Struggling with debt? Ask a debt advisor a question

Sarah_m_2 · 4 October 2016 at 7:38PM

Hello my mom has signed up to virgin media today with a door salesman but my mom is mentally ill and didn't really understand what she was signing up to and didn't understand the cost and we want to cancel but we don't know the number or the best way to do it ?
My sister said if it is cancelled in 30 days there is no fee do you know if that's true ?
We are already in a lot of debt with rent and council tax and we can't afford this.

Former_StepChange_Richard · 5 October 2016 at 8:55AM

Peeping wrote: »

Today I received a claim form from Northampton court for an outstanding debt of 2.5k.

I have quite a number of debts, around £17,000 and had meant to set up a DRO with Stepchange but hadn't got around to it.....head in sand etc

What can I do now? Would a DRO work to stop the CCJ?

I have 14 days to respond.

Hi there

Thanks for your message. I know dealing with these things can be difficult so try not to worry as we'll certainly be able to help.

A DRO would stop the action being taken by the creditor through the county court. They can take a while to prepare though so you may need to respond in the meantime.

It's also important to make sure that a DRO is still right for you so I would suggest calling and speaking with one of our advisors who can discuss your situation in detail. The advisor can help you with the CCJ and work out the best plan of action moving forward too.

All our contact details are available here.

Take care
Richard

Mabelsmum · 5 October 2016 at 9:05AM

Hello,
It is crunch time, I am off sick from work (due to the stress of everything,I think) so I went online to StepChange yesterday and am now awaiting my pack.
My story is this, I am a single parent with one 18 year old living at home (I was supporting my older son for two years when he lived here and was jobless but has now left home) and I owe about £28,000 in credit cards, loan and overdrafts. I am working full time and have not missed any payments yet but now I am really panicking and it is making me ill. My tax credits, child benefit and maintenance have all just stopped -so I am about £400 a month worse off.

I have a mortgage on my house but also a mortgage on the house that my mum lives in (it was her house but we moved things around to enable me to buy a property and get on the housing ladder a few years ago). She is technically my tenant but obviously does not pay full rent). Eventually when she is no longer around I will rent the house out at full rental or sell it so I know I will be alright long term but for now I am terrified that our homes will be affected as she went out of her way to help me and now I've really messed things up. I also can't tell her as it would make her ill. I can't remortgage, even though there is equity in both properties, due to the stricter lending criteria and my debts.

I have read hundreds of these posts on these forums and the consensus of opinion is change banks, cancel direct debits, write letters to creditors and offer nominal sums. I am sick with worry, any advice would be gratefully received.

Former_StepChange_Richard · 5 October 2016 at 9:07AM

Mark_Brassington wrote: »

Hi sorry to go off topic but I have been on a debt management plan since 2009 with credit card debt and was wondering if I had a case to try to reclaim my bank charges from my bank. I have totalled them up and they come to £2.7k - yes honestly. Mostly a fixed charge of £30 each month for an overdraft.

Thanks

Mark

Hi Mark

Thanks for getting in touch. Not to worry, the thread is here to help with all aspects of debt.

The key thing here is if you feel you have been treated unfairly, you should make a complaint.

If you feel you have been treated unfairly, contact your bank (written communtiation is best so you can keep copies) and explain your concerns. Add any evidence to support your case and follow the banks complaints process whcih you should find on their website.

The bank will then investigate your case and they should respond. If you're not happy with the outcome, you can ask the Financial Ombudsman to investigate the matter further.

The Money Advice Service website has a great guide to help you through this process.

I hope this helps.

Best of luck
Richard

Former_StepChange_Richard · 5 October 2016 at 9:25AM

Sarah_m wrote: »

Hello my mom has signed up to virgin media today with a door salesman but my mom is mentally ill and didn't really understand what she was signing up to and didn't understand the cost and we want to cancel but we don't know the number or the best way to do it ?
My sister said if it is cancelled in 30 days there is no fee do you know if that's true ?
We are already in a lot of debt with rent and council tax and we can't afford this.

Hi there

Welcome to the forum and thanks for your message. I'm sorry to hear of your situation and I hope you mum is ok. Here's some information I have found to help you with this.

