Ask a CCCS counsellor a question

siobhanbrunton

Hi there

I've just been on the CCCS website and filled in the debt remedy questionnaire but because I'm self employed it says I have to call - excuse my ignorance - but why is that?

Siobhan

CCCS_Sue

flatbroke49 wrote: »

I have been with a debt management company for 5 months, following a period of ill health. I had no arrears ect., but knew my financial situation was going to change dramatically. I contacted a debt management company and continued paying the full amount until this kicked in. However, I have been absolutley hounded by MBNA, who according to the DMP have agreed a monthly payment which is just over 50% of the amount. I have since received a letter from them saying that they are looking into putting a charge on my house. I have never missed a payment, even though the past four months they have received a reduced amount. Can they do this?? It is extremently stressful. I wrote and told them that I was receiving fortnighty hospital treatment (chemotherapy) and keep being hospitalised (not terminal) and that they are causing me more stress but this doesnt seem to bother them. I have also wrote three times outlining the situation, and the DMP have contacted them even more times both by phone, fax and letter. I have also sent them an 'harrassment letter'. but this threat of a charge on my house has really worried me.

Hi flatbroke 49

Have you already had a CCJ?
A creditor can apply for a charging order if you have a county court judgment (CCJ) and one of the one of the following points applies:
Either the court has ordered you to pay the whole judgment debt immediately or by a certain date, (this is known as judgment forthwith) and you have not done so;
Or the court has ordered you to pay the judgment by instalments and one or more payments have been missed.
A charging order secures the debt on your property.(so an unsecured debt would become secured). It would remain secured until the debt was paid off in full.
It is a way of ensuring that the creditor will get their money back eventually.
If you are with a fee charging DMP company then it might be a good idea to consider changing to a non profit making organisation such as ourselves,National Debtline or CAB .
You would not be charged for their services so the money you do have available is all being paid towards your debt.
This will ensure that you are paying as much as you can afford to your creditors and it may help with regard to your charging order.
If you would like to book a telephone appointment to discuss this further you could ring our free helpline on 0800 138 1111
Regards
CCCS Sue

CCCS_Sarah

NEWLIFE_WANNABE wrote: »

Hi peeps, I am new to this so bear with me. I have just completed a debt remedy and chosen the dmp option. All will be posted out to me but now that this is being processed I can't access my advice booklet and don't as yet know when the dmp will start. Do I need to continue paying my creditors the full amounts whilst the plan is being set up. I was wondering if I could reduce my payments on the credit cards (I have 8) while the plan is being implemented as it is these payments that are pushing me into my overdraft. Would this be OK? Many thanks.

Hello,

If you have decided that you are definitely going on a DMP, you will be able to cancel your direct debits to your unsecured creditors, and make a goodwill gesture payment until your plan is up and running.

Once we have received all your details, we will then send the proposals to you creditors. You will then receive a welcome pack through the post.

In your welcome pack there will be a contact number if you have any problems, and also a transcash slip for the first payment to be made at the post office. If you are in the process of setting your DMP up, your first payment will probably be the 1st of March – this will be confirmed in your pack.

Hope this helps

Sarah

CCCS_Sarah

callywally wrote: »

Hello,
I started a dmp with cccs a few months ago. Every thing had been fairly quiet untill the last few days. I had a phone call from lloyds even though Ive asked for no phone calls and everything to be in writing only,saying that they have no record of me having a payment plan with them. They have been exepting the payments from cccs and are still adding charges and interest. When I sent notification letters they were all sent by recorded delivery so i know they will have recieved them.
I also had a solicetors letter from them last week asking for full payment and again no mention of the dmp.
I have emailed cccs and hope to get a reply tomorrow. I am really worried as I thought things were settleing down and I was trying to sort things out but if they are not exepting the dmp what will happen next.
Any advice would be welcome as i am really worried and dont know what to do for the best now.
thanks

Hi Callywally,

The letters that you have been receiving sound like standard collections letters, these are system generated so wont mention your personal circumstances.

It may take a couple of months for your creditors to settle down, and unfortunately there is no way of making them stop the interest and charges as this is at their discretion.

If the creditors ask for the payment in full, this is also standard and we would advise you to continue with the reduced payments as they cant have what you have not got to give them.

With regards the calls you have been receiving, you may wish to send them a copy the letter below. If you still continue to receive the calls then keep a log of them and then you may have a case to make an official complaint.

To whom it may concern




Dear Sir/Madam

I am writing to ask that you no longer contact me by telephone as your calls are causing me considerable stress due to the frequency, and that they are being made at inappropriate times. Please remove my telephone number from your database and send all future communication in writing to my home address.

