Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

Former_StepChange_Rachel · 6 February 2014 at 10:52AM

Florida15 wrote: »

Thanks for your advice xx

Hi Florida15

Just to reassure you again that we'll keep persevering with this so please don't worry!

Thanks as always to the MSE community for being supportive and reassuring your fellow forum members when they need it. You certainly do give us the warm and fuzzies the way you look out for one another.

Best regards

Rachel

Florida15 · 6 February 2014 at 11:41AM

Thanks for your help everyone.

I will try to not worry - we will see what happens next payment day. As long as stepchange realise I have done all I can to resolve whatever has happened, I think it is the banks fault as first payment was fine.

daisymay69 · 7 February 2014 at 12:28PM

Hi,
We (my husband & I) have had a DMP with StepChange since June.
We both have some PPI policies attached to credit cards. All of these except M&S have automatically cancelled the PPI but i've just noticed that M&S are continuing to charge premiums, so my debt with them is increasing rather than decreasing!
Should they have cancelled it and if so can I claim back the premiums paid since June or is cancellation at their discretion?
As I'm still earning, I can't claim against the policy so will cancel it myself anyway but would like to get the money back if I can.

StepChange_Pavan · 7 February 2014 at 3:12PM

daisymay69 wrote: »

Hi,
We (my husband & I) have had a DMP with StepChange since June.
We both have some PPI policies attached to credit cards. All of these except M&S have automatically cancelled the PPI but i've just noticed that M&S are continuing to charge premiums, so my debt with them is increasing rather than decreasing!
Should they have cancelled it and if so can I claim back the premiums paid since June or is cancellation at their discretion?
As I'm still earning, I can't claim against the policy so will cancel it myself anyway but would like to get the money back if I can.

Hi there and welcome to the forum.

It seems strange that they should still be charging you so I would definitely contact them straightaway to cancel. If it was a mistake on their part they may be willing to refund the charges since June but they may offset it against the debt rather than paying it to you.

Hope this helps,
Pavan

Roryboi · 7 February 2014 at 6:05PM

HI, I have some bad debt in my name debts i have defaulted on etc (a teenagers mistake) total sum £5400 ish. I have been to the bank and they are unwilling to help. I have had this debt in my name for about 6 years and i want to get a mortgage in the next 3 years. Im thinking i need a miracle.

My thinking is if i get a consolidation loan to clear this debt the bad credit will be gone and by the time i come to get a mortgage i hope to be approved. But i feel like im in a viscous circle i have every good intention to pay off and improve my credit rating but no one seems to help. Im in a secure job in a secure industry but just keep hitting brick walls all i get told is its all based on experian can anyone help?

Historybuff · 8 February 2014 at 8:28PM

I'm just accepting I have a debt problem...a large one. Only just into the month and I know there will not be enough leeway in my overdraft to pay my credit card payments. It has got worse month after month and I have been in denial for a long time. I just need some advice on how to deal with what will be a large amount of unpaid direct debits. Shall I cancel them and phone up the credit card companies and ask for more time to pay? I'm worried about my bank reducing my overdraft and also worried about the charges due to unpaid direct debits. I've been robbing peter to pay Paul.

hollybone10 · 9 February 2014 at 9:04PM

hi
please can someone advise me im so worried i have some debts catalogue credit cards the trouble is the interest is very high and they wont stop the interest i got in touch with a voluntary debt people but they just told me to carrying on trying to pay them and then i was contacted by a company called RED DM who said that for £35 a month they can stop the interest which is good as i will be free of debt within 3 years but im worried can they really stop the interest please help thank u xt

StepChange_James · 10 February 2014 at 1:00PM

Roryboi wrote: »

HI, I have some bad debt in my name debts i have defaulted on etc (a teenagers mistake) total sum £5400 ish. I have been to the bank and they are unwilling to help. I have had this debt in my name for about 6 years and i want to get a mortgage in the next 3 years. Im thinking i need a miracle.

My thinking is if i get a consolidation loan to clear this debt the bad credit will be gone and by the time i come to get a mortgage i hope to be approved. But i feel like im in a viscous circle i have every good intention to pay off and improve my credit rating but no one seems to help. Im in a secure job in a secure industry but just keep hitting brick walls all i get told is its all based on experian can anyone help?