On the Virgin Media website in the terms and conditions it says:

If you have ordered the services online, by telephone or from an agent attending at your home you have a statutory right to cancel an order for the services within 14 days (the cooling off period) from the latest of (i) the day after the delivery of the equipment (ii) the service start date, and (iii) the day on which you received a copy of these terms and conditions in printed or PDF format.
We may choose to offer an enhanced cooling off period from time to time, and will inform you of this at the time of your purchase if this is the case.Any cancellation of the services in the cooling off period must be in accordance with this paragraph. You can cancel your order by:
Dialing 0345 234 0751 from any phone (for information on how much this call will cost from a Virgin Media home phone visit virginmedia.com/callcosts. Call costs from other networks and mobiles vary);
Writing to Virgin Media Sales Operation Support, Unit 5 Nimbus Park, Porz Avenue, Houghton Regis, Dunstable, LU5 5FR; or
Completing the cancellation form you will have been given as part of your welcome pack and returning this to us at the address specified on the form.

By getting in contact with them as stated above hopefully you will be able to get this resolved.

Once you have sorted this out, if you want any help with the other debts you mention, we'll certainly be able to help. I would suggest speaking with our Helpline team where one of our advisors can discuss your situation, help you to build a budget and then give you advice on the best way to deal with your debts.

If you prefer, you can use our self-help, Debt Remedy tool on our website. This will allow you to build a budget in your own time and once this is completed, you will be presented with your advice.

I hope this helps and please let us know if you have any further quesitons.

Take care
Richard

Former_StepChange_Richard · 5 October 2016 at 9:41AM

Mabelsmum wrote: »

Hello,
It is crunch time, I am off sick from work (due to the stress of everything,I think) so I went online to StepChange yesterday and am now awaiting my pack.
My story is this, I am a single parent with one 18 year old living at home (I was supporting my older son for two years when he lived here and was jobless but has now left home) and I owe about £28,000 in credit cards, loan and overdrafts. I am working full time and have not missed any payments yet but now I am really panicking and it is making me ill. My tax credits, child benefit and maintenance have all just stopped -so I am about £400 a month worse off.

I have a mortgage on my house but also a mortgage on the house that my mum lives in (it was her house but we moved things around to enable me to buy a property and get on the housing ladder a few years ago). She is technically my tenant but obviously does not pay full rent). Eventually when she is no longer around I will rent the house out at full rental or sell it so I know I will be alright long term but for now I am terrified that our homes will be affected as she went out of her way to help me and now I've really messed things up. I also can't tell her as it would make her ill. I can't remortgage, even though there is equity in both properties, due to the stricter lending criteria and my debts.

I have read hundreds of these posts on these forums and the consensus of opinion is change banks, cancel direct debits, write letters to creditors and offer nominal sums. I am sick with worry, any advice would be gratefully received.

Hi there

Thanks for your message. I'm sorry to hear how this situaiton is affecting you and your work. Please try not to worry though, we're here to help.

Managing your fincnces can be very hard when you have a change in your income for any reason. I can appreciate how difficult things must be now that you find yourself £400 per month worse off. With our help, we'll be able to find the best way for you to deal with your debts now and to make things more managable and affordable.

It sounds like you 've taken a great first step by using our website to get some advice. As you're awaiting your pack you should have access to something called your Personal Action Plan. This has advice on how to deal with your creditors in the mean time until you recieve your pack.

If you can't find this or you're not sure what to do, it would be best to speak with one of our advisors on the phone. They will be able to give you tailored advice of what to do based on the information you have provided. If you have any quesitons about what happens next they'll be able to answer these for you too. All our contact details are avaialble here.

This section of our website has been setup to help people through the first steps of starting a plan with us. You may find some answers to quesitons here too.

I hope this helps and we look forward to hearing form you soon.

Take care
Richard

joshsmith11 · 5 October 2016 at 1:30PM

[FONT=&quot]Ok, firstly I have read a lot of threads on this forum and I don't think my situation is that bad in comparison to others. However, I am now suffering from depression and would like some advice on how to proceed with my life and finances.

I am a 24 year old male, currently living at home with my parents. Around 8 months ago I suffered from rage and lost a substantial (to me) amount of money gambling. The gambling situation is now firmly under control and I will never make the same mistakes again. In order for me to see ends meat and to pay my bills, I took out multiple loans.

I am in full time employment (having been with the same company for nearly 3 years) and currently earn a net pay of £1,171.99 (after NI, tax and company pension) - I don’t have any money saved or tied up elsewhere.