I have provided the most recent copy of my income and expenditure to make you aware of my current financial situation. I will continue to make my payment of x on the x of every month and will keep you informed of any changes in my circumstances as I am keen to resolve this issue as soon as possible.

I understand that following this request if you continue to call I can contact the Office of Fair Trading to make a formal complaint.

Please confirm in writing that your records have been amended.

Yours sincerely

CCCS_Sue

trilbythecat wrote: »

Hi,

I'm sorry if these are obvious questions, but I can't seem to find anything on how to disentangle myself from my husband's problems. About five years ago he started a limited company and went into debt to do it, but the business never made a profit and to support it I then went into debt. I am a director of the company. We also have two children.

I now have a job and could make the payments (just about) on the debts I took out to support him. He hasn't gotten a job, doesn't seem to care that much, and I've had enough. I've told him I'm not paying his debts any more, and within about a month I'm going to tell him to leave the house until he can support himself financially.

The problem is we have three debts that we are jointly liable for. One is our main house account, regularly £750 overdrawn. Another is the limited company's overdraft, £2000. The third is the limited company's credit card. £1000. I know these are limited company debts, but the bank made us both sign a statement saying we were personally liable for the debts! I could probably pay the credit card minimum payment, but there is no way I can just pay off the overdrafts.

The way I understand it, our credit is linked because of these joint debts. If he gets into worse trouble, or goes bankrupt, I will also get into trouble, or go bankrupt, unless I pay these off. Is this correct?

If he misses even one payment on a loan re-aged for him the bank will call it in. I'm making the payment in February to give him a chance. I can't do it in March. This scares me.

Is there anything I can do? I would consider taking on these debts solely if I could avoid bankruptcy. I want to change my situation and give my children a better life.

Many thanks for your help.

Hi trilbythecat and thank you for your message

If you have joint debts then you are both joint and severally liable.
This means that if the creditors cannot obtain payments from your husband then they will pursue you for the debt.
If he does go bankrupt , I’m afraid the creditors would ask you to pay as you are jointly liable.
Its difficult to give you detailed information without knowing your full circumstances.
I would suggest you make an appointment to speak to one of our debt counsellors.
The counsellor would put together a financial statement showing your income and expenditure. After paying all your priorities, any surplus could then be used to pay towards your non priority debts such as credit cards, store cards, loans etc.
The counsellor would also advice on the options to deal with your situation.Bankruptcy is not always the best solution for everyone and there may be other options.
In the meantime,it would be a good idea to open a basic bank account in your name only and have any income you receive paid into this account.This puts you back in charge of your own finances.
To book an appointment to speak to a counsellor, please ring 0800 138 1111.

Regards
CCCS Sue

CCCS_Sarah

july73 wrote: »

Hi

I'm planning to do a DMP with my husband through CCCS. He is self employed and most debts are his. However we have 2 joint unsecured loans for £16,000 I know I'm liable for these loans to, even though it again is his debt, hence why he has always paid them. I also have my own loan £5,000 and he has a credit card £5,000 plus a loan of £3,000. We both have over drafts. Am I doing the right thing doing a joint DMP? I feel this should be right, as I have willingly signed for these joint loans.

I'm also worried about getting CCJ's and how they will see our budget, Being self employed is rather unpredictable. He can have unforeseen expenses etc and I'm worried if we are forced to pay all monies we have left after basic living. What do we do when things beyond our control prevent us being able to afford the DMP payment. Damage to his hired van, Tyre's. Even things like my cooker blowing up is worrying me. I know we should try to put something aside to cover such things, but I'm worried we will not even be able to do that once the budget has been worked out. Due to all spare monies going to creditors, after basics to live on are taken. Are allowances made to help you keep the basics. Our car is 10yrs old. If our DMP takes 15 yrs, how is my car going to last that long.

I know this seems a daft question because we can't manage now, but with us both on a DMP, how do we cope with such emergencies if we both can't get credit.

Also we have our mortgage with The One account and we don't owe money to them or Natwest other than our mortgage. Will this account be affected. Or will it remain the same with debit cards? My concern is my husband has to use his card and can not deal with cash at times when he has an emergency, when working. If he can not get a problem sorted because he has no card at the roadside, he will loose money.

I'm feeling ..........are we doing the right thing? but then again we can't carry on as we are.

Hello,

When the budget is put together, there are areas that allow for sundries, emergencies and home repairs etc however you can never predict the future and allow for everything. We do understand that sometimes there are unexpected costs; if these do arise I would recommend that you contact us, and if needed you could always make a one off reduced payment.

