Cccs

insider66

a lot of people seem to swear by their advice. i may be the only one here to disagree, but does everyone realise why they are a "charity".
has anyone contributed to their running costs like you would a normal charity?
who pays for their work?
your creditors pay....
who's side are they on???

simbalou

Insider66, have you actually had to deal with CCCS yourself? Most people do know that their charity status is funded by the main players in the world of credit. The creditors give them money because when people approach CCCS they are in financial difficulty, some on the verge of bankruptcy. If the CCCS did not help these people (including myself) who genuinely want to pay back every single penny they have borrowed then the credit companies would get nothing.

The CCCS give people an acceptable income, you can actually afford essentials such as food, clothes, bills and the excess goes to pay off your debts.

So what's your problem with them being this 'charity'? They help people out of a very dark place and as clients of this charity I can hold my head high. My kids get fed, they have clothes on their back and I am paying my debts off, something I would never be able to do without the CCCS.

moneysavingplumber

I'm inclined to agree with some of what the OP has said.

I'm sure that they do give some very good advice but when I dealt with them in '02 they weren't a great deal of help. I certainly was aware that they were funded by the credit companies even then of which I remember some critics in the media referring to. I think I'd already negotiated freezing of interest on several accounts and was making token, pro rata payments but I also had income tax arrears, at which point they are suddenly unable to help at all.

They specifically advised me not to go into an IVA, despite the fact that if I hadn't gone into an IVA then bankruptcy would have been inevitable (or Distraint from the Inland Revenue which I was not prepared to put my wife through), and that would have severely damaged my small business and I would have ended up as a site plumber chasing day work, but they couldn't seem to comprehend this at all. All of my customers and suppliers would have known, and even my non-defaulted trade accounts would have been included and I would have been barred from my main supplier. As it was I took my own advice and took on the IVA, kept up the payments, continued trading successfully (until I went for a career change last year) and completed the IVA last month.

simbalou

I suppose everyones circumstances are different. Good on you moneysavingplumber for following your instincts and going with the IVA. I on the otherhand was overwhelmed and scared about what was going to happen to me and just wanted someone to let me know that there's light and the end of the tunnel.

CCCS worked for me but I'm sure there's a lot of people out there that chose not to use them for other reasons. At the end of the day, especially in this climate I'm just glad there are places for people to turn that can help.

GeorgeUK

Funny how it's usually other Debt Management organisations that say stuff like this. It's well known that CCCS are funded by the financial sector - that's also one of the reasons why when you get into serious difficulties, your bank may suggest you contact CCCS. They are easy to deal with and the banks know they will be dealing with a reputable organisation.

Congrats on completing the IVA moneysavingplumber

skintandscared_2

I thought they got their funds from the interest on the monies they hold between the 1st and the 25th of the month.

simbalou

I was told that they use the interest they receive on your money as your charitable contribution. On all the information back they sent through to me they were quite open about getting money from credit companies, I think it's mentioned on their website somewhere too.

newlywed

And so what if the credit companies help fund them????

Would the credit companies have stopped my interest without the help of CCCS? I doubt it as I didn't have enough info and confidence to do my own DMP.

So my interest has stopped, my payments are lower than they were, and I can afford to live, feed my family and get to work each day.

I want to pay back all that I borrowed (that's why I'm not going down the whole CCA route), I just needed some help to be able to sort things out so that I could pay it back.

CCCS helped me to sort that out. I have no problems if the banks that charged me £££££'s of interest fund them, it's about time they did something helpful with their profits.

rugbymum

I thought OP wanted a debate about CCCS, but seems to have disappeared .
Noone is perfect, least of all any of us, that's why we are here.
CCCS may have their faults but they give vulnerable people a chance to take a deep breath and get they help that they need.
Having contemplated suicide due to harrasment from creditors I, for one, am grateful that they exist!

pepe2008

rugbymum wrote: »

I thought OP wanted a debate about CCCS, but seems to have disappeared .
Noone is perfect, least of all any of us, that's why we are here.
CCCS may have their faults but they give vulnerable people a chance to take a deep breath and get they help that they need.
Having contemplated suicide due to harrasment from creditors I, for one, am grateful that they exist!

Well said, with £60K of debt if it was not for CCCS I'd be in with the Dorrits!!

Try doing a dmp on your own and your creditors will be apt not to believe a word you say and Court becomes a definite thing.

insider66

Hi everyone, sorry for the delay in replying to your messages, I have to work too!
The CCCS recommend 3% of people for an IVA, how many do they recommend bankruptcy to? None.
The reason is simple, they want the creditors to receive as much money as possible even when bankruptcy or an IVA would be a better option.
Contrary to the popular myth on many of these posts, an IVA is not only for homeowners to protect their assets, it is also a very good option for people without assets to protect but do not want to be bankrupt.