Friend in BIG trouble!

scaredtodeath_2

Hi everyone,

I have a friend who owes tens of thousands of pounds to various creditors.
She got scared by all this after receiving numerous threats of court action so she went "silent".
She changed her name in the hope that creditors would not find her and she never applied for any more credit.
That was a couple of years ago.
She now wants to come clean, the problem is, she is scared of the repocussions of hiding in the first place and is worried about possible prison sentence due to the fact that she has hidden for so long!

Does she have any options at all or is it a lost cause??

rayday2

I don't think she will be in as trouble as such but she will probably have to work out payment plans with them. I would urge her to contact the National Debtline.

Does she have any idea who she still owes etc or any letters starting to come through?

fermi

She can stop worrying about prison for a start. That won't happen for normal credit, consumer, utility etc debts.

The only debts that can ever happen for are things like court fines, council tax, and a few other odd ones. Even then you have to wilfully not pay without good reason when they know where you are. Just not going to happen!

We've seen plenty of people here who have hidden from their debts. Coming out of the woodwork is a scary thing to do, but once you realise that the creditors are fairly powerless then things becomes workable.

Having a chat with a professional debt councillor would be the best bet to set her mind at rest.

There are links/numbers in my signature, including NDL as suggested by rayday2.

scaredtodeath_2

Hi rayday2

According to her it's the usual banks and building societies.
She had overdrafts and credit cards maxxed out when she went underground.
No letters have come through at all but the worry of being caught up with is overtaking her!
She feels that the biggest problem is the fact that she changed her name which would say to any authority that she actively tried to "cover up" the debt. (which could be seen as fraud)!!
Considering all this, would bankruptcy be an option or not?

Any comments welcomed

scaredtodeath_2

thanks fermi

rayday2

If she has no property she owns it could well be which is why she should speak to one of the above.

She really should not be scared of contacting a charity - knowledge is power and they have plenty of that, its more scarey running than facing.

dotstar24

probably a bit controversial but if it was me I'd keep quiet. after a certain amount of time the debt may become statue barred. But thats just me, don't think many people will recommend doing this xxx

mikegahan

You friend has not committed anycriminal offence as she was legally entitled to change her name. The only exception might be court fines, if she has those.

redpoison

and it all depends on how long ago this was..

could you possibly tell your friend to pop on here with a list of her detbs, what she owes, and when her last payment to them was ?

tell her not to worry we will help her.. and national debt line can help too

most of us have done this..

scaredtodeath_2

Well im going to have to guess here but, in my opinion, due to length of time elapsed, around 2 years, I would say that there will be some fines and missed county court appearances.
I will have to ask her but she may not be impressed that I have sought advice behind her back!!
I'm just trying to be a good friend.

PS - she owns absolutely nothing at all!!

scaredtodeath_2

I think the best bet for her is to go to the C.A.B.
With any luck, they will be able to help her through this much more than I ever could!