Advice Needed !!

Hi Guv'Nor There are lots of options available to you

For example in the short term and as a quick fix you could transfer all 5 credit cards to a 0% deal, check out Martin's Money Tips, all the best deals are outlined. This would immediately mean that every penny you paid each month to pay off a card would be reducing the bill; or even if you paid the miniumum balance you wouldn't be running up huge interest charges. However you need to be organised and ready to regularly switch to a new card, as all the 0% deals will be time limited, and you can get burnt if you don't switch in time.

However, if you mean you cannot afford the minimum payments on the cards and the loan alongside household priorities then a full assessment of your financial situation is needed, and better sooner than later. Also if this is the case you perhaps shouldn't start switching to 0% deals until you have spoken to a Specialist Money Adviser. Most Advice Centre's, Law Centres and definitely CAB's provide a Money Advice Service for free, however this is for personal debt and not business debts. Also Specialist Money Advice tends to be available only for those clients whose income is low enough, but dont let that put you off. Your salary won't necessarily preclude you as they take into consideration dependants and mortgage payments etc

In essence they will assess your income, versus your outgoings (so you need to put ALL your 'cards on the table' - pardon the pun! - to get the best out of the assessment). They will then be in a position to provide you with options and they will explain the legal implication of each of them. They tend not to favour a consolidation loan, ie getting a further big loan to pay off other smaller debts and they will explain why that is. Also you need specialist advice before you consider a secured loan because of the risks to your home. Some options that spring to mind are: a) rescheduling the payments with your creditors to a level you can afford, this usually involves freezing the interest payments. b) an Individual Voluntary Arrangement (IVA) whereby a payment schedule is agreed towards all the debts and this has to be adhered to for 3-5 yrs, and at the end of that time your financial situation will be reassessed and in some instances the remainder of the debt can be set aside. c) bankruptcy and there are others, but it is really IMPORTANT to get full legal advice from a specialist so they you can properly weigh up these options rather than launch towards a quick fix.

Getting the above advice and a really good Money Adviser really can really help with the stress, anxiety and management of debt which alone is worth its weight in gold. However, the biggest effort has to be made by you and your family. Getting out of debt and staying out of debt tends to require a lifestyle change and that can be the tough bit, otherwise accruing new credit and debt just carries on, storing up another problem for the future. This site is full of advice for ways you can find the best deal on practically everything to make sure you are never paying more than you need to, and it costs nothing, so make the best use of it.

One final point all the agencies I have mentioned always have waiting list for appts, and have times where they can' take on new work so please dont delay if you want to explore this option.

Hi some good advice above. Sounds like you need to sit down and have a look at your financial situation. Ignore the unsecured debts and look at your essentials and what you need to live on- like your mortgage, council tax, gas/elec,travel expenses, food etc. Take it all away from your income and see what you've got left. If you can't pay what your creditors are asking it's time to look at your options. A secured loan might not be a good idea anyway as if you got into further problems they could get their hands on your house. With unsecured debts there is a lot more negotiation you can do. You could do this yourself or use the services of a free debt management company. See https://www.nationaldebtline.co.uk, https://www.payplan.com, https://www.cccs.co.uk. Don't pay for debt management as the above companies do this for free. It would affect your credit file but this shouldn't put you off.