credit card debt can't pay

worried_and_sick

Can any one help me, I have taken out about eight credit cards over the last seven years while I was unemployed, I have not missed one payment, but I can not afford to pay them all back the minimum amount each month anymore, it has all come to a head. My partner is on dla and he has just found out about all the debt I/we owe, because I also got cards out in his name. I have contacted various advice lines but nobody knows for sure what the banks will do to me " I fraudulantly did this" I do not want to go to jail for this, we are both worried, can not eat or sleep, and just to scarred to tell the banks scarred not to tell them.
My life can not go on like this anymore, I have to do something about this, I have been told by debt advice people to give the banks my budget plan, and how much I can afford to pay them each month, and I should not tell them about the fraud, and they said that the banks might not dig to deep, can any tell me if this has happened to them before.
Any and all help would be so very much appreciated.

poorandindenial

Hi worried and sick

I'm not going to dwell ont he rights or wrongs of what you have done, but you do need to get going on this ASAP. How is your partner about the cards in his name?

You need to know what your income and expenditure is (across both incomes and all debts) you can put them into the statement of affairs calculator on www.makesenseofcards.com this will help us see what your current situation is.

On another note, when you spoke to debt advice places, did you use any of the ones in this list (click here)

worried_and_sick

Yes I used ndl and they have told me to use payplan, we can only afford £200 between all the cards and two loans, i do not know what to do i am at my witts end with worrie, please help if you can.

GeorgeUK

NDL and CCCS are the people to speak to.

You will probably be advised to write to all your creditors informing them that you are unable to maintain payments and offer a £1 token payment until your Debt Management Plan with CCCS (or Payplan) is set up.

Phone them for advice and use the template letters available from the NDL website. We'll be able to talk you through each step. You will probably end up making arrangements to pay that £200 equally between all the creditors, but you will be able to get advice on that from one of the freed debt charities. The statement of affairs calculator poorandindenial mentioned should help with working out exactly how much you have available.

Do you own your own property, and are you in Scotland or England?

worried_and_sick

Hi George uk I am in a council house, I just owe on my credit cards and 2 bank loans all non secured. It just got out of hand and know I am just worried that I could go to prison for this, I am my partners career, and it was stress and being stupid that I did this? Do you think that the creditors will take me to court for fraud.
Can anyone help ..... this is playing on my mind so much.
Thank you

Sue-UU

Hi worried and sick and a warm welcome to the Forum. What's done is done so there's no use in dwelling on that now as it won't help you. You've made a good start by coming on and telling your story, now do as has been suggested and go to www.makesenseofcards.com/soacalc.html Then work out all your expenditure and incomings, put it exactly as it is and include everything you pay for or recieve throughout the year. We'll help you all we can in that direction.

For now though, as George advises, you need to get in touch with National Debtline and CCCS. Contact them in the morning and get things rolling. I see you care for your husband, but does that enable you to work at all, just a few hours each week perhaps? If you can possibly get yourself a job and begin to pay regular payments then things will at least start to get sorted. I don't think any of us here can advise as to whether you'll go to prison or not, but try not to look on the worse side of things, focus on what you CAN do to start paying back.

Good luck and keep talking to us and letting us know how things go. All the very best.

Sue

GeorgeUK

I am not sure what the creditors will do, but if your partner does not press charges against you then they may not do anything. I'd try to talk it over with perhaps citizens advice - you may be able to do so annonymously but i would also have a talk with your partner first to see where he stands on this.

LoulaBelle

Okay this prison thing - don't tell the banks about the fraud - your partner isn't going to is he? if not then you guys can get through this - I appreciate this must be an awful time in your life right now and I can see that you are sorry - try not to be too hard on yourself - we all make mistakes - its part of life - no-one is perfect.

Do you want to post your statement of affairs on here and we'll see if we can help you cut back in any areas? Are there things you can ebay ? can you get some sort of part time job or does being your husbands carer not allow this? do you get any benefits at all?

doodledo_2

Hi and welcome to the forum.

We could talk for hours on the rights and wrongs on what you have done but ultimately it won't change a thing.

If you OH doesn't make a complaint and accepts the debt then I don't think that anything will happen. Although obviously this is just my opinion.

I think it is important that you speak to one of the debt free charities and get some advice on what to do next.

Like others have suggested if you post your SOA on here, link in one of the posts below hopefully we will be able to offer some help in reducing your outgoings.

Good luck and keep posting.

worried_and_sick

Hi Thank you all for taking the time to write to me.
I contacted cccs and they were not very helpful, so I contacted NDL who were just the opposite, they were very nice, they are sending me a pack out, they also told me Do not tell the creditors about the fraud and hope that they do not dig deep, still not sure if I should do this?
They did tell me that I can do a payplan, so I am awaiting that pack also.
I also contacted community legal advice who told me that they do not think that the banks will charge me with fraud because it will mean egg on their faces that they did not discover that I was not working.
So all day I have felt sick, I still do not know what to do, I am just so scared to do this just because I do not want to go to jail.
I look after my partner, I am his career and I receive careers allowance, this is a full time job i can not leave him on his own.
I really do not know how I have got us in this mess,

Sue-UU

Hi again worried and sick.

If NDL are telling you not to tell the creditors about the fraud then please don't! Look forward to their pack coming and then go ahead with everything. Maybe they're not too concerned, and don't think the banks would be, because you're husband and wife. It's true about egg on the faces of those who should have delved deeper at the time that it mattered most.

All the worrying yourself sick in the world isn't going to benefit you w&s, as I said in my pm last night, ask yourself what's the worst that can happen and the put it all into perspective and don't keep analysing too deeply what may never happen anyway! Please think about your husband, the more he sees you worrying the more that'll trouble him and it really could make him ill too! Please try to relax, after all if everything goes alright, then it'll all have been precious time wasted. Live life for the NOW, not for what may be!

How about selling things on ebay? Is that an option for you? If so then sell as much as you can and pay it off of what you owe, it may seem like a drop in the ocean now, but in the long run it'll all help so much.

Hugs, Sue