Profina Gives Counselors Ability to Download Credit Reports.(Profina Debt Solutions)

Profina Debt Solutions, an arm of credit counseling agency InCharge Institute of America, has formed a new partnership with one of the nation's major credit reporting bureaus to provide Profina's credit counselors with the ability to download and review key information from credit reports to improve the credit counseling for consumers who are seriously delinquent on their debt payments.

In the past, credit counselors have relied primarily on the information provided by the consumer to determine whether a debt management program is the most effective solution for relieving debt. Too often, the information consumers provide is incomplete or inaccurate, which can affect the quality of the counseling session, sometimes leading consumers into a debt management program unnecessarily, Profina said.

With the consumers permission, Profina counselors can now instantly access and review key pieces of information like 30-, 60- and 90-day delinquencies, account numbers and balances, total trade lines, total debt and credit limits.

"Information is power in being able to provide the highest-quality counseling and education," said Robert Barrett, president and chief executive of InCharge Institute. "No one else is currently offering their clients this level of effective counseling - I think we'll see a lot more of this in the industry in the future."

Profina executives believe the first point of contact by the consumer to a credit counseling agency is the most critical.

"This new advancement in counseling allows us to better understand the client's situation, and provide a more comprehensive counseling session. We can determine the best solution for our clients, the first time they call," said Robert Closs, president of Profina.

He said that for consumers, admitting they have a debt problem and being willing to find a solution is usually the hardest part. Once they have passed these milestones, turning them away to gather more information or access a credit report often makes a difficult situation worse.