Short Answer

In Alberta, a consumer proposal actively works to pay back your creditors at zero interest. A debt consolidation loan or service merely shifts all of your debts into one loan payment, with interest. Remember, you can not borrow your way out of debt, you must eventually deal with it.

Longer Answer

A consumer proposal is a legally binding agreement that is put in place to provide Canadians and Albertans with immediate protection from debt collectors and it also secures a partial repayment of your total unsecured debt owing, which is agreed upon by the affected creditors. Your creditors would rather recover some payment than no payment at all, so under a consumer proposal, a Licensed Insolvency Trustee works out a payment plan between you and your creditors that is mutually agreed upon. All interest ceases, and at BNA Debt Solutions, our clients typically pay back just 37% of their debts on average. Meanwhile, debt consolidation services offer a loan to cover your outstanding debts. While this will eliminate creditor calls, it puts the debtor right back into another cycle of debt. Some debt consolidation services offer loans at high interest rates, rivalling those of credit cards. When a debtor takes a debt consolidation loan, they are merely putting all of their debts into one “basket” as opposed to actively taking steps to pay them down without interest.