Hi Roryboi,

Thanks for posting.

We speak to a lot of people who've not been able to get debt consolidation loans. While there are companies offering low interest rate loans, they're usually the pickiest of the lenders.

The companies willing to take more of a risk on people will nearly always be charging more in interest and therefore aren't always a great idea. Particularly as consolidation loans can mean stretching a debt out over many years.

If you're planning to get a mortgage in 3 years I'm guess you're planning to pay quite large sums off these debts in the coming years and will then be saving up for a deposit.

In that sort of sitaution you might find you're not that disadvantaged by keeping your debts where they are. If your current debts are on things like overdrafts and credit cards then you can overpay every month and then you'll be able to make proper progress with these debts.

I'd recommend setting yourself a budget and trying to pay as much as you possibly can off the debts.

A consolidation loan won't help clear up the negative information that's already on your credit file, there's nothing much you can do with that. However, if you're paying the full contractual payment on your debts every month then you'll start to build up a better rating naturally as you're showing you can manage your debts.

If you're struggling to keep up with the payments on the debts then it might be worth getting in depth debt advice. You can do that by following the links in my signature below.

Kind regards

James

StepChange_James · 10 February 2014 at 1:06PM

Historybuff wrote: »

I'm just accepting I have a debt problem...a large one. Only just into the month and I know there will not be enough leeway in my overdraft to pay my credit card payments. It has got worse month after month and I have been in denial for a long time. I just need some advice on how to deal with what will be a large amount of unpaid direct debits. Shall I cancel them and phone up the credit card companies and ask for more time to pay? I'm worried about my bank reducing my overdraft and also worried about the charges due to unpaid direct debits. I've been robbing peter to pay Paul.

Hi Paul,

It sounds like you've had your "light bulb moment". This is a term that people use on the forums to describe the moment they realise they need to deal with their debts.

If you know there isn't enough money in your account to cover your credit card direct debits then I think it would be best to cancel them in advance. They aren't going to get paid either way but at least by cancelling them you'll be able to avoid getting bank charges too.

Before contacting the credit card companies I'd recommend getting in touch with us for debt advice. We'll help you put together a realistic budget and give advice about which debt solution suits your circumstances.

Our online Debt Remedy tool (http://www.stepchange.org/msehelp) can guide you through our debt advice process or you can give our helpline a call (http://www.stepchange.org/Contactus.aspx). Either way you'll get a reference number from us and you can give this to your creditors as proof you're getting debt advice.

A lot of companies will give you a few weeks breathing space to get advice if you inform them you're in touch with us and give them your reference number as proof (they can't access your information with the reference number but it proves you're getting our help).

It sounds like you're on the right track now and this forum is a good place for support and advice.

All the best.

James

StepChange_James · 10 February 2014 at 1:23PM

hollybone10 wrote: »

hi
please can someone advise me im so worried i have some debts catalogue credit cards the trouble is the interest is very high and they wont stop the interest i got in touch with a voluntary debt people but they just told me to carrying on trying to pay them and then i was contacted by a company called RED DM who said that for £35 a month they can stop the interest which is good as i will be free of debt within 3 years but im worried can they really stop the interest please help thank u xt

Hi Hollybone,

Thanks for getting in touch. I'd be very suspicious of any company that guarantees they can stop your interest. I suspect the company that contacted you will take a fee out of your £35 a month, which is likely to mean your debts will only receive a small payment.

It sounds like they're offering you a debt management plan, which means they will only ask your creditors to freeze interest and charges but the decision to actually stop them will be down to the companies you have the debts with.

You mention that your debts will be clear in three years according to the proposition from Red DM. I'd recommend doing your own sums to see if your payments will add up to enough (after fees) to clear your debts in three years.

I'm sorry if I sound a little bit negative but when it comes to getting out of debt when something sounds too good to be true it often is.

It might also be worth comparing the personal budget you've put together with the original voluntary organisation and Red to see how different they are. In theory they should be the same but it could be that they're different.

All good debt advice should be based around an income and expenditure budget which is realistic for your circumstances. If you feel like neither budget you've prepared is accurate then I'd recommend you get in touch with us at StepChange Debt Charity for advice. Our contact details are in my signature below.

Kind regards

James

Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

Comments

Categories

Get our FREE Weekly email full of deals & guides - and it’s spam-free