DMP Mutual Support Thread - Part 12

Many have asked about dropping to £1 token payments.

I started out my DMP with stepchange. Head first, no emergency fund....soon realising the payments were too high as our budget was tight.
I then wentbself managed and currently paying £1 to all creditors. They didn't really bat an eyelid. Creation have been a pain, but we are finally getting somewhere with them by ignoring them!
Strangely, the NEDCAB website suggested payments at £1...our budget left us with £100 split between 11 creditors, but the suggested payments were £1.
We've already cleared one account at 50%!!
Love being self managed

Thanks for this HeavenlyHarry I've been panicking for days whether we are doing the right thing. You've really put my mind at rest. Sent our self managed letters last week so still waiting for responses but cannot wait to start getting rid of the debt

Leanne12345 Personally I would post them, I always deal with them this way so I don't encourage any phone calls or emails.

I have an account with Next opened in April 2008. Currently defaulted.

Can I CCA request Next?

Thanks x

carbootcrazy wrote: »

vaper
I so agree with the advice given here by Puzzcat:T
Please get some sort of emergency fund together before starting your DMP as you'll have no lines of credit once you start and emergencies have a nasty habit of cropping up when they are the most problematic:mad:. There speaks the voice of sad experience:o
I hadn't discovered this wonderful thread when I dived headlong into my DMP. Stepchange never raised the subject of an emergency cushion either. I found it such hard going for the first year or so as I had emergency after emergency and regretted the day I signed up to a DMP. I was existing rather than living as I'd committed to paying so much off my debts each month that I'd stupidly underestimated my other outgoings:o. I was blinkered, all I wanted was to get rid of the debts in the shortest possible time. I realised too late that there are much better ways of organising a DMP than I'd done.
Good Luck:beer:

Wise words and I too strongly encourage those entering into a DMP to give yourself breathing space and follow the advice being given by many of those already well into, or on the other side of, their DMP. We too entered into our DMP too quickly and whilst SC helped us work through our situation - they were very restrictive with our household outgoings and it was cut to the bone. I was sold on the idea that we would clear what was a significant debt in 5 years and felt so guilty about being in such a dreadful financial mess at the time, so went with it.

Over the years we managed to put a little away for emergencies but as with CBC I would say we've just 'existed' rather than 'lived' the last 4+ years. I got so depressed at one point and stopped coming onto this forum and just let the DMP plod along. It's only now that we've hit the 1 year countdown milestone that I came back to this forum. I really wish I had done so sooner because I think I would have followed in the footsteps of those who chose to go self-managed. I would have reduced my payments, saved for F&Fs and lived a little.

But we are where we are -and so if you are like me from the outset you feel that you would prefer to have SC or Payplan handle things - don't rush in. Stop your payments to creditors, send those letters with or without token payments and give yourself timeout. Save the £s for that rainy day (which will come) and set up the DMP when you are on a stable footing. Don't worry about the letters you'll undoubtedly receive - read posts on this thread (go back and read the many others) and know that you've got things in hand and all will be well.