CCJs are a possibility on a DMP, however there is never any guarantee that the creditors will choose to go down that route. As long as you are paying what you can every month nobody can ask anymore! If your situation does worsen or improve then come back for a review as soon as possible and then we can look at all your options and make sure you are been given the best advice.

With regards your one account, it would be hard to go into detail so I would suggest you call our client support department and they can discuss this with you.

CCCS_Sue

jaffacakes1000 wrote: »

About a year ago i was a bit short of cash and went to a cheque centre and took a £100.00. they only charged 10 percent commission which was not a lot at the time. I then got into a vicious circle and eventually was using my limit of £500.00 every month. It got to the point i was so short when I got paid because all my cheques cleared and you have to wait a week after to cash more i ended up going to different companies and now have my total wage coming out every time i get paid. I recently went way over my overdraft and got a final defualt. I was then told by the bank that by writing cheques when i had no money in my account and getting them cashed when i got paid i was commiting fraud!! they threatened to come round to my house ( my parents council house) . i have not told my parents and am ashamed that ive got my self into such a mess. I called debt help centres becuase i was so stressed but they wont even look at it becuase its not a 'proper loan'. i constantly worry now about payday and the bank have now repossessed my cheque book. i have no idea what to do. i tried to get a loan for 24 months which i can easy pay a month as i do get a good wage but my credit history is now so bad i keep getting refused. im only 20 and have no idea what to do???!!!

hi jaffacake1000

We have answered this already on post 959.Sorry you had to wait for the reply but we have been really busy!!
Regards
CCCS Sue

HelpMePls_2

Hi CCCS

I really need to get an appointment to speak to someone there but I can never get through on the phone! Any idea who I can speak to someone?

I'm 24, will 30,000 debts and I'm being told that defaults are being issued to me!

Please help, thanks

sallyx

CCCS_Sarah wrote: »

Who is you dmp with? If it’s the CCCS, we would be able to send you out sample letters to use to send to the creditors.

When offering a reduced amount to clear the balance it better to start as low as possible. There is no set amount to offer, if they say no just add another couple of percent onto the offer.

Yes it is with the CCCS and I think I have already got the sample letters from when I did a F&F settlement before. Is 40% too low to start or would you go lower?? I also have no idea where I would need to send the F&F settlement too, where can I find this information from?

Thanks

caramia1812

caramia1812 wrote: »

I posted here earlier but have an update and need advice. I have two cc with HBOS and they agreed to suspend interest and charges for a year if I paid them 1% of the balances back monthly. My arrangement is up on 29th January. I wrote on 6th January to the customer services department (they helped me out last year) and didn't get a response. I wrote again two weeks after the 6th with copy of my first letter and sent it recorded delivery. No-one has got in touch with me yet.

When I rang to make my last-of-the-arrangment month payment on 20th January I told the assistant about my letters and he said "not to worry" they were getting inundated with calls, communications etc.

Shall I wait and hope they contact me? I can't bring myself to call them as I feel physically sick when I have to speak to them about this. Every month is the same when I make the call to make my payment, it really disturbs me and I get very stressed out.

I am worried to death that they start adding interest again - last time it took four months for them to come to an arrangement with me and the accounts accrued £1200 in interest during that period (I think in my earlier post I said £900).

Just another thing, how can it be right that they can put up interest rates and apply them to money you have already "borrowed". HBOS cc's are now at 26% and 24% APR.

Edited today (28.01.09). I am at my wits end at work and have just faxed another letter, practically begging them for contact.

Edited today (28.01.09 at 18.50hrs): No response from my fax but there was a letter when I got home from their Retail Collections Service which did not answer my letter of 6th Jan. I got a response that started with, "Thank you for your recent correspondence requesting a summary of our reduced payment arrangement policy".

Firstly, I did not ask for that, I made an offer and asked them if they would extend the arrangement for a further year. Instead I got legal jargon about informal and formal arrangements which confused me further. In the end, I rang the number and was told by the person on the phone that I should have been contacted 6 months ago to request another financial statement etc and he further told me that once I sent this then I would be put on to a 3-monthly review but it would take a couple of weeks from them receiving my statement to sort out.

I have had NO correspondence whatsover from HBOS apart from my monthly statements.

I don't know how I am going to sleep tonight, let alone the next few months. I have been pacing the floor since I got home and feel like a rat in a maze.

Sorry, I meant to edit my post rather than respond to my own. I guess that shows my state of mind at the moment. I am sitting here in tears and don't know how I am going to get through. I see posts here about Full and Final settlements and I wonder if my family could come up with the cash now rather than next year to help me, if it would be worth my while asking them to accept 50% of the balances?