My next month’s payments look as below and this is the basis for month upon month;[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£100 board to my parents - ongoing[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]£50 phone contract until - January 2017[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]£145 car finance - (3 years left)[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]£70 Car insurance - until September 2017[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]£100 petrol - ongoing[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]£3 p/m – car tax[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]£250 paying girlfriend back for holidays/money lent - £2,000 outstanding[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Football subs £25 p/m[/FONT]

In addition to the above I also need to pay £100 to my mum (money owed). Also I have a lot of birthdays and Christmas plus other miscellaneous which also cause outgoings.
[FONT=&quot]
My debts are as follows:[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]HSBC 1 - 12 monthly payments left of £84.15. (£993.70 outstanding). [/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]HSBC 2 - 12 monthly payments left of £161.82. (£1,925.80 outstanding).[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Zopa 1 - 36 monthly payments left of £40.74. (£1,466.64 outstanding).[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Zopa 2 - 31 monthly payments left of £39.70. (£1,190.00 outstanding).[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Rate Setter - 30 monthly payments of £54.47. (£1,493.39 left outstanding).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I appreciate this was my own doing and I have nobody other than myself to blame but I am really struggling with uncharacteristic mood swings due to this and it is getting me down.
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I also have been in a relationship with my girlfriend for over 3 years now and we are desperate to save to buy our own place, her finances are much better than mine. She currently has deposit saved of over 6k and also comes out with £500 a month saving money.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
I don't want to seek doctor’s advice as I don't want this to affect my work life or anything.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]I have also been asked to interview for a new job at a big company with a large pay increase. However, with this obviously comes with the risk of meeting the probation period targets ect.[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]
[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Is it worth looking into setting up an IVA or should I stick to my payments and suffer the consequences of my actions for the next couple of years? If I was to take out additional support/advise, would this ruin my credit history of ever getting a mortgage with my partner? Would I have to declare this on all future correspondence such as job offers or anything to do with payments such as insurance companies?

I would be grateful to hear some advice on how to proceed with this and also seeing the bigger picture as to regards to future plans.

Thanks,
Josh.[/FONT]

MrsA27 · 5 October 2016 at 6:50PM

Hello

I started a thread over at credit card seeking advice then came across this thread and thought I would repost it here and seek help. I hope you don't mind. Many thanks in advance.

Over the years, due to poor management and various other factors I've built up about £18k worth of credit card debt. Amongst the cards I have, many of them were the big lenders with good 0% balance transfer rate. This means that I've ran out of lenders to apply to balance transfer and cut down the interest that is accumulating. One or two of the 0% balance transfer cards I already have are coming to the end of the deal as well so interest will start building up again.

As I can't apply for anymore balance transfer cards (having been rejected by a few already), I have been quoted a debt consolidation loan by Money Way (broker is Freedom Finance) for £15k with 13.9% APR, £341.96 monthly payment over 5 years. This means that the total cost of credit is £5517.37. I've not made the application yet so not sure if I will get it.

I've been doing some research online and there are some other secured loans or personal loans available for debt consolidation. I wonder if this is really the last and only option for me? If I can, I'd rather be re-directing the £400 odd minimum payment plus interest I'm paying each month for the cards to paying off a loan.

I wonder if anyone has done this before and find it a good/reasonable solution to my debt problem.

Any advice or suggestions greatly appreciated. I just want to get out of this and rebuild my life, all the worrying is certainly not helping with my depression.

StepChange_Allen · 6 October 2016 at 10:30AM

joshsmith11 wrote: »

[FONT=&quot]Ok, firstly I have read a lot of threads on this forum and I don't think my situation is that bad in comparison to others. However, I am now suffering from depression and would like some advice on how to proceed with my life and finances.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I am a 24 year old male, currently living at home with my parents. Around 8 months ago I suffered from rage and lost a substantial (to me) amount of money gambling. The gambling situation is now firmly under control and I will never make the same mistakes again. In order for me to see ends meat and to pay my bills, I took out multiple loans. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I am in full time employment (having been with the same company for nearly 3 years) and currently earn a net pay of £1,171.99 (after NI, tax and company pension) - I don’t have any money saved or tied up elsewhere. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]My next month’s payments look as below and this is the basis for month upon month;[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£100 board to my parents - ongoing[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£50 phone contract until - January 2017[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£145 car finance - (3 years left)[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£70 Car insurance - until September 2017[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£100 petrol - ongoing[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£3 p/m – car tax[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]£250 paying girlfriend back for holidays/money lent - £2,000 outstanding[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Football subs £25 p/m[/FONT]

In addition to the above I also need to pay £100 to my mum (money owed). Also I have a lot of birthdays and Christmas plus other miscellaneous which also cause outgoings.

