give you very low payments to work it off so it wont hurt your credit rating worse then it may be.

You need to visit. They were a tremendous help to me and my family. My credit score was raised 120 points in six months! Definitely recommend using these guys. They permanently remove bad marks on your credit report within 6 months. There is even a warranty if you aren’t satisfied. This is very VERY powerful stuff here. Check them out. It was one of the best decisions I’ve made.

If you haven’t needed a credit card up until people have been telling you that you need one, don’t worry about it. You really don’t ‘need’ one. The only reason that I got my credit card (aside to help with my credit score!) was for emergiencies-and that was at my family suggestion. I ended up applying for a card through my bank/federal credit union. They will be easier than any other place, especially if you have been with them for a while. Make sure you have NO annual fee. Aside from that, pick and choose.