Ask a CCCS counsellor a question

CCCS_Sarah

missjodie wrote: »

Hi,
I'm a newby and in a lot of debt at the mo.
I've had a look around the forum and haven't found an answer, so sorry if i missed it and am just repeating others!
I've recently been in touch with a company called The Recovery Group. They say that they may be able to get the balance of my credit card wiped as the bank have breached their contract with me. They have done this because they raised my credit limit (more than once, £3k to £12k) without me signing any sort of agreement.
It will cost me a one off fee of £495 to do this (no win no fee, but would keep £60 of the £495 for the initial solicitors letters sent out) as they basically take the bank to court.

Can anyone shed any light on this please, as i cant afford to throw away £495!!! Any help welcome as to whether this is possible.
(The Recovery Group were advertising on a Manchester radio station, so i gave them a call to see what they had to say!!)

Thanks in advance

Jodie

There seems to be a lot of organisations offering “wipe-off debt” services for a substantial fee. It’s worth noting that consumer credit debts will only be written off, if there is clear evidence that the creditor in question has breached the guidelines set within the Consumer Credit Act. The commercial companies offering to wipe off debts seem to be advertising this to the wider market, without prior knowledge to the individual’s financial situation.

If you are in a position where you think your creditors have taken unnecessary action which breaches the CCA and have evidence that proves so, then you could consider going down the route of disputing the debt through County Court. I would be very careful of any organisation offering such services, especially when they are charging substantial fees with no guarantee of success, when it’s something that you could do for yourself.

My advice would be that if you do feel you have a case where you feel your creditors have breached the CCA, speak to someone who can offer free independent advice, such as the Office of Fair Trading.
More information can be found on the Office of Fair Trading website: http://www.oft.gov.uk/news/press/2008/consumeralert.

icmdead

Hi, i'm new to the website. I received a letter in the post today from Ruthbridge Ltd asking me to contact their customer services officer. I rang the number and they confirmed they were looking for Mr Keith Crooks (which is me!) at my address. when we confirmed the address and date of birth, the date of birth they were looking for was different. He then said they were collecting on behalf of Cabot for a credit card. I've never owned a credit card (a fact i'm proud of) and said it must be someone else. He then sharply hung up the phone on me. i'm a tad concerned about this, can someone use my name and address to get a credit card?

any help or comments would be great

Keith

CCCS_Sarah

missjodie wrote: »

Hi Sue,
Thank you so much for your time and response.
Do you know if raising my limit without me signing is a breach of contract or is it something i would need to ask the Office Of Fair Trading?
Regards
Jodie

I believe this is something that is in the process on being looked at, but they are not in breach of the agreement for doing this.

CCCS_Sarah

Crisp_£_note wrote: »

Hi

I have recently set up some regular payments from my bank account for £1 token payment to some of my creditors as advised by CCCS.

I want to write a letter to the creditors to confirm I have done this as I said I would in a letter to them last month, rather than paying by Postal Order. What do I write?



Some of the information about the accounts I have not had details sent to me yet so I cant set up regular payments.

Do you think it is safe to proceed with these numbers and set up regular payments? I am assumung the numbers on the giro slips near my credit account numbers are the numbers relating to the creditors bank details?

Thanks

In your letter you could say something along the lines of ‘as mentioned in my previous correspondence, I have now set up a standing order for £1 pcm. As soon as there is a change in my financial circumstances I will send you an updated financial statement’.

With regards the account numbers of where to send the payments, you would need to double check with your lenders as I would not want to say either way.

CCCS_Sarah

CCCS_Sarah

mani99 wrote: »

Hi,

I am currently in debt to the tune of £20,000 and am struggling at the moment. Currently I earn £2,000 a month (take home) with £1,100 going to the mortgage. My minimum monthly payments plus loan repayment works out to be £600 leaving me with £300, of which £180 goes on travelling to and from work.

This leaves me with very little each month and it has really started to get me down. What options do I have to reduce my monthly payments? I've read about DMA's on here but not sure if that would be the right path for me to follow?

Any advice would be most appreciated.

If you would like us to take a look at your situation, you will need to either use our online advice facility Debt Remedy, or ring our free Helpline to book a telephone appointment with a counsellor.

Debt Remedy will assist you in completing a financial statement which includes information on your household, employment, income, expenditure and debts. All this information is used as a basis to determine the options available to you to deal with your situation.

Once you’ve followed the process through and completed all the required information you will immediately be presented with an advice booklet, which will provide tailored advice for you based on your current circumstances. It will also provide advice on ways you may be able to improve your situation. If you would like to get immediate advice on your situation, click here to go directly to Debt Remedy.

Alternatively if you would prefer to talk to a debt counsellor about your situation, you can book a telephone based appointment by calling our helpline free on 0800 138 1111. Lines are open Monday to Friday 08:00-20:00. If you do decide to call us, please have details ready regarding your income, expenditure and creditors, as this can help speed up the referral process. If you have all of the necessary information ready, it may be possible to refer you directly to a counsellor for immediate advice. Alternatively, we will arrange for an appointment to be booked at a time convenient for you.