[FONT=&quot]My debts are as follows:[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]HSBC 1 - 12 monthly payments left of £84.15. (£993.70 outstanding). [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]HSBC 2 - 12 monthly payments left of £161.82. (£1,925.80 outstanding).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Zopa 1 - 36 monthly payments left of £40.74. (£1,466.64 outstanding).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Zopa 2 - 31 monthly payments left of £39.70. (£1,190.00 outstanding).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Rate Setter - 30 monthly payments of £54.47. (£1,493.39 left outstanding).[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I appreciate this was my own doing and I have nobody other than myself to blame but I am really struggling with uncharacteristic mood swings due to this and it is getting me down. [/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I also have been in a relationship with my girlfriend for over 3 years now and we are desperate to save to buy our own place, her finances are much better than mine. She currently has deposit saved of over 6k and also comes out with £500 a month saving money.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I don't want to seek doctor’s advice as I don't want this to affect my work life or anything.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I have also been asked to interview for a new job at a big company with a large pay increase. However, with this obviously comes with the risk of meeting the probation period targets ect.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Is it worth looking into setting up an IVA or should I stick to my payments and suffer the consequences of my actions for the next couple of years? If I was to take out additional support/advise, would this ruin my credit history of ever getting a mortgage with my partner? Would I have to declare this on all future correspondence such as job offers or anything to do with payments such as insurance companies?[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]I would be grateful to hear some advice on how to proceed with this and also seeing the bigger picture as to regards to future plans.[/FONT]

[FONT=&quot]Thanks,[/FONT]
[FONT=&quot]Josh.[/FONT]

Hi Josh

Thanks for posting.

I've noticed that you also sent this via private message so I'll send you a reply on there in a short while.

I hope that's okay with you.

Allen

StepChange_Allen · 6 October 2016 at 10:42AM

MrsA27 wrote: »

Hello

I started a thread over at credit card seeking advice then came across this thread and thought I would repost it here and seek help. I hope you don't mind. Many thanks in advance.

Over the years, due to poor management and various other factors I've built up about £18k worth of credit card debt. Amongst the cards I have, many of them were the big lenders with good 0% balance transfer rate. This means that I've ran out of lenders to apply to balance transfer and cut down the interest that is accumulating. One or two of the 0% balance transfer cards I already have are coming to the end of the deal as well so interest will start building up again.

As I can't apply for anymore balance transfer cards (having been rejected by a few already), I have been quoted a debt consolidation loan by Money Way (broker is Freedom Finance) for £15k with 13.9% APR, £341.96 monthly payment over 5 years. This means that the total cost of credit is £5517.37. I've not made the application yet so not sure if I will get it.

I've been doing some research online and there are some other secured loans or personal loans available for debt consolidation. I wonder if this is really the last and only option for me? If I can, I'd rather be re-directing the £400 odd minimum payment plus interest I'm paying each month for the cards to paying off a loan.

I wonder if anyone has done this before and find it a good/reasonable solution to my debt problem.

Any advice or suggestions greatly appreciated. I just want to get out of this and rebuild my life, all the worrying is certainly not helping with my depression.

Hello

Thanks for posting and welcome to this page.

I'm sorry to hear that these debts are causing problems for you and affecting your mental health. There's always a way of tackling debts, it's what we help people with every day at StepChange. We do need to have a really good understanding of your financial situation before we can make recommendations though.

In our experience, borrowing more money, often referred to as debt consolidation, rarely fixes a debt problem and often makes it worse. As you've seen, if you borrow what you owe, you'll be significantly increasing your debt due to the interest. It is possible for debt consolidation to work for some people, but it usually doesn't.

You can register with us free for our impartial advice by clicking here and choosing a way of contacting us and doing a budget. Once you've done a budget and list of debts with us we'll be able to make a recommendation of your best steps to take.

If you need support for your depression, we'd recommend contacting your GP in the first instance if you haven't already.

I hope this is helpful and we hope to hear from you soon.

Allen

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