Smooth Start, Nightmare Finish – Still Waiting

The start of my debt review with Vantage Debt Management was smooth, but exiting the programme has been a nightmare.

Despite paying all fees and submitting everything required, Vantage has delayed my Clearance Certificate, given contradictory information, and when following up they respond with the same emails, with same timelines as if nothing happened.

I had to personally obtain settlement quotations, pay my accounts, and send the paid-up letters — tasks I expected them to handle as part of the service I was paying for. I had to handle tasks myself that should be to managed by them, and to date, I still have not been assisted. These delays are now putting my job at risk with the new employer, which could cost me career.

They give timeframes and not adhere to them, 5-7 business days to get clearance from creditors, 1-2 weeks for certification by the Commissioner of Oaths and 21 business days for Credit Bureau to lift the red flag and they promise to share the clearance certificate with you. I paid my accounts in June none of the above seem to have taken place. In fact I was told today when I followed up that my documents were only sent for certification on 28 August. Mind you, I sent an email following that day.

It seems the process is smooth at the beginning but drags horribly at the end with no communication — clients should be aware of the potential stress and delays when exiting the programme. Clients must be willing to follow up for updates because without that following up, nothing gets done.