My brother has worked as a policeman for many years in Southern California. Last year he was involved in a serious car accident and has not been able to return to his job. As a result his bills have been piling up at an alarming rate. Last week he called me and told me that he was in serious financial situation and needed to find some sort of relief. I told him that he ought to call one of the many free debt consolidation firms that were turning up everywhere. I figured that would be able to help him out better than me.