CCCS_Sarah

CCCS_Sue wrote: »

Hi Lady1 and thank you for your message

It is difficult to give detailed advice via email without knowing their full financial situation.
If a loan is secured on property and it is defaulted on, then their home is at risk.
It is important they attend the court hearing and put forward their case. It is a chance to explain their situation.
Repossession is a last resort, and if they can prove they are able to make the normal payments plus something off the arrears, the judge may consider a suspended repossession order.
If your parents would like to discuss their situation with one of our mortgage counsellors, they can ring for an appointment on our free helpline 0800 138 1111. The counsellor will be able to give further advice on the court process and how to prepare.
The counsellor will also be able to discuss whether an IVA was an option they could consider.

Regards
CCCS_Sue

Lady1 wrote: »

Hiya, I posted the below a couple of days ago - not sure if it's been missed or just not got round to! Could someone reply? Thanks x




Hi there,

Not my problem as such (but it is worrying me I can't sleep!!), but wondering if there is any advice out there! My parents have a loan on which they have defaulted on for quite a few months and are now being threatened with reposession of their house. They are due to go to court in August.

They are both self employed, running their business together but my dad has been quite ill in the last few months and with hospitals appointments nearly every week they haven't been doing so well.

My mum has agreed payments with the couple of credit cards she has, explained about my dads ill health and they have been really good. So was the loan company, they agreed a payment plan with my mum but have now gone back on it and are saying they want to repossess the house.

I'm wondering how likely will it be that they will actually take the house? Will any considerations be taken in court to the fact they were willing to try and agree a payment plan? Surely reposession is treated as a last resort? And also are IVA's available for the self employed or are these something to completely stay away from?

Thanks in advance. Hope someone can help!

Just found the answer for you, let me know if you have any further questions.

Sarah

msfoxymax

Hi

I have completed my CCCS details on the CCCS website and sent my letters and budget to my creditors. 3 creditors are saying i need a cccs client number so I called cccs and they say as i completed all my info online i do not have number and to tell my creditors this. The creditors are now calling me a liar and saying i must give them a number and then they will look at my suggestions for minimum payment. I called back CCCS who said i definately do not need a client number and to tell creditors this. I feel as if i'm going round in circles! Can you please help as it's driving me mad getting 8+ calls a day from each creditor and having to keep explaining it.

Mrs_JM

Hi, I'm hoping someone can help!

My husband and I are in quite a bit of trouble with our money. We usually run out of money well before the next payday and end up borrowing from family which we then have to pay back at the beginning of the next month which has got us into a vicious circle. We have 2 loans, a credit card, a huge mortgage (which includes an extra unsecured amount of £30k) and an overdraft and we can't see our way out at all. We're looking at maybe doing an IVA but I have been told that at the end of this they would ask us to re-mortgage out house to release equity - is this correct? The house is in negative equity at the moment. Then I was thinking about going bankrupt but I'm not sure what the implications are for this and I don't want to lose the house if possible as we have a young daughter. There is an added complication in that my husband owns a third share of a small apartment in Spain with his parents and I'm not sure whether this would be taken into account.

Could someone please reply and point me in the right direction for help?? We can't go on like this anymore and it's come to the point when I don't even want to look at the bank balance because I'm so afraid of what it will be! We have tried budgeting but this doesn't seem to be working and there's nothing left to pay for anything unforseen or even basic things like clothes etc.

Thank you.

CCCS_Sarah

DrGonzo1977 wrote: »

Hi

I am just starting a DMP and have informed all my creditors. I still get calls off most of them but MBNA is persaistent calling sometimes about 10 times a day. Is there anyway to stop them harrasing me? Its all getting very depressing.

Thanks in advance.

Hello,

You could try using this letter and see how you get on, if they do continue to call keep a log of dates, times, peoples names etc.

Good Luck
Sarah



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

samantha12345

Hi,

I hope I am posting in the correct place and that you can give me some advice on my current dilemma:
I received a letter last week from a company called Cabot Financial claiming they have bought an old debt from a bank account I had 13 years ago, they are asking me to get in touch with them to discuss repayment options.
Is acknowledging the debt a good idea?
The debt was from when I was an irresponsible teenager, I left the country to go travelling, leaving an unpaid overdraft of (approx) £400 which I never paid back, Cabot Financial are now asking for £1340.
I don't know whether I got taken to court over it or not as the address I opened the account from was rented with a couple of other friends who moved out at the same time so I never received any post.
If I did get a ccj, will it have disappeared by now from the Registry trust as it was 12+ years ago?
Basically, my question is, how do I know for sure whether the debt is statute-barred, or whether I have a CCJ and am therefore legally obliged to repay?
And, either way, should I ignore, or reply to Cabot?
I am a 35 year old student now with two small children and a mortgage, i.e. I cannot afford to repay the £1300
Thanks so much for any advice,
Sam